s9af سقف
Tunisian Derja · noun
“s9af” (سقف) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning ceiling of a room.
Meanings
- ceiling of a room
- roof
- upper limit (price, amount)
Usage
S9af means the ceiling of a room and, more broadly, the roof covering a building: "bit bla s9af" (a room without a roof). "S9af w7ed" means "under the same roof", for example for a family living together. In the media and in discussions about money, s9af takes the sense of a cap or limit: "s9af el as3ar" (the price cap). The "9" in arabizi stands for the sound "q"; in everyday pronunciation, the word is said s9af.
Example
صفّق معايا كان تحس في روحك كي ال بيت بلاش سقف
saffa9 m3aya ken t7ess fi rou7ek kil bit blech s9aff
“Clap along with me if you feel like a room without a roof.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “s9af” but also “s9aff”, “sqaf”, “skaf” and “s9ef”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 9 is qaf (ق), a k pronounced at the back of the throat.
Type “s9af” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “ceiling”; “roof”: s9ef in Moroccan.