sif سيف
Moroccan Darija · noun
“sif” (سيف) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning sword, saber.
Meanings
- sword, saber
Usage
Sif means the sword or saber, with the assimilated article ssif; plural syouf. It appears in stories, historical films, folklore and expressions such as "jbed ssif" (to draw the sword). Common pitfall in writing: in arabizi and in loose Arabic spelling, "sif" is also written for ṣṣif (صيف), summer, pronounced with an emphatic s. These are two different words: "fin katdawez ṣṣif?" (where are you spending the summer?) is about the season, not a weapon. Only context can settle it in Latin spellings.
Example
الفارس جبد السيف ديالو
lfaris jbed ssif dyalo
“The horseman drew his sword.”
Forms
| plural | syofa |
|---|
Forms as recorded in DODa, in its spelling.
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “sif” but also “syf”, “seyf”, “ssif” and “sayf”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “sif” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “sword, sabre”; “male first name Seif”: sif in Tunisian.