3allem علّم
Moroccan Darija · verb
“3allem” (علّم) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning to teach, instruct.
Meanings
- to teach, instruct
- to mark, flag
Usage
3allem means to teach someone something or to educate them. The construction is 3allem + person + verb or noun: 3allemni nsou9 ("he taught me to drive"). Do not confuse it with t3allem, "to learn" in the sense of studying oneself. The same Arabic spelling is also used for the noun 3ilm ("science, knowledge"), borrowed from Standard Arabic, as in 3ilm l2a7ya2 ("biology"). It also matches the expression 3lem llah ("God alone knows"). Only context resolves the ambiguity.
Example
باه هو اللي علّمني نسوق
bah howa lli 3allemni nsou9
“It's my father who taught me to drive.”
Conjugation
Forms as recorded in DODa and reproduced in its spelling, which often leaves out short vowels.
| Imperfective (present) | Perfective (past) | Imperative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ana (I) | kan3llem | 3llemt | |
| nta (you, m.) | kat3llem | 3llemti | 3llem |
| nti (you, f.) | kat3llmi | 3llemti | 3llmi |
| howa (he) | kay3llem | 3llem | |
| hiya (she) | kat3llem | 3llmat | |
| 7na (we) | kan3llmo | 3llmna | |
| ntouma (you, pl.) | kat3llmo | 3llemto | 3llmo |
| homa (they) | kay3llmo | 3llmo |
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3allem” but also “3llem”, “3ellem”, “3lem”, “3alem” and “3ilm”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 3 is ayn (ع), a voiced sound from deep in the throat with no English equivalent.
Type “3allem” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “to teach, instruct someone”; “to educate, train”: 3allem in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “science, knowledge”; “flag (pronounced 3lam)”: 3elm in Tunisian.