mechwa مشوى
Tunisian Derja · noun
“mechwa” (مشوى) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning grilled food, barbecue.
Meanings
- grilled food, barbecue
- outing with friends around a barbecue
Usage
Mechwa refers both to grilled food and to the convivial occasion around it, with family or friends, often outdoors, at the beach or in the countryside. The typical construction is mechwa followed by the food: mechwa 7out (fish), mechwa l7am. People say a3mel mechwa for "to have a barbecue". Not to be confused with mechwi, the adjective "grilled" (slata mechwiya), nor with Standard Arabic machwa. The word is colloquial and very common, especially in summer.
Example
نهار الأحد باش نعملو مشوى في الجنينة.
nhar el a7ad bech na3mlou mechwa fel jnina.
“On Sunday we're going to have a barbecue in the garden.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “mechwa” but also “mashwa”, “mchwa”, “mechoua” and “mechwe”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.