In South Africa They Say...

As I mentioned in the post about population and language, we thought it would be fun to share some of the words and phrases used in S.A. and so here we're starting off with some of the most common expressions. Hope you'll enjoy it! :)
ag (pronounced 'agh') - This one of the most useful South African words. Pronounced like the "ach" in the German "achtung", it can be used to start a reply when you are asked a tricky question, as in: "Ag, I don't know." Or a sense of resignation: "Ag, I'll have some more food then." It can stand alone too as a signal of irritation or of pleasure.
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deurmekaar (deer-muh-car) - An Afrikaans word for confused, disorganised or muddled up as in "He's a bit deurmekaar today". (A very useful word, by the way!) :)
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eina (ay-nuh or ay-nar) - Ouch! Can also mean "sore". A mother might ask a child that has just tripped and fallen, "Did you get eina?"
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eish (aysh) - Used to express surprise, wonder, frustration or outrage: "Eish! That price is too high!" 
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hang of - Very or big, as in: "I had a hang of a problem".
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ja (yaa) - means 'Yes'. Very similar to "Ja" in German and Dutch.
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jawelnofine - Literally, "yes, well, no, fine", all scrunched into a single word and similar to "How about that?"
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just now - If a South African tells you they will do something "just now", they mean they'll do it in the near future - not immediately: "I'll go to the shop just now after I've finished having lunch."
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hey - Often used at the end of a sentence to emphasize the importance of what has just been said, it can also stand alone as a question. Instead of saying "excuse me?" or "pardon?" when you have not heard something directed at you, you can say: "Hey?" (Although this is not very polite!)
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howzit - A traditional South African greeting that translates roughly as "How are you?", "How are things?" or simply "Hello".
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Isit? - This is a great word in conversations. Comes from the two words "is" and "it", it can be used when you have nothing to contribute if someone tells you something that you are not quite sure about. It is appropriate to respond by saying: "Isit?" /:)
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lekker (lekk-irr with a rolling r) - Nice, good, great, cool or tasty.
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nê (neh) - Really? or is that so? Often used sarcastically.
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now-now - Shortly, in a bit: "I'll be there now-now." 'Now-now' is sooner than 'Just now'!
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shame - Broadly denotes sympathetic feeling. Someone admiring a baby, puppy or kitten might say: "Ag shame!" to emphasise its cuteness. Or if they heard that someone was ill they might say, "Oh shame, I'm sorry to hear that!" or simply "Shame!"
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yebo (jebaʊ) - a Zulu word for 'yes' or 'I agree'                              

A note about pronounciation:                                                                               In many words derived from Afrikaans, the letter "g" is pronounced in the same way as the "ch" in the Scottish "loch" or the German "achtung" - a kind of growl at the back of the throat. In the pronunciation guides above, the spelling for this sound is given as "gh".