mtfi مطفي
Moroccan Darija · adjective
“mtfi” (مطفي) is an adjective in Moroccan Darija meaning switched off, extinguished (light, device, fire).
Meanings
- switched off, extinguished (light, device, fire)
- listless, dull
Usage
Mtfi is the passive participle of the verb tfa (to switch off, put out). It mainly describes a device, a lamp or a phone that is powered off, or a fire, a cigarette, an oven. It agrees in gender and number: mtfiya in the feminine, mtfiyin in the plural. For a phone, people often say tilifoun dyalu mtfi to explain that they can't reach someone. Colloquially, it is also applied to a person who is tired, dull or unresponsive. The opposite is cha3el (on, lit). Careful: tfa means "to switch off", whereas cha3el means "on".
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “mtfi” but also “mtafi”, “metfi” and “mtefi”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “mtfi” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “switched off (light, device, fire)”; “matte (finish, photo)”: mtfi in Tunisian.