lsan لسان
Moroccan Darija · noun
“lsan” (لسان) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning tongue (organ).
Meanings
- tongue (organ)
- language, way of speaking
Usage
Lsan first means the tongue, the organ: 7req lia lsani "I burned my tongue". It is also used in expressions about speech: lsano twil "he has a sharp tongue, he is insolent", 3ndo lsan "he knows how to talk". For a language in the sense of an idiom, lougha is more usual. The pitfall comes from writing: the spellings lisar or liser point to the word meaning "left". That word is distinct from lsan, and context lets you tell them apart.
Example
تحرق ليا لساني بأتاي
t7re9 lia lsani b atay
“I burned my tongue with the tea.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “lsan” but also “lissan”, “lisan”, “lsane” and “lssan”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “lsan” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “tongue (organ)”; “speech, way of speaking”: lsan in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “tongue (organ)”; “tongue (of a shoe)”: lsen in Tunisian.