yam3allem يامعلم
Tunisian Derja · expression
“yam3allem” (يامعلم) is an expression in Tunisian Derja meaning well done, hats off, master!.
Meanings
- well done, hats off, master!
- hey, boss! (calling out to someone)
Usage
A familiar expression of admiration, addressed to someone who has just pulled off a feat or shown their skill. The word m3allem originally refers to a master craftsman, the head of a workshop; ya m3allem therefore acknowledges mastery. You hear it in stadiums, at demonstrations and on social media, sometimes repeated (m3allem, m3allem), and in the rhyming formula ya m3allem w e7na mennek net3allmou. The tone can also be ironic, to mock a clever maneuver. Informal register: avoid in a formal context.
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, it is written “yam3allem”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 3 is ayn (ع), a voiced sound from deep in the throat with no English equivalent.