mawdhou3 موضوع
Tunisian Derja · noun
“mawdhou3” (موضوع) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning subject, topic.
Meanings
- subject, topic
- matter, affair in question
Usage
Mawdhou3 is a word of standard origin that has become very common in Tounsi for talking about a topic of conversation or an ongoing matter. Several phrases are frequent: jbed mawdhou3 (bring up a subject), el mawdhou3 mta3 ... (the story of...), kharej 3al mawdhou3 (off topic). In conversation, el mawdhou3 often refers to a delicate matter that the speakers already know about, without naming it. The plural is mawadhi3. The word belongs to a neutral register. It is also heard at school, where it means an essay topic.
Example
نحكيو في الموضوع هذا غدوة.
na7kiw fel mawdhou3 hedha ghodwa.
“We'll talk about this subject tomorrow.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “mawdhou3” but also “mawdou3”. 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 “mawdhou3” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “subject, topic”; “matter, affair”: mawdo3 in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “topic, theme”; “matter, affair”: mawdou3 in Algerian.