ghayer غاير
Tunisian Derja · adjective
“ghayer” (غاير) is an adjective in Tunisian Derja meaning jealous, envious (of someone).
Meanings
- jealous, envious (of someone)
- protectively jealous (of a loved one)
- zealous, devoted to (a cause)
Usage
Ghayer is very common in Tunisia, and its construction changes the meaning. Ghayer menn means "envious of someone" (of their success, of what they own). Ghayer 3la expresses protective jealousy toward a spouse, a sister or a loved one, or sincere attachment to a value (ghayer 3la din, "concerned about religion"). In this second use, the word is not necessarily pejorative. The feminine is ghayra, the plural ghayrin. The corresponding noun is ghira. For an English speaker, the pitfall is always translating it as "jealous" without taking the preposition into account.
Example
راهو غاير منّك خاطر نجحت.
raho ghayer mennek 5ater nja7t.
“He's jealous of you because you succeeded.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “ghayer” but also “ghayr”, “8ayer” and “ghaier”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 8 is light ha (ه) or ghayn (غ), depending on the writer.