makhbar مخبر
Tunisian Derja · noun
“makhbar” (مخبر) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning laboratory, especially for tests.
Meanings
- laboratory, especially for tests
Usage
Makhbar means a laboratory, in particular a medical testing laboratory or a research laboratory. The word is frequent in the press, administration and official announcements: "makhbar t7alil" (testing laboratory). In everyday conversation, many Tunisians prefer the French "labo" or "laboratoire". It should not be confused with mokhber, "informant, police informer". That other word is written the same in Arabic without vowels, but it is pronounced differently.
Example
مشيت للمخبر نعمل تحليل دم
mchit lel makhbar na3mel ta7lil dam
“I went to the lab to have a blood test.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “makhbar” but also “ma5bar”, “mekhbar”, “m5abar” and “mkhbar”. 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.