3dou عدو
Tunisian Derja · noun
“3dou” (عدو) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning enemy.
Meanings
- enemy
- hostile; adversary
Usage
3dou means the enemy, in a personal as well as a political or military sense. The plural is a3dé. It is used in wishes: rabbi yib3ed 3lik el a3dé, "may God keep enemies away from you". It also appears in expressions like 3dou rou7ou, "his own enemy", said of someone who harms himself. It can be used as an adjective, for example in jaych 3dou, "an enemy army". The register is everyday. Tunisian pronunciation often reduces the first vowel.
Example
هو عدو روحو، ما يسمع كلام حد
howa 3dou rou7ou, ma yesma3 klem 7add
“He is his own enemy, he listens to no one.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3dou” but also “3adou”, “3adew”, “3dow” and “adou”. 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.
Type “3dou” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “enemy”; “adversary, hostile person”: 3dou in Moroccan.