hadhouma هذوما
Tunisian Derja · pronoun
“hadhouma” (هذوما) is a pronoun in Tunisian Derja meaning these, these ones.
Meanings
- these, these ones
- these (after the noun)
- those people (pejorative)
Usage
Hadhouma is the plural demonstrative for things near the speaker: "these", with no gender distinction. It is used on its own ("hadhouma s7abi", "these are my friends") or after a definite noun, often with a pejorative or emphatic nuance ("el 3bed hadhouma", "these people"). The singular is hadha (masculine) and hadhi (feminine). The shortened forms hadhom and hethouma are also heard and vary by region. The register is everyday.
Example
هذوما صحابي من القراية.
hadhouma s7abi mel 9raya.
“These are my friends from school.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “hadhouma” but also “hadouma”, “hedhouma”, “haddouma” and “hadhoma”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Its Arabic spelling is not fixed either: you will find هذوما and هذومة, all the same word.