3afen عافن
Tunisian Derja · adjective
“3afen” (عافن) is an adjective in Tunisian Derja meaning rotten, spoiled.
Meanings
- rotten, spoiled
- lousy, rubbish
- filthy, grimy
Usage
The word 3afen first describes rotten or spoiled food that smells bad: fruit, meat, cheese. It is also used figuratively and informally for a thing or person judged worthless, pathetic, or not worth associating with. Applied to a person, it is pejorative and can offend. Its forms are 3afna in the feminine and 3afnin in the plural. It comes from the same root as the verb 3fen, "to rot". Do not confuse it with 3ayef, "disgusted, fed up".
Example
الطماطم هاذي عافنة، ارميها
e tmatem hedhi 3afna, armiha
“These tomatoes are rotten, throw them away.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3afen” but also “3affen”, “afen” and “3afin”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 3 is ayn (ع), a voiced sound from deep in the throat with no English equivalent.