imb'

Maltese

Etymology

The -m- is probably a fossiled rest of the Arabic nunation. Compare Arabic وَجْهاً لِوَجْهٍ‎ (wajhan liwajhin), راساً لِراسٍ‎ (rāsan lirāsin), where Maltese has only replaced the preposition لِ‎ (li) with بِ‎ (bi). Compare also the nunation in Maltese xejn.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ɪmb‿/

Preposition

imb'

  1. Alternative form of b' used in a few expressions.
    wiċċ imb'wiċċ ― face to face
    ras imb'ras ― head to head
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