souma سومة
Tunisian Derja · noun
“souma” (سومة) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning price (asked or negotiated).
Meanings
- price (asked or negotiated)
- good price, discount
Usage
Souma means the price of goods, especially one that is being haggled over at the souk or with a shopkeeper. The expression "dirli souma" or "a3malli souma", "give me a price", is used to ask for a discount. You also hear "bech9add es-souma ?", "how much is it?". The word belongs to the world of bargaining and is more colloquial than "thaman" or "prix". The related verb is "sewwem", "to set or ask a price". Souma is also an affectionate diminutive of a first name, which has nothing to do with this sense.
Example
غالي شوية، ما تنجمش تعملي سومة؟
ghali chwaya, ma tnajjemch ta3malli souma ?
“It's a bit expensive, can't you give me a better price?”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “souma” but also “sooma”, “suma” and “soumaa”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “souma” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “price of an item”; “value, cost”: souma in Algerian.