3ib عيب
Tunisian Derja · noun
“3ib” (عيب) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning shame, improper thing.
Meanings
- shame, improper thing
- flaw, defect
Usage
3ib is very often used as an exclamation of disapproval: "3ib!" means "that's shameful, that's not done!" It is addressed to children in particular. With 3lik, the phrase 3ib 3lik means "you should be ashamed". Kleim 3ib refers to coarse or inappropriate talk. The word also means a flaw, in a person or an object: fih 3ib, "it has a flaw". The plural is 3youb. Do not confuse it with 3ayb or 3ayeb, which mean "absent". The register is everyday and informal.
Example
عيب عليك، ما تحكيش هكّا مع أمّك!
3ib 3lik, ma t7kich hakka m3a ommek!
“You should be ashamed, don't talk to your mother like that!”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3ib” but also “3eib”, “aib” and “3ayb”. 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.