Reference
The Grammar
of Darija
Darija is not written down in any official way. There is no Académie Française for Moroccan Arabic. This guide teaches the system that 40 million people use every day.
The Sound System
When Moroccans text, they swap numbers for sounds that don’t exist in European languages. The 3 IS the ain. Once you see it, you can’t unsee it.
| Symbol | Arabic | Sound | How to Produce It |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | ع (ain) | Pharyngeal squeeze | Tighten the back of your throat as if gagging gently. The signature sound of Arabic. |
| 7 / hh | ح (ha) | Breathy H | A forceful H from deep in the throat. Not the soft English H — push harder. |
| 9 / ss | ص (sad) | Heavy S | Press your tongue flat and say S. It sounds thicker, darker. |
| gh | غ (ghain) | French R | The Parisian R in "Rien." A soft gargle at the back of the throat. |
| kh | خ (kha) | Scottish loch | Like clearing your throat softly. The CH in Bach. |
| q | ق (qaf) | Deep K | A K from the very back of the throat, almost a click. |
| dd | ض (dad) | Heavy D | Tongue pressed flat, emphatic D. Arabic is called "the language of Dad." |
| tt | ط (ta) | Heavy T | Emphatic T with tongue pressed flat against the palate. |
Cultural note
Darija drops most short vowels from Classical Arabic. Where Arabic says “kitaab” (book), Darija says “ktab.” The rhythm is fast, percussive, and drops everything unnecessary.
Pronouns & Possession
Seven pronouns. No formal “vous” — everyone is “tu.” Possession uses “dyal” + pronoun suffix.
| English | Darija | Arabic | Possessive |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | ana | أنا | dyali (mine) |
| You (m) | nta | نتا | dyalk (yours) |
| You (f) | nti | نتي | dyalk (yours) |
| He | huwwa | هو | dyalu (his) |
| She | hiya | هي | dyalha (hers) |
| We | hhna | حنا | dyalna (ours) |
| You (pl) | ntuma | نتوما | dyalkum (y’all) |
| They | huma | هوما | dyalhum (theirs) |
Cultural note
“L-ktab dyali” = my book. “D-dar dyalna” = our house. This one pattern covers everything.
The Verb System
Three tenses. Built with prefixes and suffixes on a root. This is the engine.
Present: ka- + verb
Add ka- before the conjugated verb. The prefix tells you the tense; the suffix tells you the person.
| Person | kla (eat) | msha (go) | dar (do) |
|---|---|---|---|
| ana (I) | ka-nakl | ka-nmshi | ka-ndir |
| nta (you m) | ka-takl | ka-tmshi | ka-tdir |
| nti (you f) | ka-takli | ka-tmshi | ka-tdiri |
| huwwa (he) | ka-yakl | ka-ymshi | ka-ydir |
| hiya (she) | ka-takl | ka-tmshi | ka-tdir |
| hhna (we) | ka-naklu | ka-nmshiw | ka-ndiru |
| huma (they) | ka-yaklu | ka-ymshiw | ka-ydiru |
Pattern: n- for I, t- for you/she, y- for he, n-...-u for we, y-...-u for they. Learn this once, conjugate anything.
Past: root changes + suffix
No prefix. The root shifts and takes a person suffix.
| Person | kla (ate) | msha (went) | dar (did) |
|---|---|---|---|
| ana | klit | mshit | drt |
| nta | kliti | mshiti | drti |
| huwwa | kla | msha | dar |
| hiya | klat | mshat | darat |
| hhna | klina | mshina | drna |
| huma | klaw | mshaw | daru |
Future: ghadi + present (without ka-)
“ghadi nakl” = I will eat. “ghadi nmshi” = I will go. “ghadi ndir” = I will do.
That’s it. Three tenses. Three patterns. The rest is vocabulary.
Negation: the ma...sh sandwich
Wrap any verb in ma- and -sh. Universal. Beautiful. Moroccan.
Present
ma-ka-naklsh
I don’t eat
Past
ma-klitsh
I didn’t eat
Future
ma-ghadi-naklsh
I won’t eat
Cultural note
The ma...sh sandwich comes from Amazigh substrate influence. It’s what makes Darija sound nothing like Standard Arabic. When you hear it, you know you’re in Morocco.
Questions
yes/no question marker
wash nta mghribi? = are you Moroccan?
what?
shnu smitk? = what's your name?
where?
fin kayn l-hammam? = where's the hammam?
when?
fuqash ghadi tmshi? = when are you going?
why?
3lash ma jitish? = why didn't you come?
how?
kifash kaygulu...? = how do you say...?
who?
shkun hada? = who is this?
how much?
bshhal hada? = how much is this?
Adjectives & Agreement
Darija adjectives come after the noun and agree in gender. Masculine is the base form; feminine adds -a.
| English | Masculine | Feminine |
|---|---|---|
| big | kbir | kbira |
| small | sghir | sghira |
| beautiful | zwin | zwina |
| hot | skhun | skhuna |
| cold | bard | barda |
| new | jdid | jdida |
| old | qdim | qdima |
| delicious | bnin | bnina |
| expensive | ghali | ghalya |
| happy | frhhan | frhhana |
| tired | t3ban | t3bana |
| hungry | ji3an | ji3ana |
Example: “rajl kbir” (big man) → “mra kbira” (big woman). “atay skhun” (hot tea) → “l-ma barda” (cold water).
Ready to use it?