you must learn some of our lingo, it's rather strange...
Babbelas (pronounced bub-buh-luss) – Babbelas refers to a morning-after hangover. Picture your most drunken mate stumbling into work late, looking pale and holding his hand to his forehead. When asked what the matter is, he answers: "Jislaaik china, I dopped 20 dumpies last night and now I have a hang of a babbelas." Translation: "Gee, my friend, I drank 20 small beers last night and now I have a terrible hangover."
Bell – This comes from the Afrikaans "bel", meaning to call on the telephone. In the South African context it is used as follows: "I'll give you a bell when I get home." Translation: "I'll phone you when I get home".
Dinges (pronounced ding-us) – Used when someone can't immediately remember the name of a person or object. For instance: "When is dinges coming around?" or "Please pass me the dinges behind you". Comparative words are "whatsizname" or "whatchamacallit".
Dwaal (pronounced dwarl) – Used to indicate a lack of concentration or focus. Say a friend is talking to you but your mind is elsewhere. When the friend finishes speaking and looks at you as if expecting an answer, your response would be: "Sorry, I was in a bit of a dwaal. Could you repeat that?" Alternatively a dwaal could mean you are lost and wandering around aimlessly. An example: "I couldn't remember how to get there, so I drove around in a dwaal for a while before I found the right turning."
Eina (pronounced ay-nuh or ay-nar) – A short, sharp expression meaning ouch. Alternatively used to mean sore, as in: "That cut must have been really eina."
Koki (pronounced koh-key) – A coloured marker or felt-tip pen.
Robots – South Africans refer to traffic lights as robots. Sometimes they pronounce the word "row-bow". An example of usage would be when giving directions: "Turn left at the second robot."
Slap chips (pronounced slup chips) – French fries, usually soft, oily and vinegar-drenched, bought in a brown paper bag. "Slap" is an Afrikaans word meaning "limp", which is how French fries are generally made here. If that's not how you like them, be sure to order them "crispy".[/B]
Tackies – Running shoes or sneakers. Used in conjunction with the word fat, as in "fat tackies", it describes extra wide tyres. Example: "Look at the fat tackies on that motorbike!"
Vrot (pronounced frot) – Taken from Afrikaans, this word describes something as rotten. For example, "This apple is vrot." Alternatively, it can be used to describe something as smelly. "Jislaaik china (meaning "wow mate"), put your tackies back on, they're vrot."
and many more...
Babbelas (pronounced bub-buh-luss) – Babbelas refers to a morning-after hangover. Picture your most drunken mate stumbling into work late, looking pale and holding his hand to his forehead. When asked what the matter is, he answers: "Jislaaik china, I dopped 20 dumpies last night and now I have a hang of a babbelas." Translation: "Gee, my friend, I drank 20 small beers last night and now I have a terrible hangover."
Bell – This comes from the Afrikaans "bel", meaning to call on the telephone. In the South African context it is used as follows: "I'll give you a bell when I get home." Translation: "I'll phone you when I get home".
Dinges (pronounced ding-us) – Used when someone can't immediately remember the name of a person or object. For instance: "When is dinges coming around?" or "Please pass me the dinges behind you". Comparative words are "whatsizname" or "whatchamacallit".
Dwaal (pronounced dwarl) – Used to indicate a lack of concentration or focus. Say a friend is talking to you but your mind is elsewhere. When the friend finishes speaking and looks at you as if expecting an answer, your response would be: "Sorry, I was in a bit of a dwaal. Could you repeat that?" Alternatively a dwaal could mean you are lost and wandering around aimlessly. An example: "I couldn't remember how to get there, so I drove around in a dwaal for a while before I found the right turning."
Eina (pronounced ay-nuh or ay-nar) – A short, sharp expression meaning ouch. Alternatively used to mean sore, as in: "That cut must have been really eina."
Koki (pronounced koh-key) – A coloured marker or felt-tip pen.
Robots – South Africans refer to traffic lights as robots. Sometimes they pronounce the word "row-bow". An example of usage would be when giving directions: "Turn left at the second robot."
Slap chips (pronounced slup chips) – French fries, usually soft, oily and vinegar-drenched, bought in a brown paper bag. "Slap" is an Afrikaans word meaning "limp", which is how French fries are generally made here. If that's not how you like them, be sure to order them "crispy".[/B]
Tackies – Running shoes or sneakers. Used in conjunction with the word fat, as in "fat tackies", it describes extra wide tyres. Example: "Look at the fat tackies on that motorbike!"
Vrot (pronounced frot) – Taken from Afrikaans, this word describes something as rotten. For example, "This apple is vrot." Alternatively, it can be used to describe something as smelly. "Jislaaik china (meaning "wow mate"), put your tackies back on, they're vrot."
and many more...
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