magana ماڭانة
Moroccan Darija · noun
“magana” (ماڭانة) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning watch (wristwatch).
Meanings
- watch (wristwatch)
- clock
- alarm clock
Usage
Magana is the everyday spoken word for a watch or a clock. It is feminine: "magana jdida", "l-magana dyali". To ask the time, one does not use magana but sa3a: "ch7al f sa3a?". This is a pitfall, because sa3a means both "hour" and, in a more formal register, "watch". Magana is also used for an alarm clock ("magana dyal n3as" or "setting the magana"). The most commonly heard plural is maganat. The word belongs to the familiar, everyday register.
Example
نسيت الماڭانة ديالي فالدار
nsit l-magana dyali f dar
“I forgot my watch at home.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “magana” but also “maggana”, “mag9ana” and “makana”. 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.