thnachen اثناشن
Tunisian Derja · numeral
“thnachen” (اثناشن) is a numeral in Tunisian Derja meaning twelve (before a noun).
Meanings
- twelve (before a noun)
Usage
Thnachen is the form of "twelve" used before a counted noun: thnachen youm ("twelve days"), thnachen dinar ("twelve dinars"). Used alone, for example when counting or answering a question, the number is thnach. The other numbers from eleven to nineteen follow the same pattern: hdachen, tlattachen, etc. After these numbers, the noun stays singular, not plural. The word is heard constantly for prices, age or duration, for example thnachen dinar w khams mya, "twelve dinars five hundred".
Example
قعدت ثناشن يوم في سوسة.
9a3adt thnachen youm fi soussa.
“I stayed twelve days in Sousse.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “thnachen” but also “tnachen”, “ethnachen”, “thnechen” and “tnechen”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.