khesso خسّو
Moroccan Darija · verb
“khesso” (خسّو) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning he must, he has to.
Meanings
- he must, he has to
- he needs, he lacks
Usage
Khesso is the third person masculine form of khess (it is necessary), with the suffix -o (him). Followed by a verb in the imperfect, it expresses obligation: khesso yemchi (he must leave). Followed by a noun, it expresses need: khesso lflous (he needs money). With a general subject such as lwa7ed or l'insan, it takes on a moral sense: one must, one ought to. The feminine is khessha and the plural is khesshom. Khesso is not an ordinary conjugated verb: it is invariable, apart from the suffix.
Example
لواحد خسو يسبر شوية
lwa7ed khsou ysber chwia
“One has to be a bit patient.”
Conjugation
Forms as recorded in DODa and reproduced in its spelling, which often leaves out short vowels.
| Perfective (past) | |
|---|---|
| ana (I) | khssni |
| nta (you, m.) | khssk |
| nti (you, f.) | khssk |
| howa (he) | khsso |
| hiya (she) | khssha |
| 7na (we) | khssna |
| ntouma (you, pl.) | khsskom |
| homa (they) | khsshom |
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “khesso” but also “khsso”, “khessou”, “khso”, “5esso” and “khesou”. 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.