3jina عجينة
Moroccan Darija · noun
“3jina” (عجينة) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning dough (bread, cake).
Meanings
- dough (bread, cake)
- ball of dough
Usage
The word 3jina refers to the dough obtained by kneading flour and water, especially for homemade bread, msemmen, harcha or cakes. It is most often used with the article: l3jina. The related verb is 3jen, "to knead". Dough is said to need to rise (tkhmmer) before being shaped or baked. Note that 3jina does not mean pasta, which is called makarona or chi3riya depending on the shape. The word belongs to everyday kitchen vocabulary and is used in all registers.
Example
خلّي العجينة تخمّر شي ساعة
khlli l3jina tkhmmer chi sa3a
“Let the dough rise for about an hour.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3jina” but also “3jjina”, “3ajina” and “3jinaa”. 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 “3jina” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “dough (bread, cake)”; “lump of dough”: 3jina in Tunisian.