sbegh صبغ
Moroccan Darija · verb
“sbegh” (صبغ) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning to paint (a wall, an object).
Meanings
- to paint (a wall, an object)
- to dye (hair, fabric)
Usage
Sbegh, in the present kaysbegh, means "to paint" a surface: a wall, a door, a car. It also means "to dye" hair, wool or fabric. The colour is introduced with b-: sbegh l-hit b l-byed, "to paint the wall white". For hair, you say sbegh cha3ro. It is not used for artistic painting, which is rather rsem. The product is called sbagha and the painter sebbagh. The passive is tsbegh, "to be painted".
Example
صبغنا البيت بالزرق
sbeghna l-bit b z-zreq
“We painted the room blue.”
Conjugation
Forms as recorded in DODa and reproduced in its spelling, which often leaves out short vowels.
| Imperfective (present) | Perfective (past) | Imperative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ana (I) | kanSbegh | Sbeght | |
| nta (you, m.) | katSbegh | Sbeghti | Sbegh |
| nti (you, f.) | katSbghi | Sbeghti | Sbghi |
| howa (he) | kaySbegh | Sbegh | |
| hiya (she) | katSbegh | Sbehat | |
| 7na (we) | kanSbgho | Sbehna | |
| ntouma (you, pl.) | katSbgho | Sbehto | Sbgho |
| homa (they) | kaySbgho | Sbeho |
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “sbegh” but also “sbgh” and “sbagh”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.