l7did لحديد
Moroccan Darija · noun
“l7did” (لحديد) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning iron, metal.
Meanings
- iron, metal
- weightlifting
Usage
L7did, with the article built in, means iron and, more broadly, metal: "bab dyal l7did", an iron door. Among young people, it also means weightlifting, in reference to dumbbells and barbells. You say "kandir l7did" for "I lift weights" and "dar l7did" for someone who has built up muscle. This second sense is colloquial but very widespread. The context, sports or materials, always shows which sense is meant.
Example
هاد الباب ديال لحديد، تقيل بزاف.
had lbab dyal l7did, t9il bzaf.
“This door is made of iron, it's very heavy.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “l7did” but also “le7did”, “la7did” and “lhdid”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat.
Type “l7did” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “weight training (in drab l7did)”; “iron, scrap metal”: l7did in Tunisian.