ndem ندم
Moroccan Darija · verb
“ndem” (ندم) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning to regret, repent.
Meanings
- to regret, repent
Usage
The verb ndem (imperfect yendem) means "to regret" an action or a decision. It is constructed with 3la: ndemt 3la dak chi, "I regretted that". It is often used in the negative or as a warning: ma tendem 3la walou, "don't regret anything". Important pitfall: in arabizi, the same spelling ndem or nddem is often used to write nḍḍem, "to organize", which comes from a different root. This is the case in several of the sentences collected, which are about organizing one's time or meals. Context and the doubled consonant tell them apart.
Example
ندمت على داك الشي اللي قلت ليه
ndemt 3la dak chi lli glt lih
“I regretted what I said to him.”
Conjugation
Forms as recorded in DODa and reproduced in its spelling, which often leaves out short vowels.
| Imperfective (present) | Perfective (past) | Imperative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ana (I) | kanndm | ndmt | |
| nta (you, m.) | katndm | ndmti | ndm |
| nti (you, f.) | katndmi | ndmti | ndmi |
| howa (he) | kayndm | ndm | |
| hiya (she) | katndm | ndmat | |
| 7na (we) | kanndmo | ndmna | |
| ntouma (you, pl.) | katndmo | ndmto | ndmo |
| homa (they) | kayndmo | ndmo |
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “ndem” but also “ndm”, “nedem”, “ndam”, “nddem” and “neddem”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “ndem” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “regret, remorse”; “to regret (verb form ndim)”: ndam in Tunisian.