wejjah وجه

Algerian Darja · verb

“wejjah” (وجه) is a verb in Algerian Darja meaning to direct, guide someone.

Meanings

1. to direct, guide someone
2. to turn towards, address

Usage

Wejjah, with the middle consonant doubled, means "to direct", "to guide" or "to address". It is said, for example, of a doctor who refers a patient to a department, or of an administration that sends you to another office: "wejjhouni l'sbitar". The register is rather administrative or formal. The main pitfall: do not confuse this verb with the noun wjeh (or wejh), "face", which is much more frequent in speech. That noun appears in expressions such as "wejh el khir", "a person who brings good luck". In unvowelled writing, the two words are spelled the same.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “wejjah” but also “wajjah”, “wejjeh”, “wejah” and “wajah”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.

Type “wejjah” on the Arabic keyboard

In Moroccan Darija

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “to direct, steer toward”; “to address (words, a request)”: wejjeh in Moroccan.

In Tunisian Derja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “face”; “look, expression, appearance”: wejh in Tunisian.