chay شي
Tunisian Derja · noun
“chay” (شي) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning thing, something.
Meanings
- thing, something
- nothing (with negation)
- everything (in kol chay)
Usage
Chay refers to an unspecified thing. It appears in very common expressions. Kol chay means "everything": kol chay mel 3and rabbi, "everything comes from God". With the negation ma… chay, it means "nothing": ma famma chay, "there is nothing". Hatta chay reinforces this negation: "absolutely nothing". On its own, as an answer, chay can also mean "nothing". The Latin spelling varies a lot (chay, chey, cha). Do not confuse it with chay "tea" in other dialects: in Tunisia, tea is tey.
Example
اااا فهمت كلّ شي
aaaaa fhimt kol cha
“Aaah, I understood everything.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “chay” but also “chey”, “chy”, “chai”, “shay” and “cha”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “chay” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “something”; “some, certain”: chi in Algerian.