hemm همّ
Moroccan Darija · noun
“hemm” (همّ) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning worry, concern.
Meanings
- worry, concern
- grief, sorrow
Usage
The noun hemm means a worry, a concern or a grief. The plural is hmum. One says 3endi lhemm (I have worries), hemmu kbir (his grief is great), zad lih lhemm (he added to his worries). The word appears in many proverbs: li ma 3endu hemm, katweldu lu hmartu (whoever has no worries always ends up with one). The verb from the same root, hemm, means "to concern, to matter": had chi ma kayhemmnich (that doesn't concern me). This verb is mostly used in the negative.
Example
مابقيتش باغي نزيدك همّ.
mab9itch baghi nzidek hemm.
“I don't want to add to your worries anymore.”
Conjugation
Forms as recorded in DODa and reproduced in its spelling, which often leaves out short vowels.
| Imperfective (present) | Imperative | |
|---|---|---|
| ana (I) | kan8emm | |
| nta (you, m.) | kat8emm | 8emm |
| nti (you, f.) | kat8emmi | 8emmi |
| howa (he) | kay8emm | |
| hiya (she) | kat8emm | |
| 7na (we) | kan8emmo | |
| ntouma (you, pl.) | kat8emmo | 8emmo |
| homa (they) | kay8emmo |
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “hemm” but also “hem”, “8emm” and “hamm”. 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 “hemm” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “to concern, to be someone's business”; “to matter to, to interest”: hem in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “worry, trouble”; “grief, sorrow”: hamm in Tunisian.