marra مرة
Tunisian Derja · noun
“marra” (مرة) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning time, occasion.
Meanings
- time, occasion
- sometimes (marra marra)
- woman, wife (mra, mart)
Usage
Marra means "time" (as in an occasion). The dual is marrtin, "twice". The plural is marrat, "several times". Several expressions are very common: marra wa7da "just once", kol marra "every time", marra o5ra "another time", and marra marra "from time to time". Note that the same Arabic spelling can be read mra, "woman". Before a complement, it becomes mart: mart 5ouk "your brother's wife", martek "your wife". In arabizi, the vowel distinguishes the two words: marra for "time", mra or mart for "woman".
Example
اشنوة تكتب اسمك بال مرتين مرّة وحدة يزّي
achnowa tekteb essmek bel marrtin marra wa7da yezzi
“Why do you write your name twice? Once is enough.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “marra” but also “mara”, “marrat”, “mra”, “mart” and “marat”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.