bsla بصلة
Moroccan Darija · noun
“bsla” (بصلة) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning onion (vegetable).
Meanings
- onion (vegetable)
- an onion, an onion bulb
Usage
Bsla is the usual word for onion, in the kitchen and at the market. It is a feminine noun. It denotes the single unit (one onion), but is also often used for onion in general, as in "bla bsla", "without onion", very common when ordering a sandwich or a burger. To count, say "wa7d l-bsla" or "joj d l-bsla". It is one of the basic ingredients of almost every tajine and stew. Watch the spelling: the s is emphatic (ṣ), which some write with a capital S.
Example
واش عندك برغر بلا بصلة؟
wach 3andak burger bla bSla?
“Do you have a burger without onion?”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “bsla” but also “basla”, “besla” and “bsela”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “bsla” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “an onion”: bsala in Tunisian.