poudra البودرة
Algerian Darja · noun
“poudra” (البودرة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning powder, talc.
Meanings
- powder, talc
- powdered drug (slang)
Usage
An adapted borrowing from French "poudre", feminine: el poudra, sometimes pronounced boudra. In everyday life it mainly means the talcum powder put on babies, as well as makeup powder. In a slang register, notably in the press or among young people, el poudra can mean a hard drug in powder form, as in colloquial French. Context generally removes the ambiguity. For food powders (powdered milk, yeast), the product is usually named rather than using this word alone.
Example
حطّ شويّة بودرة للبيبي
7ot chwiya poudra lel bebe
“Put a little talcum powder on the baby.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “poudra” but also “boudra” and “poudre”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.