wahed واحد
Algerian Darja · numeral
“wahed” (واحد) is a numeral in Algerian Darja meaning one (number).
Meanings
- one (number)
- a, a certain (indefinite article)
- someone
Usage
Wahed is the numeral "one"; its feminine is wahda. It is also very often used as an indefinite article, followed by the noun with the article: wahed er-rajel, "a man", or wahed n-nhar, "one day". Used alone, it refers to an unspecified person: kayen wahed yestennak, "someone is waiting for you". To stress uniqueness, it is placed after the noun: youm wahed, "just one day". Note that in the indefinite use, the article al- remains present after wahed.
Example
شريت واحد الطوموبيل جديدة.
chrit wahed tomobil jdida.
“I bought a new car.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “wahed” but also “wa7ed”, “wahd”, “wa7d” and “ouahed”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat.
Type “wahed” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “one (number)”; “a, an (indefinite article)”: wahed in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “one (number), only one”; “someone, a person”: wa7ed in Tunisian.