jrana جرانة
Tunisian Derja · noun
“jrana” (جرانة) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning frog.
Meanings
- frog
- idiot, empty-headed person (figurative)
Usage
Jrana is the common word for frog in Tunisia, in cities and the countryside alike. The plural is jrannet or jrenet. You hear it about ponds, wells or wadis after rain, and to imitate croaking. Figuratively, someone is said to have "a frog in their head" to call them empty-headed, in a mocking, familiar tone. Don't confuse this word with gran, a borrowing for "big" in some dialects.
Example
الليلة الجرانة ما خلاتناش نرقدو.
el lila el jrana ma khallatnech nor9dou.
“Last night, the frog wouldn't let us sleep.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “jrana” but also “jrena” and “grana”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “jrana” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “frog”: jrana in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “frog”; “toad”: jrana in Algerian.