khotwa خطوة
Moroccan Darija · noun
“khotwa” (خطوة) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning step (of the foot).
Meanings
- step (of the foot)
- step, stage, move
Usage
The word khoTwa (plural khoTwat) first means the step you take when walking: zid khoTwa l9ddam, "take a step forward". As in English, it is also used figuratively for a stage or a decision in a project: khoTwa kbira, "a big step". "First step" is awwel khoTwa. The register is neutral and it is used in speech and writing alike. It often appears in phrases close to Standard Arabic, for example f littijah SSa7i7, "in the right direction". For "to walk", the verb tmcha is more usual. The verb khTa, "to step over", also exists.
Example
راه خطوة كبيرة!
rah khoTwa kbira!
“It's a big step!”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “khotwa” but also “khtwa”, “5atwa”, “5otwa”, “khatwa” and “5twa”. 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 “khotwa” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “step (when walking)”; “step, move, initiative”: khetwa in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “step (when walking)”; “step, move, measure”: 5atwa in Tunisian.