nsa نسا
Moroccan Darija · verb
“nsa” (نسا) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning to forget.
Meanings
- to forget
- to let go, never mind
Usage
Nsa (imperfect yensa) means "to forget". The past tense is conjugated: nsit, nsiti, nsa, nsat, nsaw. The same form nsa serves as the imperative. In ghir nsa, "forget it", and safi nsa, "let it go", it expresses reassurance or giving up. The construction nsa 3la… stresses the idea of setting a matter aside. In the negative, one says ma nsitch or ma3mmerni nensa, "I will never forget". Pitfall: the spelling nsa also writes the noun nsa, "women". Only context distinguishes them.
Example
غير نسا هادشي
ghir nsa hadchi
“Just forget about that.”
Conjugation
Forms as recorded in DODa and reproduced in its spelling, which often leaves out short vowels.
| Imperfective (present) | Perfective (past) | Imperative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ana (I) | kannsa | nsit | |
| nta (you, m.) | katnsa | nsiti | nsa |
| nti (you, f.) | katnsay | nsiti | nsay |
| howa (he) | kaynsa | nsa | |
| hiya (she) | katnsa | nsaat | |
| 7na (we) | kannsaw | nsina | |
| ntouma (you, pl.) | katnsaw | nsito | nsaw |
| homa (they) | kaynsaw | nsao |
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “nsa” but also “nssa”, “nsaa” and “nnsa”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “nsa” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “to forget”; “women (collective noun, nsa)”: nsa in Tunisian.