wach raki واش راكي
Algerian Darja · expression
“wach raki” (واش راكي) is an expression in Algerian Darja meaning how are you? (to a woman).
Meanings
- how are you? (to a woman)
- hi, how's it going? (greeting)
Usage
Wach raki is the most common greeting for asking a woman how she is. Wach means "what, how" and raki is the feminine form of "you are". For a man, one says wach rak, and for a plural, wach rakoum. It is often followed by labas? or cha rakum dayrin? The usual answer is labas, el hamdoulah. For an English speaker, the pitfall is forgetting gender agreement: saying wach rak to a woman sounds wrong. The expression is familiar and suits both close friends and acquaintances.
Example
واش راكي يا ختي، لاباس عليك؟
wach raki ya khti, labas 3lik ?
“How are you, sister? Is everything all right?”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “wach raki” but also “wesh raki”, “wech raki”, “ouach raki” and “wach rakii”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.