nefs نفس
Moroccan Darija · noun
“nefs” (نفس) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning same.
Meanings
- same
- breath
- soul, pride
Usage
Nefs has several uses. Placed before a definite noun, it means "the same", as in f nefs lwe9t, "at the same time", or nefs lblan, "the same plan": this is its most frequent use in writing. It also means "breath"; in that sense nfes is more often heard, as in tqta3 lih nfes, "he ran out of breath". Finally, it means "soul, ego". The expression jatu nefs 3la means "to have one's pride stung" or "to take someone's side out of pride". Context tells the senses apart.
Example
راه نفس البلان
rah nafs lblan
“It's the same plan.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “nefs” but also “nafs”, “nfs”, “nefss” and “nfes”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “nefs” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “breath, breathing”; “same (nefs + noun)”: nefs in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “same, identical”; “soul, self, ego”: nafs in Tunisian.