ta9riban تقريبا
Algerian Darja · adverb
“ta9riban” (تقريبا) is an adverb in Algerian Darja meaning almost, roughly.
Meanings
- almost, roughly
- approximately (with a number)
Usage
Taqriban (often pronounced te9riben) is of Standard Arabic origin but very common in darja. It expresses approximation, before or after what it qualifies: taqriban kif kif (almost the same), sa3a taqriban (about an hour). It also softens a statement: taqriban kamel (almost all). The register is neutral, in speech and in writing. It competes with the colloquial expression 9rib (soon, almost).
Example
تقريبا كملت الخدمة
ta9riban kemmelt lekhedma
“I've almost finished the work.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “ta9riban” but also “taqriban” and “t9riban”. 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 “ta9riban” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “approximately, about”; “almost”: t9riban in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “almost, approximately”; “roughly”: ta9riban in Tunisian.