3er9el عرقل
Moroccan Darija · verb
“3er9el” (عرقل) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning to trip someone up.
Meanings
- to trip someone up
- to hinder, obstruct a project
Usage
The verb 3er9el first means to make someone stumble, for example with a trip. It is very frequent in football: 3er9lou, "he brought him down." Figuratively, it means to slow down or block a matter, a file or a project. In this sense, it is often heard in administrative or political discourse. The corresponding noun is l3er9ala, "the obstacle, the hindrance." The construction is direct, with no preposition: 3er9el lmachrou3, "he blocked the project."
Example
عرقلو فالماتش وطاح.
3er9lou f lmatch w tah.
“He tripped him during the match and he fell.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3er9el” but also “3r9el”, “3ar9al”, “3er9l” and “3ar9el”. 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; 9 is qaf (ق), a k pronounced at the back of the throat.
Type “3er9el” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “to obstruct, to hinder, to block”; “to trip (someone) (football)”: 3arkel in Tunisian.