South Africa Slang Dictionary
South African slang is a rich, multilingual mix that borrows freely from the country's eleven official languages - isiZulu, isiXhosa, Afrikaans, Sesotho and more - plus street languages like tsotsitaal and Sepitori. It's the language of the townships, the taxi rank, kwaito and amapiano, and everyday Mzansi life from Joburg to Cape Town to Durban. Words like eish, howzit, lekker, sharp sharp and yebo are woven into how South Africans speak every day. Explore the community-built dictionary of South African slang below - and add the words you know.
A Tender Prophet is a name given to a tenderpreneur who can prophecy that s/he will be awarded a tender before it is officially awarded. This name has been used to describe Cat Matlala who rented a clinic on South African Police Service (SAPS) property six months before he scored a tainted R360 million police health services tender.
Example
He rented the property before he was given the tender. Surely he is a prophet. He is a tender prophet.
A term used in South African high schools—coined by the Matric Class of 2024—to refer to students born in 2010 during the FIFA World Cup hosted in South Africa. The nickname comes from the tournament’s official anthem, “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)” by Shakira. It’s commonly used to refer to Grade 8 learners of 2024, most of whom were born that year.
Bafana Maths refers to the calculations Bafana Bafana usually does before qualifying for a major tournament. It usually entails “if team A wins, team B draws, and we win by so many goals, then we qualify”
Umgxobhozo yindawo echifichifi ngenxa yodaka namanzi, emva kokuba kunethe imvula ngamandla.
In English umgxobhozo is a swamp.
In English umgxobhozo is a swamp.
Example
Ngenxa yokuqhuba amatakane, uyise kaThando uthe dyumpu emgxobhozweni.
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