tabe9 طابق
Moroccan Darija · verb
“tabe9” (طابق) is a verb in Moroccan Darija meaning to match, correspond.
Meanings
- to match, correspond
- floor, storey (noun tabe9)
- dish (noun tba9)
Usage
As a verb, tabe9 means to correspond or to match. It takes m3a: "had lmfta7 ma kaytab9ch m3a lbab" (this key doesn't fit the door). It is used for documents, blood types or versions being compared. The register is rather careful; in conversation, people also say ja m3a. The same spelling also writes the noun tabe9 (floor: "tabe9 tani", second floor), often replaced by the French "étage". There is also the noun tba9 (dish, food), which is usually written طبق.
Example
خاص ديم ديالك طابق مع هاداك لي خسّو
5ass dem dialk tabe9 m3a hadak li 5assou
“Your blood type must match that of the person who needs it.”
Conjugation
Forms as recorded in DODa and reproduced in its spelling, which often leaves out short vowels.
| Imperfective (present) | Perfective (past) | Imperative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ana (I) | kanTaabe9 | Taabe9t | |
| nta (you, m.) | katTaabe9 | Taabe9ti | Taabe9 |
| nti (you, f.) | katTaab9i | Taabe9ti | Taab9i |
| howa (he) | kayTaabe9 | Taabe9 | |
| hiya (she) | katTaabe9 | Taab9at | |
| 7na (we) | kanTaab9o | Taab9na | |
| ntouma (you, pl.) | katTaab9o | Taab9to | Taab9o |
| homa (they) | kayTaab9o | Taab9o |
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “tabe9” but also “taba9”, “tab9”, “taabe9” and “taab9”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 9 is qaf (ق), a k pronounced at the back of the throat.