9elle3 قلّع
Moroccan Darija · verb
“9elle3” (قلّع) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning guess! (prompt).
Meanings
- guess! (prompt)
- to pull out, uproot
Usage
The corpus mainly attests 9elle3 or 9le3 in the imperative, meaning "guess". It is used to start a guessing game or to build up a piece of information you are about to reveal. It is often followed by ch7al, "how much", or ach, "what": 9elle3 ch7al jbt, "guess how much I got". This use is informal and spoken. The basic meaning of the verb remains "to pull out, uproot", for example a plant or a tooth. Do not confuse it with 9le3, "to take off" (clothes, shoes).
Example
قلّع شحال جبت فنتيجة
9elle3 ch7al jebt fnatija
“Guess what score I got.”
Conjugation
Forms as recorded in DODa and reproduced in its spelling, which often leaves out short vowels.
| Imperfective (present) | Perfective (past) | Imperative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ana (I) | kan9ll3 | 9ll3t | |
| nta (you, m.) | kat9ll3 | 9ll3ti | 9ll3 |
| nti (you, f.) | kat9ll3i | 9ll3ti | 9ll3i |
| howa (he) | kay9ll3 | 9ll3 | |
| hiya (she) | kat9ll3 | 9ll3at | |
| 7na (we) | kan9ll3o | 9ll3na | |
| ntouma (you, pl.) | kat9ll3o | 9ll3to | 9ll3o |
| homa (they) | kay9ll3o | 9ll3o |
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “9elle3” but also “9lle3”, “9alle3”, “9le3”, “9ella3” and “9ll3”. 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; 9 is qaf (ق), a k pronounced at the back of the throat.
Type “9elle3” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “to take off, remove”; “to pull out, uproot”: gla3 in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “to pull out, extract”; “to take off, remove”: qla3 in Tunisian.