7odhn حضن
Tunisian Derja · noun
“7odhn” (حضن) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning embrace, hug.
Meanings
- embrace, hug
- lap, bosom (of a mother)
Usage
7odhn means an embrace, but also the lap or bosom, the space of the arms where one holds someone. One says "fi 7odhn ommou" (in his mother's arms), an affectionate image widely used in songs and messages. The corresponding verb is 7dhen (to hold in one's arms). For a simple hug between close people, Tunisians often say "3an9a" (embrace). The sentences in the corpus are Egyptian, but the word itself is indeed used in Tunisia. The ض is generally pronounced there like ظ.
Example
الصغير راقد في حضن أمّو
essghir r9ed fi 7odhn ommou
“The little one is sleeping in his mother's arms.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “7odhn” but also “7odhon”, “7odn”, “hodhn” and “7odhen”. 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.