a7sen احسن
Tunisian Derja · adjective
“a7sen” (احسن) is an adjective in Tunisian Derja meaning better, best.
Meanings
- better, best
- better, it's better to
Usage
A7sen serves as both comparative and superlative, and it is invariable: a7sen men (better than), a7sen wa7ed (the best). Placed before a noun, it expresses the superlative: a7sen 7al (the best solution). At the start of a sentence, a7sen or el a7sen introduces advice: a7sen temchi tawa (you'd better go now). In conversation, a7sen! on its own expresses approval, like “all the better”. Pitfall: it agrees in neither gender nor number.
Example
في احسن سبيتار فال اوروبا
Fi ahsan Sbitar fel orope
“In the best hospital in Europe.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “a7sen” but also “ahsen”, “a7ssen”, “ahsan” and “a7san”. 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 “a7sen” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “best, better”; “better”: a7san in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “better, the best”; “better (adverb)”: a7sen in Algerian.