dhahka ضحكة
Tunisian Derja · noun
“dhahka” (ضحكة) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning laugh, burst of laughter.
Meanings
- laugh, burst of laughter
- smile
Usage
Dhahka means a laugh, but often also a smile: Derja does not always clearly distinguish the two. The word is often used with a possessive: dhahktek ("your laugh / your smile"), dhahketha ("her laugh / her smile"). You say dhahka sghira for a small laugh and dhahka safra for a forced, hollow laugh. The corresponding verb is dhhak ("to laugh"). For a discreet smile you also hear tbassem. Context tells you which translation to choose.
Example
ضحكتها تفرّح القلب
dhahketha tfarra7 el 9alb
“Her smile gladdens the heart.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “dhahka” but also “dho7ka”, “dha7ka” and “dhahk”. 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 “dhahka” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “laugh, burst of laughter”; “smile (broader sense)”: d7ka in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “laugh, burst of laughter”; “smile, way of laughing”: dehka in Algerian.