ghzela غزالة

Tunisian Derja · noun

“ghzela” (غزالة) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning gazelle.

Meanings

1. gazelle
2. beautiful woman (compliment)

Usage

Ghzéla means the gazelle, an emblematic animal of the steppe regions and the South. Figuratively, it is a traditional compliment for a beautiful, slender woman: "ghzéla !", "kif el ghzéla". This sense is very present in popular song and poetry. The word is also a female first name, often borne by older women, as well as a place name (cité El Ghazela, near Ariana). The plural is "ghzalet". In the street, said to a woman you don't know, the compliment can come across as insistent flirting.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “ghzela” but also “ghazala”, “ghzala” and “ghazela”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.

Type “ghzela” on the Arabic keyboard

In Moroccan Darija

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “beautiful, pretty”; “gazelle”: ghzala in Moroccan.

In Algerian Darja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “beautiful, pretty”; “great, very good (thing)”: ghzala in Algerian.