ni9ach نقاش
Algerian Darja · noun
“ni9ach” (نقاش) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning discussion, debate.
Meanings
- discussion, debate
- argument, dispute
Usage
Ni9ach means a discussion or debate, often a contentious one. It is found above all in the phrases "bla ni9ach" or "bdoun ni9ach", meaning "beyond discussion, undeniably". These phrases accompany a final judgment, for example "the best TV series, bla ni9ach". With the verbs "ndkhol fi ni9ach" or "ndir ni9ach", it means to start a discussion. The word comes from Standard Arabic, and its register is a bit more refined than "hadra" or "mnaghcha" (argument). In online comments, it often signals a tense exchange.
Example
هادي أحسن ماكلة في الدنيا بلا نقاش.
hadi ahsen makla fddounya bla ni9ach.
“This is the best dish in the world, no argument.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “ni9ach” but also “n9ach”, “nikach”, “niqach” and “ne9ach”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 9 is qaf (ق), a k pronounced at the back of the throat.
Type “ni9ach” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “discussion, debate”; “argument, quarrel”: n9ach in Tunisian.