7tejj حتجّ
Moroccan Darija · verb
“7tejj” (حتجّ) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning to protest, to object.
Meanings
- to protest, to object
- to voice discontent
Usage
A verb borrowed from Standard Arabic and well integrated into darija: 7tejj (perfect), y7tejj (imperfect). It is used for an individual or collective protest: against a decision, a referee, a boss, the government. The usual construction is 7tejj 3la + person or thing, meaning "to protest against" or "to protest to". The register is neutral, a little more formal than se chki (to complain). The corresponding noun is l7tijaj, "the protest". In writing, the personal prefix is sometimes detached (n 7tejj, t 7tejj), which does not change the meaning.
Example
كون غير قدرت ن حتج عليه
koun ghir 9dert n 7tejj 3lih
“If only I had been able to protest to him.”
Conjugation
Forms as recorded in DODa and reproduced in its spelling, which often leaves out short vowels.
| Imperfective (present) | Perfective (past) | Imperative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ana (I) | kan7tejj | 7tejjit | |
| nta (you, m.) | kat7tejj | 7tejjiti | 7tejj |
| nti (you, f.) | kat7tejji | 7tejjiti | 7tejji |
| howa (he) | kay7tejj | 7tejj | |
| hiya (she) | kat7tejj | 7tejjat | |
| 7na (we) | kan7tejjo | 7tejjina | |
| ntouma (you, pl.) | kat7tejjo | 7tejjito | 7tejjo |
| homa (they) | kay7tejjo | 7tejjo |
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “7tejj” but also “7tj”, “7tajj”, “htej”, “7tejjo” and “7tjj”. 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.