7ayer حاير
Tunisian Derja · adjective
“7ayer” (حاير) is an adjective in Tunisian Derja meaning perplexed, undecided.
Meanings
- perplexed, undecided
- at a loss, lost
- worried, troubled
Usage
7ayer describes someone who doesn't know what to do or what to choose, or who is baffled by a situation. It agrees: 7ayra in the feminine, 7ayrin in the plural. It is used with fi for the object of the hesitation (7ayer fi rou7i, "I don't know where I stand anymore") and with min for the cause (7ayer mel li sma3, "baffled by what he heard"). It appears in the rhyming expression 7ayer dayer, "completely lost". The word is common in all registers and is often used to express one's bewilderment with a sigh.
Example
واللهي حاير ,
Wallahi hayer ,
“I swear, I don't know what to do anymore.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “7ayer” but also “hayer”, “hayr”, “7ayr” and “7aiyer”. 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.