l9ddam لڭدّام
Moroccan Darija · adverb
“l9ddam” (لڭدّام) is an adverb in Moroccan Darija meaning forward, ahead.
Meanings
- forward, ahead
- in front
- later on, in the future
Usage
Lgeddam is formed from the article l- and geddam, "in front". It is used mostly with verbs of movement: zid lgeddam ("move forward"), sir lgeddam ("go ahead"), rjeε lgeddam. It can also indicate a position: huwa lgeddam ("he is in front"). Figuratively, zid lgeddam also means "keep going, don't give up". The sound g, often written 9 online, is pronounced like the hard g of "go". Depending on the region, you also hear qeddam, with a q. Do not confuse it with geddam followed by a complement, which works as the preposition "in front of": geddam ddar ("in front of the house").
Example
علاش مابغيتيش تزيد لڭدّام
3lach mabghitich t zid lgoddam
“Why don't you want to move forward?”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “l9ddam” but also “lgddam”, “l9eddam”, “lgeddam” and “lgoddam”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 9 is qaf (ق), a k pronounced at the back of the throat.