Moroccan Darija for “hour / clock / watch”
/sa3a/
ساعة
Tsnnit sa3a 9bel ma ja taxi.
I waited an hour before the taxi came.
Latin Darija has several accepted writing styles. You may see this word written as:
These spellings refer to the same word. In chat writing, 3, 7, and 9 commonly represent ع, ح, and ق. Vowels and sh/ch can also vary. You can search using any spelling listed here.
Say sa3a (ساعة) for “hour / clock / watch” in Moroccan Darija. The pronunciation guide is /sa3a/. It is a noun. In a natural conversation, you can say “Tsnnit sa3a 9bel ma ja taxi.”, meaning “I waited an hour before the taxi came.” The French equivalent is heure / horloge / montre.
f lsa3a jaya, ghadi nji ldar.
ف الساعة جاية، غادي نجي للدار.
In the coming hour, I will come home. · Dans l'heure qui vient, je rentrerai à la maison.
shriyt sa3a jdida mn souq.
شريت ساعة جديدة من السوق.
I bought a new watch from the market. · J'ai acheté une nouvelle montre au marché.
sa3a dyal l3amal tbdat f ts3a.
ساعة ديال العمل تبدأ ف تسعة.
The work hour starts at nine. · L'heure de travail commence à neuf.
The word 'sa3a' is commonly used in everyday conversations in Morocco to refer to time, whether it's the hour of the day or a timepiece like a watch or clock. It is used in both formal and informal settings. A common expression is 'sa3a sa3ida' (ساعة سعيدة), meaning 'happy hour' or 'good time.'
| English | hour / clock / watch |
|---|---|
| French | heure / horloge / montre |
| Spanish | hora / reloj |
| Italian | ora / orologio |
| German | Stunde / Uhr |
| Portuguese | hora / relógio |
| Dutch | uur / klok / horloge |
| Turkish | saat / saat (zaman ölçer) |
sa3a (ساعة) is a Moroccan Darija word or expression meaning "hour / clock / watch" in English and "heure / horloge / montre" in French. It is a intermediate-level word in the time category.
A natural example is “Tsnnit sa3a 9bel ma ja taxi.” It means “I waited an hour before the taxi came.”
Sa3a is pronounced /sa3a/. You can listen to the audio pronunciation by clicking the "Listen" button above.
In Arabic script it is written ساعة.
The word 'sa3a' is commonly used in everyday conversations in Morocco to refer to time, whether it's the hour of the day or a timepiece like a watch or clock. It is used in both formal and informal settings. A common expression is 'sa3a sa3ida' (ساعة سعيدة), meaning 'happy hour' or 'good time.'