Here is a list of words indigenous to South Africa. If there is a word you hear on the show that you don’t understand and it is not shown here, please let us know and we will add it immediately.
Glossary (Compiled from Wikipedia and listener input)
A
- AAP – Girl/ Girlfriend
- Aapedill – Girl/Girlfriend
- abigail – abortion
- ada – backside
- ag man – oh man; ag as the Afrikaans equivalent to “oh”, man pronounced as in English
- agatha – a gossip
- aida – AIDS
- aitsa – is usually used when exclaiming agreement like you would when saying “sweet!”, “nice!”, “lekker!”, and “got it!” .
- amanda – amazing
- an’ all – (from ‘and all’; like the English ‘et cetera, et cetera’).
- annie – anus
- antie – an older female authority figure. [Word used most often by Indians[citation needed]. Derived from the nonstandard Afrikaans word which is in term derived from the English “aunt”.]
- anties – breasts, as in “check die lekker anties op daai girl!”
- arrawise – greeting, derived from the English word ‘otherwise’ (“arrawise bra watse?”)
- as well – means “me too” when pronounced with over-emphasis on the “as”
- aspriss (pron. arse-priss) – to intentionally do something (“I closed the door on him aspriss”)
- Awe – “Howsit”, “hello”. A slang way of greeting someone
- aweh/awe (pronounced \AAAH-WHERE\ —> not rolling the “R”) – said in excitement, as in: Aweh; my boss said I can go home early today.. The word has many meanings or uses: “hello”, “goodbye”, “yes”. Also associated with prison use. (Greeting) “Aweh, my bru” (Hello my friend). Compare: howzit, yooit, hoesit, yo.
- ayoba – Expression of excitement
B
- baas – boss
- babelaas babbelas – hangover (of Zulu origin)
- baff – Fart
- bakgat – cool; awesome; well done
- bakkie – a pick-up truck, now a mainstream word in South African English. Can also refer to a small container.
- bakvissie – a giggly teenage girl (from bakvis, a fish too small to be kept and thrown back into the water).
- bale – (TV) used to signify annoyance (pronounced barlee)
- barbara – straight man
- befok – “mad”; also possibly “super cool”, as in My broe daai kar is befok. Pronounced \ber fork.
- befok – really good, exciting, cool; as in “The rock-show was befok.” [Do not confuse with gefok.] Can also mean “crazy” in a very strong sense, as in “Are you befok?” — derogatory(err:definitely not a polite enquiry). “Ek het daai ou befok” – meaning I cheated that guy in a transaction. Profanity – the base ‘fok’ meaning to have sex (similar to “fuck”).
- bek – derogatory term for mouth (Afrikaans: an animal’s mouth); hou jou bek – “shut up, shut your trap” (literally” “hold your [animal’s] mouth”). This translates well into British English as “Shut your gob.”
- belinda – blind
- bella – to hit or slap “I will bella you if you don’t stop staring at that beulah.”
- benou – (pronounce BER-NOW) – marijuana or dagga. Commonly used by Indians in Gauteng. “no benou there?”-do you have any dagga?
- bergie – from berg, mountain, originally referring to vagrants who sheltered in the forests of Table Mountain; now a mainstream word for a particular subculture of vagrants, or homeless persons, especially in Cape Town. When used as slang refers to anyone down-and-out
- betters – “To replenish” or “refill”. Example: Ekse lets make a betters with the mineral
- betty – black person
- beulah – beautiful, usually referring to a good looking guy
- bife – Portuguese word for Beef but often refers to a man’s penis. (“Maria reckons she wants some of my bife!”)
- bill – used to ask for the cheque; as in: “Can I have the bill, please?”, identical to British English
- biltong – dried meat, similar to jerky (a mainstream word)
- bint : from the Lebanese word for “girl”; used in reference to women in general (as in “check out that hot bint over there.”)
- bioscope, bio – cinema, movie theatre (now dated), originally an international English word that became defunct elsewhere, it has survived longer in South Africa[1] as a result of the influence of the Afrikaans cognate bioskoop. Also related to the Dutch word “bioscoop”, which still means “cinema” in Netherlands usage.
- blerrie/bladdy hell – damn
- bliksem – strike, hit, punch; also used as an expression of surprise/emphasis (rude). It derives from the Dutch word for “lightning”, and often occurs in conjunction with donner. Used as a curse in Afrikaans: Jou bliksem! (You bastard!) Used to curse that Bliksem Taxi.
- blou – being sad as in the English language feeling blue
- bloutrein – literally “blue train”, referring to methylated spirits, sometimes used for drinking (filtered through a loaf of white bread). Also refers to the Blue Train (two words), a luxury train that travels from Pretoria to Cape Town.
- boarded-off – declared medically unfit to work, and in receipt of a disability pension, As in: ‘My daddy was so lucky to have been BOARDED OFF by the corporation’
- boer – literally “farmer” in Afrikaans. English-speaking people use the word to indicate an Afrikaans farmer, especially in a derogatory way, like “country bumpkin”, “boorish”; but Afrikaners use it with much pride, indicating a person with a deep love of the soil of Africa, a provider of food. boere (the plural form) can also refer to the police.
- boerewors – spicy sausage (Afrikaans) farmer-sausage, used as a mainstream word in South African English
- boet – male friend (from boetie, informal form of broer meaning brother, see also bru and bra below); compare American English: “dude”
- bokgata or Bo 4 – “the police”
- bokkie – (diminutive of bok, literally meaning “little buck” or “doe”) a popular term of endearment, comparable to “sweetheart”, “honey”, etc.
- bolt/one out – used extensively in KZN. Means “by yourself” or “only one”.
- bonehead – derogatory term for an Afrikaner
- boom – Literal translation is “tree” but is commonly used to refer to marijuana
- bosberaad – strategy meeting held outdoors, for example in a game reserve
- boss – “nice” – “that girl is boss, ek sê”
- boss – a salute to an unfamiliar person, or person in authority (usually to a male), as in ‘you know what it is boss’.
- bossies, or bosbefok – crazy, whacko, mad. Also a term for one who has shell shock. Refers to the time of the South African Border War where soldiers spent time in the bush (“bos/bosse”) and would return home suffering battle flash-backs (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).
- bot – refer to gaam usually associated with a person, act or object that is either dodgy or gangster-like. (Originated from Afrikaans slang bot.)
- boykie or boitjie – meaning a young white male who is cool in the high-school stereotype kind of way. Sporty and tanned, uses a lot of slang. From English “boy” and the Afrikaans “-tjie” meaning little.
- bozy – slang for a black person, usually derogatory but sometimes used affectionately depending on context.
- bra – a way of addressing a friend, as in ‘Howzit my bra’. ‘bra’ derived from ‘brother’
- bra – male friend (shortening of brother, see also bru above)
- bra – male friend compare American English: “dude”
- braai – a barbecue, to barbecue (from braaivleis grilled meat), used as a mainstream word in South African English
- brak – mongrel dog, can also refer to brackish water.
- bring and come – an expression normally denoting some type of unspecified invitation to come and perform a particular task at a given location, i.e. ‘I told dat TV repair balie to Bring and Come and fix da TV’
- brinjal – eggplant, aubergine [from port. “beringela”; also used in Indian English.]
- broekie – panties or ladies underwear. From Afrikaans:broek, meaning “trousers”. Common usage: “Don’t get your broekies in a knot” = “Calm down”.
- broekie lace – ornate ironwork found on Victorian buildings (lit. ‘pantie lace’)
- bru – A term of affection see also “bra” and “boet”, shortened from Afrikaans broer, meaning “brother”. An example would be “Hey, my bru, howzit?”
- buchu – name applied to a range of medicinal plants.[2]
- buck – the main unit of currency: in South Africa the rand
- bung – (from Afrikaans ‘bang’ — to be scared) to be afraid of someone.
- bunny chow – type of food, made with a loaf of bread filled with a curry stew.
- bust up – Big party involving lots of drugs and booze.
- button – mandrax tablet (Slang Only)
C
- cake – idiot
- cake/ikuku – Vagina
- caldo verde – traditional recipe of Portuguese sausage (Port. “chouriço”) and kale nestled in a thick potato soup.
- cameway – to go with someone, like come with me. Used in Durban.
- canyon crab – see bonehead
- Cape of Good Hope – a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula. [from Port. “Cabo da Boa Esperança” – named by a Portuguese king.]
- carol – cry
- catembe – a drink made by mixing red wine and coca-cola.
- chaile – time to go home
- chan – a derogatory term for an overweight, metrosexual South African. (likely origin: derived from the slang term china/chine). Also used as a variation to bru and bra.
- chana – my mate (from Zulu, ‘my nephew’); umshana
- Charo – a person of Indian origin. From the word “curry” (or tea).
- chattis, khateis (plural chatteisim, khateisim. Yiddish: “a sinner”): approximately equivalent to “white trash”. The word refers particularly to poor, white, Afrikaans-speaking communities with endemic social problems. Sometimes used as an ethnic slur against Afrikaners in general. From Talmudic phrase Eyn bor yerey khet – a bor – (uncouth ignoramus) is not afraid of sin. The bor-Boer assonance gives a case for quibble: if not afraid of sin must be therefore a sinner.[6]
- cheekyprawn – a term of foul abuse
- cherps or chips – “Watch out” or “Move out the way”, as in “Chips chips everyone, here comes the teacher!” (distinct from the food or snack). Also often used when something gets thrown, or to ask someone to step out the way. Compare “heads up!”.
- cherry – “meddie”, see tjerrie
- china – friend, mate (from Cockney rhyming slang china [plate] = “mate”), alternatively, as above coming from the Bantu word umshana
- china/chine – a friend; as in the greeting howzit my china (likely origin: Cockney rhyming slang “China plate” (meaning “my mate”); from early British immigrants.
- chlora – coloured person
- choc – R20 note
- chommie – More likely to be used by young girls than guys, the word refers to a friend. A music artist goes by this name.
- chommie/chomma – a friend (compare English “chum”); also refers to the perineum area between vagina and anus. Also spelled tjommie
- choon – to tell someone something.
- chop – “stupid”or “pathetic” – “don’t be such a chop (idiot).
- chop – idiot, doos
- chot – a very offensive term for a sexually active female
- choty goty – beautiful girl
- chouriço – traditional sausage made with pork, fat, wine, paprika and salt. It is then stuffed into tripe (natural or artificial) and slowly dried over smoke. Similar to Spanish chorizo.
- chow – “eat”. or food.
- chow – to eat
- chrisco – a party/disco where Christian music mainly features. A combination of the words ‘Christian’ and ‘Disco’
- chuck – “leave”. Equivalent of American “to bounce”. Examples: “Come bru lets chuck” or “sorry can’t go to the braai i gotta chuck.” If you are funny you might say, “boet, I have to make like Norris and Chuck.”
- chup – “tattoo” – “cool chup exse”
- Chwee chweereekeys– getting high
- cilla (from Priscilla) – cigarette
- clipper’ – R100 note
- clips – Money, 1 clip = R100
- clutchplate – see bonehead
- coaster – a state of affairs that surpasses cool
- coat – meaning “quote”, mis-pronounced, with a completely inaudible KW sound. as in Hey, can you give me a coat to fix my car?
- Coconut – Referring to an African black person who is dualistic in their nature. Black on the outside and White on the inside. (derogatory term used amongst city dwelling Black South Africans).
- cocopan – small tip truck on rails used in mines (from Nguni nqukumbana, Scotch cart)[2]
- condai – bus conductor.
- connection – a friend, mate, chommie
- connie – condom
- cora – common
- cover – an insurance policy; as in: Hey laanie, can you organise me a cover for my grannie?
- cozzie – a swimsuit, short for swimming costume[3]
- crown – money
- crown/kroon – “money”; can also refer to virginity.
- crunchie – see bonehead, rockspider[3]
- cuiter – somebody one has a strong dislike for. It has a similar meaning to the word cunt in the English language e.g. daai cuiter pronk toe nog so lekker toe donner ek hom
- cullis – young girl who is extremely lead.
D
- dagga – marijuana (has become a mainstream word in South African English)(from Khoe daxa-b for Leonotis plant)[2]
- dagga – most common word for marijuana.
- dankie san – [Origin: Rap Music] “Thanks, Dude”. Soweto rapper Pro Kid has used it for his new fashion-label, bringing it into the commercial space.
- dikbek – grumpy, in a huff (literally: “thick mouth” (pout), with an image of puffed-out cheeks like a bullfrog)
- dinges – thingamabob, a wotzit or a whatchamacallit
- dis – to intentionally disregard somebody else..
- dobbel – “gamble”
- dof – stupid or slow to understand.
- doff – stupid. “Are you doff?”
- doing a bafana – demanding more smeka (money) for being mediocre
- doing a benni – [Origin: the saying comes from the formerly much-lauded Bafana Bafana striker Benni McCarthy’s “uncharitable habit of turning his back on his country”[8] following many instances of failing to turn up to play for South Africa’s national football squad.] Meaning “showing disloyalty / being irresponsible”.
- dom pedro – drink made by mixing ice cream with whisky.
- domkop – idiot (lit. Dumbhead), same as German “Dummkopf”
- donga – ditch of the type found in South African topography. (From Zulu, “wall”; this has become a mainstream word for such a feature.)
- donner – to beat up. Used together with “bliksem”. Derived from “donder” (thunder, related to Thor). Amounts to an ancient curse. Like “Nick i’m gonna donder jou poes”
- doos – literally the Afrikaans translation for ” box ” Depending on context, the slang / derogatory version can mean ” prat, twat, idiot, dumb cunt “
- dop – alcohol, to drink alcohol, to fail. For example: “Come and drink a dop (a drink) with me” or “I’m gonna dop that test.” Originally refers to a tot (measure).
- dop – Drink or to drink, primarily when talking about alcohol, from the Afrikaans “dop” (shell, referring to a small glass for alcohol).
- dora – a drink; drunk
- dorpie – small town
- doss, dossing – Sleep or nap.
- drib : from the Lebanese word for “hit” (as in “hey ghey … if you don’t stop talking gara, I may have to drib you!”)
- Droëwors – (Afrikaans) ‘dry sausage’, similar to biltong
- dronkie – drunkard
- druk – to embrace or squeeze, hug (noun) “Gee my ‘n drukkie,” “Give me a hug.” (not necessary sexually)
- duidelik – direct from Afrikaans, meaning “clear”; used to express clarity on something or excitement about something.
- Dutchman – derogatory term for a white Afrikaner.
E
- eeuww man! – an informal way of greeting. The South African Indian equivalent of “Hey dude!”
- eh pa – a cry of exclamation. (“hey man!”)
- eina – exclamation of pain, as in ouch (from Khoekhoe exclamation of pain or surprise)[2]
- eina! – ouch! used as a mainstream word in South African English.
- eish – [compare Bantu usage above] (pronounced like /aysh/ but also, less often, as /ish/) – Used to express everything ranging from frustration to surprise to disapproval, but also just everyday acknowledgement of things you can’t change like “Eish, the traffic is bad today”. Heard frequently each and every day! Also used to indicate displeasure. For example: ‘At the time I was the only black guy and I used to ask myself “Eish [5], what am I doing here?”’
- eish! – an interjection expressing resignation
- ek sê – I say!
- eksê – from Afrikaans, translated it means “I say”. Used in greeting i.e. “Whakind eksê” or in general speech.
- elsie geselsie – chatterbox
- entjie – Cigarette. For example, “Awe ou. Steek ‘n ent!”
- erica – erection
- espetada – a typical Portuguese dish made usually of large chunks of beef rubbed in garlic and salt, skewered onto a bay leaf stick.
- esterjie – ecstasy
F
- filim. – mispronounced film
- flaterwater – correction fluid (e.g.: Tipp-Ex, Wite-Out) [comes from flater (mistake) and water (water)]
- flou – an unfunny (weak) joke (from the Afrikaans word for weak), can also refer to weak coffee or tea or weak alkoholic drink. A person that is weak. (Die man is te flou “The man is too weak”).
- fok – Afrikaans for “fuck”, can be used in most ways it is used in English. Fokken = fucking, gefok = fucked.
- fong kong – cheap and fake products that one can buy from vendors on the streets. [6].
- frieda – sexually frustrated
- fuella – furious
- fundi – expert (from Nguni ‘umfundisi’ meaning teacher or preacher) – used in mainstream South African English
G
- gaam – dodgy/gangster i.e. That person is gaam. (He is a gangster.)That place is gaam. (it is dodgy.)
- gail – chat
- gam – derogatory term for Coloured Coloured people in South Africa. Derived from “Gham” or “Ham” referring to Ham in the Old Testament. It is a reference to the children of Noah’s son Ham who were illegitimate and cursed into slavery by God.[4][5]
- gammie – diminutive of ‘Gam’, derogatory term for coloured people in South Africa, particularly in Cape Town.
- gara – from the Lebanese word for “faeces” or “dung”; refers to something that is crap (as in “that guy is talking gara!”)
- gatsby – large chip roll with meat and lekker sauces (Cape Town)
- gatvol – fed up, had enough. (Afrikaans – asshole-full).
- gayle – the name for this slang
- gees – Literal translation it means spirit, for something to have spirit. ( daai bra het nou groot gees gevang)
- gesuip – very drunk, intoxicated, plastered. Original Afrikaans meaning for an animal drinking (water) – of course.
- ghey – literally translated from the Lebanese word for “brother”; in colloquial South African refers to “a tinted-windows, lots-of-jewellery” kinda guy (pronounced like “gay” but with a /x/, like a guttural “g” or the “ch” in Scottish loch)
- ghushesh – bmw 325is
- give rocks, to – to be indifferent. For example: I give rocks about your concerns! (I couldn’t care about your concerns!) Can also be abbreviated to “Give rocks.”, and the negative version “I don’t give rocks” means exactly the same thing.
- giyn – a homosexual male
- Glossary
- goffel – Ugly girl/woman. For example,”What a G!”. Also a degrading term for a person of coloured origin.
- gogga – bug (from Khoe xo-xo, creeping things, here the g is pronounced like ch in Scottish loch)[2]
- gogo – grandmother, elderly woman (from Zulu, ugogo)
- gomgat – bumpkin, redneck. (in the US sense, not to be confused with rooinek, the literal translation of redneck.)
- gonda – a vagina
- goof, ghoef – swim, take a dip
- gooi – throw, chuck or to “tune” (see below) someone.
- goose – also chick, cherry : a young woman or girlfriend (used mainly during the 50s, now dated) also famous line by South African comedian Barry Hilton
- graft – meaning work… “hey kazzie, im grafting at coconut grove, lakkaz ekse”
- graze – a term used in reference to food. “I’m starving, let’s go get some graze.”
- gully – “area” or “corner” (KZN)
- guy – similar to the American English word “dude”
- guzzie – friend (from the Zulu guz’lam)
H
- hard up – “in love”
- harriet – hairy man
- haw! – expression of disbelief, surprise. Pronounced like English “how!”. From the Zulu “hawu”.
- hayibo! – wow! (from Zulu, ‘definitely not’)
- heita – heita, meaning “hello” or “hi”. It was from this that telecommunications company ‘Telkom’ got the name ‘8.ta’ for their mobile addition
- Here is a list of words indigenous to South Africa. If there is a word you hear on the show that you don’t understand and it is not shown here, please let us know and we will add it immediately.
- higher grade – a bit too complicated (from the South African matric division of exams into standard grade and higher grade. The system of dividing subjects into higher and standard grade has become non-existent as of 2008.)
- hilda – ugly (or horrible), usually referring to a not-so good looking guy
- hit a luck – expression, to have met with good fortune. as in, ‘hey my bru hit a luck, eee got graft at the Casino’. Also often noted in the form hit such a luck.
- hoesit, hoezit, howzit – derived from “How is it going? – contracted to how’s it?_In English SA context, howzit is more a greeting of “hello” rather than “how are you?”, similar to SA black slang’s “eta” or “ola”
- Hosh – “Hello”; also used before combat. Example in combat: Hosh, jy raak wys (“Hello, show me what you made of”). This gang-related word occurs inside as well as outside of prison: use at own discretion.
- houding – character or style
- hundreds – good, fine. (As in 100 percent; for example: John: “Hey bru, howzit going?” Dominic: “I’m hundreds boet.”)
I
- in sy moer – badly damaged, destroyed (rude, often considered profanity due to ‘moer’ to beat up)
- indaba – conference (from Zulu, ‘a matter for discussion’); has become a mainstream word in South African English
- inyanga – traditional herbalist and healer (compare with sangoma)
- isit – (pronounced: \izit\) the words “is” and “it” put together. Short term for “Is that so?” (For example: John: “Bra, I just found out I have a million dollars!” Charles: “Isit?”; or: John: “Bru, you would not believe how amazing it felt to footskate in front of all those people.” Charles: “Isit?”) Also, it can mean “really?”
J
- ja – yeah (literally “yes” in Afrikaans)
- ja-nee – Literal translation : Yes No. Example : Dis warm vandag. (It’s hot today) : Ja-Nee. Agreement, but not enthusiastically so.
- Jaaver – an Afrikaner person
- jags – “horny”. The first form occurs in Cape Town; the second predominates on the east coast of South Africa. May also mean “crazy” or “mad”. Examples: Person A: I want to get robbed Person B: Are you jags? or Person A: Ek wil my werk verloor Person B: Is jy jags?.
- Jakete (from the word Jacket) – R10 note
- jenny – masturbate
- jerepigo – a usually red heavy dessert wine. [from Port. “geropiga”.]
- jessica – jealous
- jislaaik! – expression of surprise, can be positive or negative. Often used when you get a fright, but equally often during particularly exciting parts of a rugby game.
- jo – an expression of surprise e.g., “Jo, that was rude” “Jo, you gave me a fright!” pron. yo as in yonder)
- jol – to have fun, to party, can also refer to a disco or party, to commit adultery or even dating or courting
- jova – injection, to inject (from Zulu)
- juish (pronounced /Joowish/) – refers to nice and flashy clothes that someone has on.
- jukka – a lazy person or a loser
- julia – jewellery
- just now, sometime in the near future or the near past, not necessarily immediately. Expresses an intention to act soon, but not necessarily immediately, or expresses something that happened in the near past. Probably from the Afikaans netnou with the same meaning.
- jux/juks/jags – Meaning “horny”. For example, “Jinne meisie, jy maak my nou sommer lekker jags.”
K
- kak – Literal translation : shit. crap, rubbish, nonsense (vulgar), of very wide usage. Also used as a way of further expressing one’s feeling in language, for example, instead of “that girl is pretty” one can say emphatically “that girl is kak pretty!”
- kaross – garment made of animal skin (from Khoe meaning skin blanket)[2]
- kassam – serious, not joking. From Islamic meaning “oath”.
- katkop – half a loaf of bread hollowed out and filled with chips (i.e. French fries, not crisps) (Literal translation from Afrikaans = cat head or cat’s head). In South Africa French fries refers to thinly cut fried potato chips, whereas slap tjips (lit. limp chips) refers to the thicker British-style chip. Crispy potato chips are known as potato crisps.
- kêrel – police man
- kêrels – police (original Afrikaans meaning: guys, chaps). “The kêrels are coming, watch out!” (Dated). More commonly referring to boyfriend or literal translation : Guy or young man.
- khaki – [from the colour worn by British troops] derogatory term for an English person
- kiff, kif, kief – (adjective) wicked, cool, neat, great, wonderful. The word derives from the Arabic word ‘kif’ meaning pleasure or marijuana. This may also be related to the Afrikaans word for poison: gif. Coastal pot-smokers used the term to refer to Durban Poison: “Gifs” [locally-grown marijuana]. The word evolved into kiff, an adjective or exclamation meaning “cool”, amongst English-speaking people on the east coast.
- klankie – unpleasant smell. Also said as just “Klank”. Pronounced as in “Clunk”
- klap – to smack. (From Afrikaans). “He got klapped in the bar”. Like a “bitch-slap”.
- koex – drink (“what you koexing?” – what are you drinking?)
- koffie-moffie – a camp male waiter or air steward. See “moffie”.
- kont – same as ‘Cunt’ in English (profanity)
- kraal – enclosure for livestock. [from Afrik. via Port. “curral”.]
- krimpie – old person
- kugel: an overly groomed, materialistic woman (from the Yiddish word for a plain pudding garnished as a delicacy). Older-generation Jews coined this usage as a derogatory label for Jewish women who aspired to become part of the privileged English-speaking white community. Current usage, often humorously intended, applies the word to any nouveau riche women in South African society who appear overly groomed and materialistic. Bagel and bagel-boy occur as labels for the male counterpart of the kugel. (Compare the American-English term Jewish-American princess which has subtly differing connotations.)
- kwaai – cool, excellent (Afrikaans: “angry”. Compare the US slang word phat.)
- kwaito – popular genre of music, a mixture of South African disco, hip hop, R&B, ragga, and a heavy dose of house-music beats.
L
- laaitie, lighty – a younger person, esp. a younger male such as a younger brother or son
- laanie – From the Afrikaans word meaning “fancy”, but used by Indian people to mean “smart guy” (“Smart” as in “well-to-do”) or, more frequently, “boss”. Compare larnie.
- laanie, larny – (n) boss, used in a deferent tone. (adj) fancy
- laduma! – a popular cheer at soccer matches, “he scores!” (literally: “it thunders”, in Zulu)
- lag – to laugh. For example: They lag at the joke.
- lakkaz – meaning lekker from the Afrikaans language.
- lank – lots/a lot
- lappie(pronounced *luppee*) – “cloth”, “dish towel” “face cloth”
- las – 1. an act that is undesirable to commit, a burden. 2. To tell someone or suggest to stop doing an act. (origin. something that is slowing you or an object down e.g. ‘n Las in die pad. (An object as in a stone in the road.)
- late – A euphemism for dead/deceased; as in ‘My daddy is 2 years late’. (Unconnected with the idea of tardiness.)
- laura – lover
- lekgotla or kgotla – planning session, or strategy (used mostly in official government papers, but even in papers written in English) (from Sesotho (le)kgotla – courtyard)[2]
- lekker – nice, good, great (lit. tasty) Like “tik, tik is lekker”
- lekker/lukka – “nice” [from Afrikaans]. The first form occurs more commonly; the second predominates in Kwa-Zulu Natal.
- lets waai’ – lets go; (waai pronounced as vuy same like buy) (From Afrikaans, “kom ons waai”) Used mostly by Durban Indians.
- lettie – lesbian
- lift – elevator
- lisa – male model
- location – a Bantu township
- lodge- huis
- loskind – a really slutty girl, usually wears revealing clothes and is easy to get with (For example: “Nicola is ‘n fokken loskind!”)
- loskop – air head, literally a “lost head” refers to someone whose head is in the clouds, clumsy, forgetful.
- lulu – laugh
- lus – cigarette. “Give us a lus china”. See also; smaak
M
- maader – “the best”, “excellent”
- maader – excellent, very good (used especially by Durban Indians)
- maafoedi – motherfucker, as in “Jou maaifoedi”
- maat – friend (OED), also your partner (wife, girlfriend)
- maburro – slang for a white Afrikaans person, usually derogatory but sometimes used affectionately depending on context.
- mal – mad, crazy, insane
- mallie – mother
- mamparra – cheeky, mischievous
- marie – mad
- marjorie – margerine
- mary – obvious homosexual
- mathilda – migraine
- maureen – murder
- mavis – effeminate queen
- Mavros plural mavroi (from Greek mavro “black”) – Black people, literally: ‘blacks’.
- meet up – Used in the Kwa-Zulu Natal region, a term usually used when saying “goodbye”. For example: Lukka meet up ekse.
- mielie – millet corn (AmE) / maize (BrE), staple diet
- mielie meal – In sub-Saharan Africa, a relatively coarse flour (much coarser than cornflour or cornstarch) made from maize (mielies or mealies; from Portuguese “milho”.)
- mielies or mealies – maize. [from Port. “milho”.]
- miff – “gross”, “disgusting”. “That’s completely miff!” “Oh my god it was so miff”
- miggie – bug, especially a little flying gnat
- mildred – mentally deranged
- milly – crazy (mad) – milder than mildred
- min – to be completely disinterested in something. For example “so min for that jol” or “when you’re min you win”
- min-rill – from the English word “mineral”, meaning mineral water; taken to mean any fizzy drink in a bottle, normally Coke, Fanta, etc.
- mineral – pronounced ‘min ral’; used by Indians as well. “Fizzy drink” such as Coke, Fanta, Sprite, etc. (KZN)
- mitzi – small
- mmchakawally – cigarettes
- moegoe – a fool, idiot or simpleton. For example: “moegoe of the week”
- moegoe – stupid person, coward, or weakling
- moer-toe – stuffed up or destroyed (my car is moer-toe)
- moffie – male homosexual (derogatory). Can be compared to “fairy”.
- mompie – retard. (“Liesl, you are such a mompie!”)
- monica – money
- mooing – to flirt. From the Afrikaans word mooi meaning “nice”/”pretty”.
- morne – boring, sterile, unexciting. (“This is more morne than watching Saracens play!”)
- mos – Afrikaans, implies that what has been said is well known or self-evident (a formal part of grammar, the closest English equivalent would be “duh!”). “Ek drink mos tee.” (“I drink tea, duh!”). Used at the end of a sentence, as in “…Jy weet mos.” (“…You know then.”)
- motjie – wife/woman
- muti – medicine (from Zulu umuthi) – typically traditional African
- mzansi – [from the isiXhosa words, Mzantsi Afrika] [7].) A common term which means South Africa. [Mzansi] List of colloquial South African place names first published in Y magazine.
- Mzansi – South Africa (uMzantsi in Xhosa means “south”)
N
- N.A.A.F.I. – (pronounced NAAFI) acronym for: “No Ambition and Fuck-all Interest”; (originated from the (still existing) British military “Navy, Army and Air Force Institute”) referring to a lazy person. Used extensively during the days of National Service.
- naai – “sex” (Western Cape) Also used as a noun “Jou ou naai” (literally “You screw”) and used in the plural: “naaie” (literally more than one “screw”), meaning an undesirable person rather than the sexual act. Definitely not polite language.
- naai – derogatory for having sex with a girl (“Last night she gave me a lekker naai”), British English ‘fuck’, or from the Afrikaans “naai” (to sew)
- naartjie (Afrikaans) – tangerine, mandarin, satsuma – any pealable orange-coloured citrus fruit with neat segments; used as a mainstream word in South African English, and a dietary staple. Often thrown at T.V. when frustrated with referee decisions.
- nana – grandfather
- nancy – no
- nè? – do you know what I mean/agree?, oh really?, is it not so?. From the French “n’es pas” meaning “Isn’t it?”. e.g. “Jy hou van tee, nè?” (“You like tea, not so?”) (informal). The South African English equivalent is “hey”, for example “Eish, its cold hey?”.
- nelly – neurotic
- nogal – of all things. Term expressing a measure of surprise
- nooit – never, no way, unbelievable!
- nora – stupid
- now now – an immediate but not literal declaration of impending action, may be past or future tense. From the Afrikaans expression “nou nou”.
O
- olga – old and ugly
- onetime – of course, without delay; often used as a positive reply to a question
- oom – an older man of authority, commonly in reference to an older Afrikaans man (Afrikaans for uncle)
- operate – lets perform or to have sex
- ou – a boy/man/guy, homo sapiens
- ou – person
- ou (plural ouens) man, guy, bloke (also oke) (literally “old”)
- ouballie – old man, dad; as in: “shaft me, ouballie” “My ouballie (father, dad) will be home soon”.
- ousie – Term used to refer to a maid, usually a black female; Also used by black females to call/refer to each other
- Ova – To talk
- oweh – pronounced \ow where, a way of saying “oh yes” or expressing delight.
P
- packet – a plastic bag
- padece – derogatory word for Afrikaners used by South African-Portuguese.
- padese – slang for a white Afrikaans person, usually derogatory but sometimes used affectionately depending on context.
- padrão – a large stone cross inscribed with the coat of arms of Portugal that was placed as part of a land claim by numerous Portuguese maritime explorers in South Africa and elsewhere.
- paining – having pain
- pandora – inquisitive queen
- pano – money, from the Tamil word for “money”. Commonly used by all South African Indian linguistic groups as a euphemism for money
- pap – traditional maize porridge similar to grits; can also mean “deflated”.
- Para/Pareh – to fight/argument
- paraat – disciplined. Somebody who is paraat, generally has “houding”i.e style / character
- patla, flouie – usually refers to poor (unfunny) jokes. Patla can also refer to any kind of damp squib. Patla Patla often refers obliquely to having sex; imitating the sound of two bodies meeting.
- patsy – dance, party
- pawpsh – slang for the mispronunciation of papaya or pawpaw (South Africa has a history of Portuguese people being in the Fruit and Veg retail industry)
- pehrer – a fight. (Often heard as “Who’s gunning a pehrer?” meaning “Who’s looking for a fight?”)
- peri-peri – chili pepper. [from Port. “piri-piri”.]
- Peruvian / Peruvnik: a low-class, unmannered and unsophisticated person regardless of wealth, usually Jewish. The etymology is unclear. [2] (Theories: (a) Yiddish corruption of Parvenu[3]; (b) derives from an acronym for “Polish and Russian Union”, supposedly a Jewish club founded in Kimberley in 1870s, according to Bradford’s Dictionary of South African English. [4]) The more assimilated and established Jews from Germany and England looked down on this group, and their descendants remain stigmatised.
- piel – derogatory term for a male genitalia (“cock” or “dick”)
- pikinini – a black child [from Port. “pequenino”.]
- piso – Portuguese word for penis but often used as a derogatory term for another person. (“Hey man, don’t be such a piso, don’t you know how to pour a catemba?”)
- plaas – lit. : farm. Also, when someone falls down : Plaas gekoop.
- plankton – see bonehead
- platteland – rural area, country (as in living in the country, as opposed to living in the city)
- plot – pursue romantically, courting
- poes – derogatory term for a female genitalia (“pussy” or “cunt”)
- poesgesig – derogatory term for an English-speaking South African (“cuntface”)
- poke – stab
- polly – Portuguese homosexual
- pom, pommie – a Prisoner of Mother England Brit (used also in Australian and New Zealand English)
- pommie, pom – derogatory term for an English person (borrowed from Australia)
- porra – slang for a Portuguese person or the Portuguese language (“Those 2 porra okes were talking porra so I couldn’t make out what they were gaaning aan about”)
- porra – slang for a Portuguese person or language, usually derogatory but sometimes used affectionately depending on context.
- porraland – slang and affectionate term for Portugal used by South African-Portuguese.
- portuguese roll – a light Portuguese bread roll with a crisp crust sprinkled with flour and popular amongst South Africans.
- posie/pozzie – “home”. Afrikaans-speakers tend to use the first for; English-speakers the second.
- potter-marie – means a dumbass (Hindu language roots)
- pozzy – house or home; place where one lives or hangs out.
- prego roll – steak sandwich made with piri-piri (chili) sauce and served on a Portuguese roll. [from Port. “prego”.]
- prem – car
- press – “sex”, as in: “I want to press my young one tonight” (KZN)
- priscilla – policeman
- pull in – literally means to invite Example: “Pull in to my pozzy tonight, gona have a bust up”
- pulling a jabu pule – performing a disappearing act. For example: “Are you pulling a Jabu Pule [8] on me?” (Are you performing a disappearing act on me?); or: “I will never pull a Jabu Pule on you” (I will never disappear or go awol).
- pulling a mbeki – keeping mum because you have nothing intelligent to say, so others will call it quiet diplomacy because at least “diplomacy” sounds like an intellectual word.
- pulling moves – related to doing some sort of crime or fraud
Q
R
- Raven Ou – a Black African or, sometimes, Tamil person. From the Hindu deity Raven[citation needed], reputedly dark-skinned. (Insulting usage.)
- right – an affirmation, mostly used while giving traffic directions, as in “Go straight, Right. Turn Left, Right.”
- rita – rent boy
- robot – traffic-light[3]
- rockspider – see bonehead
- roogie – R50 note
- rooinek – (“red neck”) Afrikaner derogatory term for English person or English-speaking South African. Derived in 19th century due to native British not being used to the hot African sun and getting sunburnt, especially on the neck. Almost the exact opposite to the American usage of “redneck”.
- rop – nice, radical. (e.g. “That was such a rop wave.”) Also used as a verb meaning ‘to steal’. (e.g. “I will rop you of that kief watch.”)
- rope – derogatory term for an Afrikaner – as in thick, hairy and twisted
- Roti Ou / Bread Ou Hindi person
S
- saamie – a sandwich[3]
- sangoma – traditional healer or diviner
- sanwisha – not really slang, just mispronounced ‘sandwich’ (“Can I have one Toshta Cheese Sanwisha?”)
- sat – tired, dead – “Ek is siek en sat van sy nonsens” I’m sick and tired of his nonsense”, see ‘vrek’ below (pronounced as sut in English)
- scheme – to think that (e.g. “I scheme we should go home now”; usage evolved from the hyperbole “What are you scheming?” asked of a person deep in thought.)
- Schwarzer: Yiddish / German for “black” — a black person
- scrompie – slang for “hobo” or bergie. (Liesl told her 7-year-old son, Karl, to walk away from the scrompie walking towards them.)
- shab short for shebeen. In common usage.
- shappies – Chappies Gum sold in most stores in South Africa, often used as currency (“Ah ‘avent got shange, take shappies”)
- sharp – goodbye, (“shap im out” – goodbye I’m leaving)
- shebeen – illegal drinking-establishment (from Irish sibín), synonymous with speakeasy. In South Africa it refers in particular to unlicensed bars in the townships, and has become a mainstream word. During the apartheid era laws prohibited non-whites from consuming any alcohol except traditional sorghum beer, and taverns selling ‘hard-tack’ became the centre of social activity.
- sheila – an ugly woman
- sheila – defacate (from shit)
- shiksa: as in other Jewish communities, this means “non-Jewish girl”. Traditionally “slave-girl”, from the Yiddish version of the Hebrew word for “dirty, unclean, loathsome”[7] In South Africa, however, it has the additional meaning of a “female domestic worker”.
- shongololo (also spelt shongalolo) – millipede (from Zulu and Xhosa, ukushonga, ‘to roll up’)
- shot – “good” or “correct” or “thanks” (depending on context). Example for the meaning “good” – Person A: What is 3+3? Person B: six Person A: shot. Example for the meaning “thanks”: – Person: A I have bought you a sweet Person B: Shot.
- sies, “sis” – expression of disgust, disappointment, annoyance, as in: Ag, sies, man.
- siff – if something is gross or disgusting or ugly. “Did you see her oufit? It was totally siff!”
- skaapie – someone who might be referred to as a “pussy”
- skeef – crooked, gay, as in: hy het ‘n bietjie skeef voorgekom (he seemed a bit gay)
- skelm – (pronounced: Skellem) crook or trouble-maker, mistress, secret lover
- skief – to glare at someone (root: Afrikaans ‘skeef’, skew)
- skinner, skinder – gossip
- skollie – a gangster, to steal (from Greek skolios “crooked”, widely used in Cape Town, originally applied by Greek convenience-store owners to street-youths who shoplifted)
- Skommel marstubate
- Skommel(draadtrek) – to masturbate, from the Afrikaans
- skoon – Kaal voël steek (without a condom). Generally unprotected sex
- skop – kick
- skop, skiet en boom klim – literally “kicking, shooting and climbing trees”. A colloquial description of an action film, usually of the lighter, more humorous kind. (Think Jackie Chan.)
- skop, skiet en donner – literally “kicking, shooting and beating people up”. A colloquial description of an action movie of the more violent kind. (Think Jean-Claude Van Damme.)
- skort – watch out, be careful or something is wrong here.
- skraal – very hungry. (Durban region, from Afrikaans for “thin” or “emaciated”.)
- skrik – fright
- skyf – cigarette, a puff, and also less commonly marijuana or dagga.
- slaan – wear (as in clothes)
- slaat – action like hit. For example: Don’t choon me what what an’ all, I slaat you one time laanie.
- slap gat – English translation “lazy arse”
- slap tjips – (pronounced as “slup chips”) similar to
- slope – derogatory word for an Afrikaaner.
- slops – flip-flops
- slow boat – Splif/Joint – Normally related to marajuana
- smaak – to like another person or thing
- smaak stukkend – to like very much or to love to pieces (literal meaning of stukkend). “I smaak you stukkend” = “I love you madly”.
- smeerlaken – Afrikaans lit. “spread” + “sheet” i.e. an Excel or Lotus worksheet
- sneeudier – old person
- soapie – a soap opera
- soek – to look for trouble with someone/to antagonise/to stir up trouble = “you soeking with me?” – Afrikaans: “to seek or look for”.
- sommer – for no particular reason, just because
- sosatie – a kebab on a skewer, used as mainstream word in South African English.
- soutpiel/soutie – derogatory term for English person, literally salty penis. Someone with one foot in England, the other in South Africa and their penis hanging in the Atlantic Ocean
- spaza – an informal trading-post/convenience store found in townships and remote areas (also a term referring to something cheap and nasty – i.e. of poor quality)
- speak goat – derogatory term for speaking Afrikaans
- speech – an argument
- spiet – to fight
- starter pack – (Origins: Terminology first used by mobile-phone companies but quickly adapted by car thieves and car hijackers.) Refers to entry-level cars [9], especially vehicle-makes occurring commonly on the road and therefore less easy to spot as stolen. Thieves can “chop up” the parts at an illegal “chop shop” and used them for repairs on more expensive vehicles.
- steek – stab, poke (with knife). “He/she steeked her/him” = “He/she poked her/him”. Also see “naai” = Nick steeked me stukkend.
- stekie – girl/girlfriend
- stella – steal
- stiffle : so what: “if you don’t like it stiffle!”
- stoep – porch, verandah, like American English stoop, but pronounced with a shorter vowel
- stompie – a cigarette butt, a short person or impolite term to refer to the remaining arm/leg/finger after an amputation.
- stukkend – (Afrikaans) broken, a lot. Also commonly used when someone is hungover. For example, “I am so stukkend”.
- Stukkie – “girl” or possibly “girlfriend”
- stukkie, stekkie – a woman (from the Afrikaans meaning “a piece”) – mostly used when referring to a woman that you have/have casual encounters with, girlfriend
- sunno – Initially an insult, but now used amongst friends as a greeting, as in: Whakind son
- suss – slang for “look”, “check”, “see” (“Did you suss out it out?” – “Did you check it out?”
- swaai – to dance. (For example: “Lets vaai (go) swaai.”)
- swak – bad
- swak – broke. Original Afrikaans: weak. “I’m swak, ek sê”. Also used to suggest that someone’s behaviour was harsh (with varying degrees of seriousness, depending on tone and context), for example: “It’s swak that I failed the test”
- swak – see “swat”
- swat – carrying out an action resulting in an undesirable or negative outcome; “when you chaffed my cherrie the other day, it was swat oke. Totally swat”; “Moderating a list of slang words is impossible and totally swat oke”; “Changing this word to swak would be totally swat oke”.
T
- Tannie – “aunt”, used by Afrikaans-speakers
- tannie – female version of toppie, from the Afrikaans word for “Aunty”.
- tekkies – sneakers. (The Anglicised pronunciation tackies has become mainstream in South African English..)
- tet – breast or boob
- thick-cut British chips; usually soft, oily and soaked in vinegar, usually bought in a brown paper bag. Slap is Afrikaans for “limp”. French fries refers to thinly cut chips. Crispy potato chips are referred to as ‘crisps’.
- this thing/”dis ting” – watchamacallit
- tickey – Thruppence or 3 pennies, e.g. “You could get a tickey for returning a coke bottle and three tickeys would buy you an eskimo pie”. Dated.
- tiet – English equivalent Boob or Breast (from ‘teat’)
- tokolos – a dwarf-like water sprite, taken from tokoloshe.
- tom – money or cash, as in “I must earn some tom”. From Cockney rhyming slang where “tom” comes from “tomfoolery” (“jewellery”)
- Toppie – “old man”, used by Afrikaans-speakers. An older male authority-figure. Often used by Indians but also by working-class whites. From an Indian word for “hat”. Ou toppie – father – see ouballie
- tops – “excellent”, “the best”
- toyi-toyi – protest-dancing; used in mainstream South African English
- trek – to move or pull. (The word has become international with the meaning of “making a pioneering journey”; the slang usage more closely resembles the standard Afrikaans meaning.)
- trinchado – a popular spicy meat dish of Angolan and Mozambican origin.
- trudy – someone that’s beyond help
- tsotsi – gangster, layabout, no gooder
- tuinbooi – Term used to refer to a gardener, usually a black gardener
- tum-blahh – from the English word “tumbler”, meaning a heavy glass. As in: ‘hey boy, run and get a Tum-blah for the larnie to have some Min-rill’
- tune – to give someone lip (“Are you tuning me?”)
- TVP (tiener velprobleem) – Acne problems
U
- ubuntu – compassion or kindness, humanity
- uhbed : from the Arabic word for “slave” (Arabic: عبد) – a black person
- umlungu – white South African or the Boss (Bass) of the company; isiXhosa word for the white foam that is left on the beach sand, once a wave has retreated back into the sea. (foam is for unprofitable use).
V
- vaalie – mildly derogatory term used by people on the coast for a tourist from inland (Root: Old Transvaal province)
- vai – literally go in Portuguese, but often combined with other languages, for “let’s go” as in, “let’s vai”, or with Sotho, “a re vai.” Especially common in Johannesburg. Mostly pronounced and written as “waai” (as in “let’s waai”), referring to the Afrikaans word ‘waai’ which means ‘blow (like the wind)’, probably an adaption of the Portuguese word vai (go).
- vellies – veldskoens, traditional Afrikaans outdoors shoes made from hide
- vera – vomit
- verkramp – politically conservative or pessimistic, the opposite of verlig, or enlightened
- vinegar – [Origin: Port Elizabeth] Denoting insecurity; especially used of people who behave nastily to others because of their own complexes. “He’s full of vinegar” – meaning he’s got so many chips on his shoulder.
- viva! – long live! [interj. from Port. “Viva”. Local use influenced from Mozambican usage during struggle for independence.]
- voertsêk – impolite way to say “go away”, commonly used with animals or as derogatory term. (from Dutch voort seg ik via Afrikaans)
- voertsek, voetsek – get lost, buzz off, go away, run, scram, stuff off, bugger off (it can be considered rude, depending on the context) – usually used when referring to an animal. From the Dutch “vort, zeg ik” – used with animals, meaning “Go away!” or “Get moving”
- vrek – Afrikaans meaning for an animal dying.
- vrot – bad, rotten, putrid, sometimes drunk
- vrotbek – someone who swears a lot or is swearing a lot at the moment.
- Vrou – my wife, as in ‘Ek sê, I must first ask my Vrou’; from the Afrikaans word for ‘wife”/”woman”.
- vry – to make out or courting (equivalent to American “necking”, British “snogging” or Australian “pashing”)
- Vrystaat vineyard – Shifting spanner
- vying-going, as in we vying to the soccer
W
- weisser: Yiddish for “white” – a white person
- wena – Zulu meaning “you”. Commonly used in a sentence “Haw wena!”
- Whakind – a greeting, usually used amongst guys only, and frowned upon when used in greeting women. This word can also express an enquiry about something, especially when used outside the Kwa-Zulu Natal region.
- what kind – Greeting, similar to Howzit
- What say/What you say/Wat sê jy – alternative for Whakind in the greeting-sense. English-speakers use the first and second forms; Afrikaans-speakers the third.
- what what – mostly used in arguments, meaning “this and that”. Often heard as what you say what what
- whenwe – a nostalgic white migrant from other parts of Africa, especially Zimbabwe: “when we were in Rhodesia…”
- Wit Ou – a White person
- woes – wild, untidy, unkempt or irreverent. A general term pertaining to either a person, behaviour or situation
- wys – multiple meanings – to insult(see tune) or to say e.g. “Yoh, John wys me after I told him to shut up!”
X
Y
- yebo – a Zulu word which means “yes”.
- yebo – Zulu meaning yes
- yoh – an expression of surprise e.g., “Yoh, that was rude” “Yoh, you gave me a fright!”, (Police-chief talking about the poor physique of his policemen) “They should look at our men and say “yoh!”.
- Young one – Refer to “Stekkie”
Z
- Z3 – refers to HIV and AIDS, because of its speed. This is a reference to the BMW Z3.
- zamalek – Black Label, a typical US-style lager, locally brewed under licence
- zef – from Ford Zephyr car, cheap to tune-up; cool, rough guy; common person; ultimate South African style; kitsch.
- zol – a homemade cigarette rolled with old newspaper or rizlas (likely marijuana-filled) joint (equivalent to American “doobie”)
NUMBERS
- 100’s / Hundreds – Relating to being ok, for example: “I am hundreds today after last nights jol”
- 150 – Ladysmith/Emnambithi (KZN)
- 21(two six) – lies or liying.
- 411 – giving someone the latest news and gossip.
- 45 (Four Five) – Penis.
- 5 Jakete – R50 note
- 6 no 9 – “same difference”. Like “potato, potatoe”.
- 69 (Six nine) – It is to pee.
- 9 (nine) – Girlfriend as in a love relationship.
- 99 (nine nine)’ – “for real”.