t7ekkem تحكّم
Moroccan Darija · verb
“t7ekkem” (تحكّم) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning to control oneself.
Meanings
- to control oneself
- to control, dominate something
- to manipulate, keep under one's thumb
Usage
T7ekkem takes the preposition f: t7ekkem f rasek means "control yourself", and t7ekkem fih means "to control someone or something". The verb is used for keeping calm, but also for a person who imposes their will on others, often in a negative sense: kayt7ekkem f mratou, "he controls his wife". There is also a noun, ta7akkom, of a more formal register, meaning control or mastery. It should be distinguished from 7kem 3la, "to judge" or "to condemn". In the present tense, the two verbs can be written the same way (t7kem), which causes confusion.
Example
تحكم فراسك شوية
t7akam frasek chwia
“Control yourself a bit.”
Conjugation
Forms as recorded in DODa and reproduced in its spelling, which often leaves out short vowels.
| Imperfective (present) | Perfective (past) | Imperative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ana (I) | kant7kkem | t7kkemt | |
| nta (you, m.) | katt7kkem | t7kkemti | t7kkem |
| nti (you, f.) | katt7kkmi | t7kkemti | t7kkmi |
| howa (he) | kayt7kkem | t7kkem | |
| hiya (she) | katt7kkem | t7kkmat | |
| 7na (we) | kant7kkmo | t7kkmna | |
| ntouma (you, pl.) | katt7kkmo | t7kkmto | t7kkmo |
| homa (they) | kayt7kkmo | t7kkmo |
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “t7ekkem” but also “t7kkem”, “t7akkem”, “t7kkm”, “t7akam” and “ta7akkom”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat.