7ma9 حماق
Moroccan Darija · noun
“7ma9” (حماق) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning madness, insanity.
Meanings
- madness, insanity
- fit of rage
Usage
l7ma9 means madness, both literally and figuratively. In everyday speech it is used mostly hyperbolically: had chi ghadi y3tini l7ma9 (this is going to drive me mad), tla3 lih l7ma9 (he flew into a rage, he went mad with anger). The register is informal. The corresponding adjective is 7me9 (mad); in Arabic script, it can be confused with this noun. The letter 9 stands for the sound q, often pronounced like a g in some regions.
Example
هادشي غادي يعطيني الحماق
hadchi ghadi y3tini l7ma9
“This is going to drive me mad.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “7ma9” but also “7maq”, “hmaq” and “7me9”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat; 9 is qaf (ق), a k pronounced at the back of the throat.