m3allem معلم

Tunisian Derja · noun

“m3allem” (معلم) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning boss, champ (admiration, address).

Meanings

1. boss, champ (admiration, address)
2. master craftsman, boss
3. primary school teacher

Usage

M3allem first means the master craftsman or the owner of a workshop, as opposed to the apprentice. In current colloquial use, it serves mostly as an admiring or friendly form of address: ya m3allem! (boss! champ!), to congratulate someone or greet them with respect, sometimes ironically. Saha ya m3allem is equivalent to "well done, boss". It can also mean the primary school teacher. The feminine is m3allma. Tone and context show whether it is a sincere compliment or mockery.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “m3allem” but also “m3alem”, “m3alm”, “ma3lem”, “m3allam” and “m3aleem”. 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.

Type “m3allem” on the Arabic keyboard

In Moroccan Darija

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “teacher, schoolteacher”; “master craftsman, workshop boss”: mo3allim in Moroccan.

In Algerian Darja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “master craftsman, tradesman”; “boss; expert, ace”: m3alem in Algerian.