3ta عطى
Tunisian Derja · verb
“3ta” (عطى) is a verb in Tunisian Derja meaning to give, hand over something.
Meanings
- to give, hand over something
- to grant, award (grade, prize)
- to give (lessons)
Usage
The basic verb for "to give". Past: 3ta (he gave), 3tit (I gave). Present: ya3ti, na3ti. Imperative: a3ti, and a3tini (give me). It combines with pronouns: 3tah (he gave it to him), 3tani (he gave me). It is also used for "to grant" or "to set": a3ti somek (give your price), and for "to give lessons": ya3ti drous. It also appears in "3ta klem" (to give one's word). Pitfall: the 3 stands for the consonant ayn, which is often omitted in online spellings.
Example
زعمة قدّاش عطوهم
Za3ma 9adech 3twhom
“I wonder how much they gave them.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3ta” but also “a3ta”, “3taa”, “3ata” and “aata”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Its Arabic spelling is not fixed either: you will find عطى and عطا, all the same word.
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 “3ta” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
The same word also exists in Moroccan Darija, written عطا, where it means “to give, hand over something”; “to provide, to grant”: 3ta in Moroccan.