dher ضهر

Moroccan Darija · noun

“dher” (ضهر) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning back (body).

Meanings

1. back (body)
2. noon, midday prayer

Usage

The same Arabic spelling covers two words with different pronunciations. Dher (or dhar) means the back: "ḍherni kayḍerrni" (my back hurts). It is also used figuratively: "3ṭah ḍhru" (he turned his back on him). Ḍ-ḍhor (or dohr) means the midday prayer and, by extension, the hour of noon: "mn ba3d ḍ-ḍhor" (early in the afternoon). This second sense is recognized by the article and the time context. Be careful to distinguish the vowels. Online spellings with 8 render the h.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “dher” but also “d8er”, “dhar”, “dohr”, “d8r” and “d8ar”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.

Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 8 is light ha (ه) or ghayn (غ), depending on the writer.

Type “dher” on the Arabic keyboard

In Tunisian Derja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “noon, midday”; “noon prayer”: dhohr in Tunisian.