sem سم
Moroccan Darija · noun
“sem” (سم) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning poison, venom.
Meanings
- poison, venom
- bitter, unpleasant thing
Usage
Sem or semm means poison in the literal sense, such as the kind put out for rats or a snake's venom. The participle msmoum means "poisoned". Figuratively, the word is very common in emotional expressions. 9la lih sem, literally "fry him poison", means to make his life miserable, to exasperate him or to make him jealous. A nasty or toxic person is said to be sem. Do not confuse it with smm, "to name", or with ssma, "the sky". Depending on the context, the figurative use ranges from joking to anger.
Example
عمرك ت وكل لكلاب سمّ
3emrek t wkkel lklab semm
“Never give dogs poison.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “sem” but also “semm”, “sm” and “samm”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “sem” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “poison”; “venom”: semm in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “poison, venom”; “something very harmful (figurative)”: sem in Tunisian.