7sar حصر

Tunisian Derja · verb

“7sar” (حصر) is a verb in Tunisian Derja meaning to corner, to trap someone.

Meanings

1. to corner, to trap someone
2. to restrict, to limit

Usage

The verb 7sar is used mainly for a person who is blocked or put in a situation with no way out: 7sartni, "you cornered me". In the passive, t7assar or t7asar means "to end up cornered". The participle ma7sour is very common and has a specific everyday meaning: "to urgently need" to go to the toilet. The sense of "to restrict, to limit" belongs more to standard Arabic, for example in the fixed expression lé 7asra laha, "countless", found in the press and comments.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “7sar” but also “hsar”, “7ssar” and “hssar”. 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.

Type “7sar” on the Arabic keyboard

In Moroccan Darija

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “to corner, trap”; “to restrict, limit”: 7ser in Moroccan.