portfay پورطفاي
Algerian Darja · noun
“portfay” (پورطفاي) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning wallet, billfold.
Meanings
- wallet, billfold
Usage
Portfay is the adapted borrowing of French "portefeuille". It is the most common word in Algeria for the wallet in which you keep banknotes and papers. It is masculine and used in all registers of everyday conversation: portfay ntaâi ("my wallet"), nsit portfay ("I forgot my wallet"). You also hear tezdam, an older and more local word, which mainly means a purse or coin purse. The plural is rarely used; you sometimes hear portfayat.
Example
نسيت البورطفاي فالدار.
nsit le portfay fe dar.
“I forgot my wallet at home.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “portfay” but also “portefay”, “portfai” and “porttfay”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.