cinema سينما
Tunisian Derja · noun
“cinema” (سينما) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning cinema, movie theater.
Meanings
- cinema, movie theater
- cinema (art, films)
- drama, play-acting
Usage
Sinema is a loanword from French, fully integrated into derja. It refers to the venue (9a3et sinema), to the art of film, or to the activity of going to see a film: nemchiw lel sinema. The word is feminine. As in colloquial French, a3mel sinema means "to put on a show" (literally "to do one's cinema"), that is, to exaggerate or play-act. The plural sinemat is used for movie theaters. Tunisians often write it the French way (cinema) in arabizi.
Example
نمشيو للسينما الليلة؟
nemchiw lel cinema ellila?
“Shall we go to the cinema tonight?”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “cinema” but also “sinema”, “sinima”, “cinéma” and “cinima”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Its Arabic spelling is not fixed either: you will find سينما and سينيما, all the same word.