3omoumi عمومي
Moroccan Darija · adjective
“3omoumi” (عمومي) is an adjective in Moroccan Darija meaning public, state-run.
Meanings
- public, state-run
- general, common
Usage
3omoumi mainly describes what belongs to the public service or the state, as opposed to the private sector, called khass or "privé". It is heard in common expressions: sbitar 3omoumi (public hospital), lmadrassa l3omoumiya (public school), nnaql l3omoumi (public transport), lwazifa l3omoumiya (civil service). The feminine is 3omoumiya. It is a learned term, but part of everyday vocabulary, especially when talking about administration, health or education. In the feminine, it sometimes takes a more general nuance ("general", "common"), especially in a formal register.
Example
قرا فالمدرسة العمومية حتى للباك
9ra f lmadrassa l3omoumiya 7tta l lbac
“He studied at the public school up to the bac.”
Forms
| feminine | 3omoumia |
|---|---|
| plural | 3omoumiyin |
| feminine plural | 3omoumiat |
Forms as recorded in DODa, in its spelling.
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3omoumi” but also “3omomi”, “3oumoumi”, “3omoumiya” and “omoumi”. 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 “3omoumi” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “public, for everyone's use”; “public-sector, state-run”: 3moumi in Tunisian.