khatarchi خاطرشي
Tunisian Derja · conjunction
“khatarchi” (خاطرشي) is a conjunction in Tunisian Derja meaning because.
Meanings
- because
Usage
Khatarchi is a variant of khater ("because"). The suffix -chi has no negative value here. This form is especially common in certain regions, such as the Sahel and Sfax, and in informal speech. It introduces an explanation: ma nnajemch, khatarchi... ("I can't, because..."). Pitfall for the learner: -chi is reminiscent of the negation ma...ch, but khatarchi is not negative. The common forms elsewhere are khater and 3la khater.
Example
ما جيتش خاطرشي كنت مريض.
ma jitch khatarchi kont mridh.
“I didn't come because I was sick.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “khatarchi” but also “5atarchi”, “khaterchi” and “5aterchi”. 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.