3tiraf إعتراف
Moroccan Darija · noun
“3tiraf” (إعتراف) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning confession, admission.
Meanings
- confession, admission
- recognition (official or moral)
Usage
3tiraf (or i3tiraf) is a learned word, but it is well established in everyday language. It has two uses. The first is confession: a suspect who confesses, or someone who admits their feelings (3tiraf b lḥobb). The second is recognition: of a state, a diploma or a merit. The corresponding verb is 3tarf b, "to confess, to acknowledge". It takes the preposition b: 3tarf b ghalṭo, "he admitted his mistake". In this sense, it is more natural than longer phrasings. The register remains somewhat formal; in daily life, people also say gal l-ḥaqq.
Example
عطاها إعتراف قدام الناس كاملين
3taha 3tiraf qeddam nnas kamlin
“He made a confession to her in front of everybody.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3tiraf” but also “i3tiraf”, “e3tiraf” and “3tiraaf”. 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.