khassatan خاصة
Moroccan Darija · adverb
“khassatan” (خاصة) is an adverb in Moroccan Darija meaning especially, in particular.
Meanings
- especially, in particular
- special (feminine of khass)
Usage
Khassatan, of standard origin, is used in Morocco to mean "especially, in particular", in a somewhat formal register. In speech, many people say khossossan or surtout instead. The form khassa without the final -an is the feminine of the adjective khass: wasfa khassa (a special recipe), madrasa khassa (private school). Pitfall: khassa can also be the verb form "she needs" (khassha, "she needs it"), often written the same way online. You have to read the whole sentence to know which use it is.
Example
كنحب الحوت، خاصة السردين.
kan7eb l7out, khassatan sardin.
“I like fish, especially sardines.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “khassatan” but also “khassa”, “5assatan”, “khasatan”, “5assa” and “khaasatan”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 5 is kha (خ), like the ch in Scottish loch.
Type “khassatan” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “especially, particularly”; “special, private (feminine adjective)”: khassa in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “especially, in particular”; “private, special”: 5assatan in Tunisian.