sab صاب
Moroccan Darija · verb
“sab” (صاب) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning to find.
Meanings
- to find
- to manage to, get the chance
Usage
Sab (imperfect ysib) means "to find," competing with lqa, which is also very common. Conjugation: sebt (I found), sebti, sab, sabet; negation "ma sebtch." It is used for an object being looked for ("ma sebtch sarout"), but also for an opportunity: "ila sebt nji, nji" (if I manage to come, I'll come). The expression "ma sab ma ydir" means that one no longer knows what to do. Note: the vowel drops or shortens depending on the person (sab / sebt), which can be confusing. Not to be confused with sabon (soap).
Example
قلبت على السوارت وما صبتهمش
qlebt 3la swaret o ma sebthomch
“I looked for the keys and didn't find them.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “sab” but also “sabt”, “sebt”, “ysib” and “saab”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “sab” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “to find”; “thank goodness that, at last”: sab in Tunisian.