mchina مشنا
Tunisian Derja · verb
“mchina” (مشنا) is a verb in Tunisian Derja meaning we went.
Meanings
- we went
- we left
Usage
Mchina is the past-tense, first-person plural form of the verb mcha (to go, to leave). It is very common in narratives: mchina lel bhar (we went to the beach). Followed by bech and a verb, it indicates what we went to do: mchina bech nakhdhou… (we went to get…). Don't confuse it with the present nemchiw (we are going) or the participle machyin (going, on one's way). The pronoun 'we' is already contained in the ending -na: no need to add ahna, except for emphasis.
Example
البارح مشينا للبحر مع صحابنا.
lbare7 mchina lel b7ar m3a s7abna.
“Yesterday we went to the beach with our friends.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “mchina” but also “mshina”, “mchyna” and “machina”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.