sma3 سماع
Tunisian Derja · noun
“sma3” (سماع) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning listening, hearing.
Meanings
- listening, hearing
- hearing (of a witness)
Usage
Sma3 is the verbal noun of sma3 (to hear, to listen). It refers to the act of listening, especially to music, a voice or a story. It is found mainly in fixed or somewhat formal phrases, often after ba3d (after) or 9bal (before): "ba3d sma3 el-5bar" (after hearing the news). In media language, it also applies to the official hearing of a person, such as a minister or a witness. In everyday conversation, the conjugated verb is generally preferred to the noun: "ki sma3t" (when I heard) rather than the noun.
Example
بعد سماع الخبر، الكل سكتو
ba3d sma3 el 5bar, el kol sktou
“After hearing the news, everyone fell silent.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “sma3” but also “sme3”, “sama3” and “smaa”. 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.