fayadan فيضان
Moroccan Darija · noun
“fayadan” (فيضان) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning flood.
Meanings
- flood
- river overflow
Usage
Fayadan is the formal word for a flood. It comes from standard Arabic and is heard mostly in the media, or when talking about a disaster: l-fayadanat (the floods). In everyday conversation, Moroccans more readily say l-hmla for a wadi in spate or water invading the streets, and ghreq to say a place is under water. Fayadan is understood by everyone, but it sounds more formal. The plural fayadanat is very frequent in the news after heavy rain.
Example
الفيضان خسر بزاف ديال الديور
l-fayadan khesser bzaf dyal d-dyour
“The flood damaged a lot of houses.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “fayadan” but also “fayadane” and “fayadanat”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.