How to say “to take long” in Darija
In Algerian, you say “tawel”; in Tunisian, “bta”.
In Algerian Darja
tawel طول
A verb meaning “to be late, take long”; “to lengthen, make longer”; “to stay a long time”.
ما تطوّلش، راني نستناك.: “Don't be long, I'm waiting for you.”
In Tunisian Derja
bta بطى
A verb meaning “to take long, be late”; “to keep someone waiting”; “to be slow”.
علاش بطيت؟ قعدت نستنا فيك برشا: “Why did you take so long? I waited for you a long time.”