Pidgin na Naija real language. The thing wey oyinbo dey call lingua franca. English be our official language o but as we con take plenty so na e Pidgin resurrect to epp people from different parts of the country communicate with themselves wella.
So make I quickly yarn una some slangs wey every Naija person suppose know and understand.
- How far means “Hello/How is everything?”: This common greeting is a simple, informal greeting that’s best used with people you know well, or in casual settings.
- Wétin dey? means “What’s up/What’s going on?”: This is another highly informal greeting that is even more informal than how far. If you drop the dey and ask someone wétin on its own, this is a good way of telling them to back off. Make sure you have your best scowl to back it up.
- You do well means “Thank you”: The great thing about pidgin is that most of it is easy to get around. ”You do well” simply means “Thank you”.
- No wahala means “No problem”: No wahala” is the pidgin expression used to confirm or approve of something.
- E don do means “Stop”: E don do means It is enough or Stop. It can also be an instruction. You cannot do without this particular phrase while travelling through Nigeria.
- This food sweet well well means Delicious: Perhaps you just had one tasty meal and you want to express your pleasure, this phrase will express it very well.
- I wan chop means “I’m hungry”: This phrase is important if you want to live and not die of hunger.
- E too cost abeg means “Too expensive”: ”E too cost abeg” is the pidgin way of expressing displeasure at the price of something.
- Make we go shayo means “Let’s grab a drink”: If you are into alcohol,”Shayo” can refer to beer, red wine, vodka or whatever alcohol you might fancy. “Make we go shayo” is a good statement to make if you have enough money to buy a round or two for the boys.
- Abeg means “Please”: This can be used to express anything from request to incredulity. Abeg help me clean am or Abeg e too cost.
- Go slow means “Traffic jam”: This is a common phrase you’ll often here used by Lagosians in reference to the city’s everyday traffic. It might also be used in other cities as well but Lagos definitely leads.
- Listen well well means “Pay attention”: If you need to pass across some very important information, this is the exact phrase to use.
- Baff up means “Dress nicely”: This phrase is a dress code on its own. When you are asked to ”Baff up”, it simply means “Dress nicely”.
- Oya means “Hurry up”: There isn’t a direct translation in English for this phrase as it might mean ‘come on’ or ‘hurry up’ or even “please reconsider”. Knowing the particular context in which the phrase is needed is key.
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