lil ليل
Moroccan Darija · noun
“lil” (ليل) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning night (period).
Meanings
- night (period)
Usage
The word l-lil means night in general, as a period opposed to day (n-nhar). It is found mainly in adverbial expressions: f l-lil ("at night"), b l-lil ("by night"), n-nhar w l-lil ("day and night"), nuss l-lil ("midnight"). To give the time, people say dyal l-lil, or ta3 l-lil in the North and the Oriental: jouj dyal l-lil ("two in the morning"). For a specific night or "tonight", lila is usually used instead.
Example
ماكيجينيش نعاسّ ف ليل
makijinich n3ass f lil
“I can't sleep at night.”
Forms
| feminine | lila |
|---|---|
| plural | lyali |
| feminine plural | lilat |
Forms as recorded in DODa, in its spelling.
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “lil” but also “llil”, “lile” and “liil”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “lil” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “night”; “at night, during the night (adverbial)”: lil in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “night”; “evening, night-time”: lil in Tunisian.