jé3 جاع
Tunisian Derja · verb
“jé3” (جاع) is a verb in Tunisian Derja meaning to be hungry.
Meanings
- to be hungry
- to go without, be in need
Usage
Jé3 means "to be hungry, to become starving". With persons, one says "ji3t", "I am hungry", and "ji3na", "we are hungry". The corresponding adjective is "ji3an", "starving". It is the most natural way to say you are hungry, much more common than a construction with a noun. The verb also appears in proverbs about poverty and need, where it takes the sense of "to know hardship". Its opposite is "chba3", "to be full".
Example
جعت برشا، شنوّة فمّا ناكلو؟
ji3t barcha, chnouwa famma naklou?
“I'm very hungry, what is there to eat?”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “jé3” but also “je3”, “ja3”, “jee3” and “jèe3”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 3 is ayn (ع), a voiced sound from deep in the throat with no English equivalent.