serbis سربيس
Moroccan Darija · noun
“serbis” (سربيس) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning duty, shift (at work).
Meanings
- duty, shift (at work)
- service (restaurant, customers)
- military service
Usage
Serbis is used mainly for working time when you are "on duty" or on call: police, hospital, security guarding, administration. To say "I'm on duty", say ana f serbis. The expression chedd serbis means "to start one's shift" or "to be on call". The word also refers to the quality of service in a café or restaurant, and more rarely to military service. The register is informal and common. Depending on context, chedd serbis can also suggest waiting for one's turn. This sense is less clear and depends on the situation.
Example
ما نقدرش نجي، أنا فسربيس حتى لعشية
man9dch nji, ana f serbis 7tta l3chiya
“I can't come, I'm on duty until the evening.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “serbis” but also “serbiss”, “srbis” and “sarbis”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “serbis” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “set of dishes”; “duty, shift, being on call”: serbis in Tunisian.