sari ساري
Tunisian Derja · adjective
“sari” (ساري) is an adjective in Tunisian Derja meaning with an empty stomach, unfed.
Meanings
- with an empty stomach, unfed
- in force, valid
Usage
Sari is used mainly with the verb bat, "to spend the night": bat sari, "he went to bed without dinner, on an empty stomach". It appears in the well-known proverb "et-tamma3 ybat sari": the greedy person, by wanting too much, ends up with nothing. It is used to mock greed or to excuse a refusal. The second sense, "in force", comes from administrative language, in the phrase sari el-maf3oul, applied to a law, a regulation, or ironically to a remark that is still relevant. Pitfall: this word has nothing to do with the Indian sari.
Example
ما لقيت ما ناكل، بتت ساري البارح.
ma l9it ma nekel, bet sari lbere7.
“I couldn't find anything to eat, I went to bed on an empty stomach last night.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “sari” but also “sarii” and “saari”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.