زقرت
Gulf Arabic
Etymology
Cognate to Iraqi Arabic زقرت (zgurt, “bachelor”), South Levantine Arabic زقرت (zgurt, “strongman, tough guy, macho man”), and North Levantine Arabic سكرتي / زگرتي (skirti, zgirti, “punk, tough guy, macho man”). Possibly borrowed from Ottoman Turkish زوكرت (züğürt, “broke, poor”) in one of these senses before developing positive connotations in Gulf Arabic.
An alternative but potential folk etymology traces the variant زقرتي (zgirti) to English security, referring to security personnel in English-speaking areas such as the Aramco fields. However, this explanation may not fully account for the term’s widespread usage across the Middle East or for the variant that lacks the final ي (y).
Pronunciation
Adjective
زقرت • (zgirt) (invariable)
- fashionable, cool, chic, elegant, stylish
- (obsolete) playboy, womaniser, lady's man, flirt
- Synonym: مضبطچي (mḍabbiṭči)
Usage notes
The word زقرت is invariant for gender and number. However, two gendered variants with the same meaning are also used and can be substituted as needed: زقرتي m (zgirti) for masculine and زقرتية f (zgirtiyya) for feminine.
Derived terms
- زقرتي m (zgirti), زقرتية f (zgirtiyya)