ghib غيب
Tunisian Derja · verb
“ghib” (غيب) is a verb in Tunisian Derja meaning to disappear, no longer show up.
Meanings
- to disappear, no longer show up
- to be absent, be away
- to stay away a long time
Usage
The word ghib is the imperative of the verb ghab / yghib, "to disappear, to be away". It is used for someone you no longer see: "win ghebt?", "where had you gone?", is said to a friend you lost sight of. For a student or an employee, it means "to be absent". The corresponding noun is ghiba, "absence". The doubled form ghayyeb is transitive and means "to make disappear, to hide". Pitfall for an English speaker: the imperative ghib looks like a noun, but it is a conjugated verb, "disappear!". It appears in several popular sayings.
Example
وين غبت؟ برشة وقت ما شفناكش.
win ghebt? barcha wa9t ma chefneekch.
“Where had you gone? We haven't seen you in a long time.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “ghib” but also “8ib”, “ghab” and “ghyb”. 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.