seme3 سامع
Tunisian Derja · adjective
“seme3” (سامع) is an adjective in Tunisian Derja meaning hearing, listening.
Meanings
- hearing, listening
- having heard of
Usage
Seme3 is the active participle of the verb sme3 ("to hear"). It is used as an adjective that agrees in gender and number: sèm3a in the feminine, sèm3in in the plural. It appears in very common questions like sèm3ni ? ("can you hear me?"). The construction sème3 b- means "to have heard of": chkoun sème3 bik ? ("who has heard of you?"), often said with contempt. In religious invocations, sème3 ed-dou3a ("the one who hears prayers") refers to God.
Example
إنتي سامعني ولا لا؟
enti sèm3ni walla le?
“Can you hear me or not?”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “seme3” but also “sem3”, “same3”, “sèmé3” and “sama3”. 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.