debban دبّان
Moroccan Darija · noun
“debban” (دبّان) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning flies (collective).
Meanings
- flies (collective)
Usage
Debban is a collective noun: it refers to flies in general and often takes masculine singular agreement, for example debban kayketer (there are more and more flies). For a single fly, one says debbana. The word appears in figurative expressions: the image of flies swarming is used to talk about profiteers or filth. For an English speaker, the pitfall is agreement: one does not say "the flies are", but rather something closer to "the fly-collective is".
Example
دبان كايكتر معا زبالة لي حدانا
dban kaykter m3a zbala li 7dana
“The flies are multiplying with the garbage near our place.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “debban” but also “dban”, “dbban” and “deban”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.