rkhes رخس
Algerian Darja · noun
“rkhes” (رخس) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning baseness; vile or servile conduct.
Meanings
- baseness; vile or servile conduct
- cheapness; low price
Usage
Rkhes (often pronounced or written rkhis, with s instead of the emphatic s) mainly refers, in everyday speech, to moral baseness: lack of dignity, servility, unworthy behavior. It is used in harsh judgments about someone or a group, often alongside words like chita (flattery, fawning) or the absence of nif (pride, honor). The register is colloquial and clearly pejorative, even hurtful if aimed at a person. The original meaning, "low price", remains possible, but it is more often expressed with rkhiss (cheap). Pitfall: it is not a mere remark about price; applied to someone, it is an attack on their honor.
Example
هادا رخس، الراجل ما يديرش هاكا
hada rkhes, rrajel ma ydirch haka
“This is baseness, a man doesn't do that.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “rkhes” but also “rkhis”, “rekhs”, “rkhs” and “r5es”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 5 is kha (خ), like the ch in Scottish loch.