7nech حنش
Moroccan Darija · noun
“7nech” (حنش) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning snake.
Meanings
- snake
- sly, treacherous person (figurative)
Usage
7nech is the common word for "snake" in Morocco. It refers to any snake, venomous or not. It is often specified with an adjective: 7nech msmoum, "venomous snake". The plural is 7nouch. Figuratively, a deceitful or dangerous person who acts on the sly is sometimes called a 7nech. To say "to bite" of a snake, the verb 3edd is used, as for a dog. The word belongs to the neutral register and is used in the countryside as well as in town. Do not confuse it with 7nek, "cheek, jaw".
Example
عدّو حنش مسموم
3DDo 7ench msmoum
“A venomous snake bit him.”
Forms
| plural | 7nach |
|---|
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 “7nech” but also “7ench”, “7nch”, “7anch” and “hench”. 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.
Type “7nech” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “snake”; “sly, treacherous person”: hnech in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “snake”; “sneaky, treacherous person”: 7nach in Tunisian.