tmasken تمسكن
Tunisian Derja · verb
“tmasken” (تمسكن) is a verb in Tunisian Derja meaning to feign humility or poverty.
Meanings
- to feign humility or poverty
- to play the victim
Usage
Tmasken comes from meskin ("poor, wretched") and means "to play the poor", "to put on a humble or victim act" in order to move someone or get something. The word is often pejorative: a ploy is suspected. The negative form is common as a warning: ma tetmaskench. The word also appears in the proverb tmasken 7atta tetmakken ("act humble until you take power"), cited to denounce a hypocritical strategy, especially in politics.
Example
ما تتمسكنش، نعرفك لاباس عليك
ma tetmaskench, na3rfek labes 3lik
“Don't play the poor, I know you're doing fine.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “tmasken” but also “tmaskin” and “tmeskin”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.