mlli ماللي
Moroccan Darija · conjunction
“mlli” (ماللي) is a conjunction in Moroccan Darija meaning when, whenever.
Meanings
- when, whenever
- since (the time when)
- since, given that
Usage
Mlli is the most common temporal conjunction in darija for "when". It is used mostly for a past or habitual event: "mlli jit", when I came; "mlli kont sghir", when I was little. The verb that follows is generally in the perfect or the habitual imperfect. Depending on context, mlli can also mean "since" (time) or "since" (given that). Note: for the question "when?", you don't say mlli but fuqash or imta. Spellings vary a lot (mlli, melli, malli), because the initial vowel is very short in speech.
Example
ماللي كنت صغير كنت ساكن ف كازا.
mlli kont sghir kont saken f casa.
“When I was little, I lived in Casablanca.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “mlli” but also “melli”, “mli”, “malli” and “milli”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “mlli” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “since, ever since”; “of what, from among what”: malli in Tunisian.