tfa7a تفاحة
Moroccan Darija · noun
“tfa7a” (تفاحة) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning an apple.
Meanings
- an apple
Usage
tffa7a is the unit noun derived from the collective tffa7: it refers to one apple, a single fruit. It is used with chi (chi tffa7a, an apple), with a number (wa7d ttffa7a) or with a demonstrative (had ttffa7a, this apple). The counted plural is tffa7at. In pronunciation, a doubled t is often heard at the start, especially after the article (ttffa7a), which explains the many spellings found online. To talk about apples in general or by the kilo, one goes back to the collective tffa7, not the plural tffa7at.
Example
و جيب ليا شي تفاحة
o jib lia chi tffa7a
“And bring me an apple.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “tfa7a” but also “tffa7a”, “teffa7a”, “tfaha” and “tefa7a”. 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.