mlawen ملون

Tunisian Derja · adjective

“mlawen” (ملون) is an adjective in Tunisian Derja meaning colored, of color.

Meanings

1. colored, of color
2. in color (print, photo)

Usage

Mlawen describes something that has one or more colors: a garment, a drawing, an object. It is often opposed to abyedh, "white", or to "black and white", for example for a print or photocopy. It agrees: mlawna in the feminine, mlawnin in the plural. The verb lawen means "to color, to paint in colors". The word is common and neutral, both in speech and in shops. For a bright, flashy color, barcha is often added.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “mlawen” but also “mlawwen”, “mlouwen”, “mlewen” and “mlawin”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.

Type “mlawen” on the Arabic keyboard

In Moroccan Darija

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “colorful, multicolored”; “in color (photo, image)”: mlwwen in Moroccan.