chta شتا
Tunisian Derja · noun
“chta” (شتا) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning rain.
Meanings
- rain
- winter, cold season
Usage
In Tunisia, chta is first of all the everyday word for rain: ech-chta tsobb, "it is raining", sabbet chta, "it rained". The same word also means winter, the rainy season (fi ech-chta, "in winter"). Context decides between the two meanings. An English speaker may be surprised that "to rain" is expressed with the verb sabb, "to pour", rather than a dedicated verb. For a heavy downpour, one also hears chta kbira. The word is everyday, has no register marking, and is very frequent in weather conversations.
Example
الشتا تصب من الصباح
echta tsob mel sbe7
“It's been raining since this morning.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “chta” but also “chte”, “shta”, “chtè” and “chita”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “chta” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “rain”; “winter, rainy season”: chta in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “rain”; “winter”: chta in Algerian.