stifsar إستفسار

Moroccan Darija · noun

“stifsar” (إستفسار) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning request for information, question.

Meanings

1. request for information, question
2. formal request for explanation

Usage

Stifsar belongs to the formal or administrative register. It is heard mainly at service counters, in customer service or at school: 3endi wahed stifsar ("I have a question"), mektab dyal listifsarat ("information office"). In ordinary conversation, Moroccans more readily say bghit nsowwel ("I want to ask") or 3endi su2al. The plural is stifsarat. The word keeps a polite, formal nuance. In a professional context, it can also mean a request for explanation addressed to an employee, close to a written warning.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “stifsar” but also “istifsar” and “stifssar”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.

Type “stifsar” on the Arabic keyboard