swed سواد
Tunisian Derja · noun
“swed” (سواد) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning black colour, blackness.
Meanings
- black colour, blackness
- black mourning clothes
- spite, malice (sawed el galb)
Usage
Swed means the colour black or darkness. It is used for a dark garment or object, and for the black worn as a sign of mourning (lbes es-swed). Figuratively, sawed el galb, "blackness of the heart", means grudge or malice. The word is common in everyday speech as well as in popular song and poetry. Note: it is not the adjective "black", which is k7al. Swed is the noun for the quality or colour.
Example
لبست السواد على جدّها
lebset es-swed 3la jaddha
“She wore black for her grandfather.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “swed” but also “sawed”, “swad”, “sawad” and “sweed”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.