kan كان
Moroccan Darija · verb
“kan” (كان) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning to be (past), he was.
Meanings
- to be (past), he was
- past auxiliary (used to)
- to exist, there was
Usage
Kan is the base form of the verb "to be", in the third person masculine past: "he was". It is conjugated as follows: kont (I was, you were), kanet (she was), kanou (they were). In the present, darija generally uses no verb: "howa f dar" means "he is at home". Kan followed by a verb with ka- forms the habitual imperfect: "kan kaykhdem" translates as "he used to work" or "he was working". Kan does not mean "I": in the first person, you have to say kont.
Example
كان ف الحبس
kan f l7ebs
“He was in prison.”
Conjugation
Forms as recorded in DODa and reproduced in its spelling, which often leaves out short vowels.
| Imperfective (present) | Perfective (past) | Imperative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ana (I) | kankoun | knt | |
| nta (you, m.) | katkoun | knti | koun |
| nti (you, f.) | katkouni | knti | kouni |
| howa (he) | kaykoun | kan | |
| hiya (she) | katkoun | kant | |
| 7na (we) | kankouno | knna | |
| ntouma (you, pl.) | katkouno | knto | kouno |
| homa (they) | kaykouno | kano |
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “kan” but also “kann” and “kaan”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “kan” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “was, has been”; “past habitual auxiliary (kan + imperfective)”: kan in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “was; to be (past)”; “if (condition)”: ken in Tunisian.