khadem خادم
Tunisian Derja · adjective
“khadem” (خادم) is an adjective in Tunisian Derja meaning working, employed.
Meanings
- working, employed
- servant
Usage
Khadem is mainly used as the participle of khdem, "to work". It means "working" or "employed": enti khadem? means "do you work?". The form inflects: khadma in the feminine, khadmin in the plural. It can also describe an action in progress: khadem tawa, "I'm working right now". The meaning "servant" exists in stories and tales, or in an older register. Note that the feminine khadma often means a household maid, and the "servant" meaning should be avoided when talking about real people, as it can be badly received.
Example
إنتي خادم ولا مازلت تقرا؟
enti khadem walla mazelt ta9ra?
“Are you working or are you still studying?”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “khadem” but also “5adem”, “khadam”, “khedem” and “5edem”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 5 is kha (خ), like the ch in Scottish loch.