thama ثمة
Tunisian Derja · adverb
“thama” (ثمة) is an adverb in Tunisian Derja meaning there is, there are.
Meanings
- there is, there are
- there, in that place
Usage
Thama is the usual expression for "there is". It is used without conjugation: thama barcha nes (there are a lot of people). The negation is ma thamech or mafamech, which is very frequent: mafamech flous (there is no money). In questions, one says thama? or famma? (is there?). The variant famma is very widespread and sometimes more common depending on the region. Thama is never used to express duration, as in "two years ago". For that, andou or men is used. The register is neutral and everyday.
Example
ثمة حد في الدار؟
thama 7ad fi dar?
“Is anyone home?”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “thama” but also “thamma” and “tham”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.