mta3 متاع
Tunisian Derja · preposition
“mta3” (متاع) is a preposition in Tunisian Derja meaning of, belonging to.
Meanings
- of, belonging to
- mine, yours (with suffix)
Usage
Mte3 expresses possession or relationship, like "of" in English: el karhba mte3 baba, "my father's car". It does not change for gender or number, which makes it simpler than the classical construction. With a suffix, it gives the possessives: mte3i, mte3ek, mte3ou, mte3ha, mte3na, mte3kom, mte3hom. Used on its own, it is equivalent to "mine", "yours". It also specifies material or purpose: sabbat mte3 sport, "sports shoes". The spellings mta3 and mte3 reflect two common pronunciations.
Example
تغزر ال قاع ال كاس متاعك
toghzor l 9a3 el késs mte3ek
“You're looking at the bottom of your glass.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “mta3” but also “mte3”, “mtaa”, “mat3” and “emta3”. 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.