bel3aks بالعكس

Moroccan Darija · adverb

“bel3aks” (بالعكس) is an adverb in Moroccan Darija meaning on the contrary.

Meanings

1. on the contrary
2. the other way round, in reverse

Usage

Bel3aks corresponds to "on the contrary". It is often used at the start of a sentence to politely contradict an assumption or an excuse. If someone fears they are disturbing you, you answer "bel3aks!", that is, "not at all, quite the opposite". The word can also mean that something turned out the opposite of what one hoped. The register is common, from casual conversation to more careful speech. The noun "l3aks" means "the reverse, the opposite".

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “bel3aks” but also “bl3aks”, “bil3aks”, “bel3eks” and “bl3ekss”. 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.

Type “bel3aks” on the Arabic keyboard

In Algerian Darja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “on the contrary”; “the wrong way round, reversed”: bel3aks in Algerian.

In Tunisian Derja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “on the contrary”; “the wrong way round, conversely”: bel3aks in Tunisian.

How to say “on the contrary” in Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian