delfin دلفين
Moroccan Darija · noun
“delfin” (دلفين) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning dolphin.
Meanings
- dolphin
Usage
Delfin refers to the dolphin, the marine animal. The word comes from Standard Arabic and belongs to everyday vocabulary, but it is mostly heard when talking about the sea, documentaries or boat trips. The most frequent plural is dlafen; delfinat is also heard, under the influence of Standard Arabic. Some speakers use the French word dauphin directly, especially in diaspora families. It has no particular figurative meaning in darija.
Example
شفنا الدلفين فالبحر
chefna ddelfin f lb7er
“We saw a dolphin at sea.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “delfin” but also “dlfin”, “dalfin” and “dalfine”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.