ma7roum محروم
Tunisian Derja · adjective
“ma7roum” (محروم) is an adjective in Tunisian Derja meaning deprived of, frustrated.
Meanings
- deprived of, frustrated
- needy, destitute
Usage
Ma7roum describes someone who lacks something: affection, their family, their country, or simply means. It takes men, "of": ma7roum men ommou, "deprived of his mother". Used alone, it refers to a needy or frustrated person who has known want. The word is frequent in songs and nostalgic texts, especially about emigration. The feminine is ma7rouma and the plural ma7roumin.
Example
عاش محروم من بوه وهو صغير.
3ach ma7roum men bouh w howa sghir.
“He grew up deprived of his father from when he was little.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “ma7roum” but also “mahroum”, “m7roum” and “ma7rom”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat.