By Clare Byrne
South Africa-Mexico, Soccer City, June 11.
One of the Mexican forwards stumbles during a tackle. "Sorry, man" the South African defender says. "Aha," the Mexican thinks. "An admission of guilt!"
Actually, what the South African is really saying in this hypothetical scenario is that he is sorry for the Mexican. He is not expressing remorse.
Saying "sorry" to someone that you have not wronged is one of the many wonderful South Africanisms foreigners will come across at the World Cup.
Following is a A-Z glossary of other typical terms or expressions found in South African English, which is heavily influenced by the country's 10 other languages.
A for Ayoba:
A slang word for cool that has been made into a World Cup refrain by sponsor MTN, which has incorporated "ayoba" into all its advertising, e.g. "We don't say ole, we say ayoba!" or "That's so Ayoba (cool)!"
B for Babalas:
Hangover, taken from the Zulu word isibhabalazi. Usually treated with a sachet of Grandpa (a local headache powder) or a regmaker - another beer.
C for Cooldrink:
A chilled soda or a euphenism for a bribe. eg "If you buy me cooldrink, I'll forget about that speeding fine."
D for Dagga:
(pronounced dach-ha) Marijuana.
E for Eish!
(pronounced aysh) An expression of surprise/resignation, eg "Eish, I'm so broke."
F for Fong Kong:
A Chinese counterfeit, eg a fong kong football jersey or takkies (runners).
G for Geyser:
It's got to do with hot water alright, but it's the hot water tank in a house, not a spring.
H for Howzit/heita:
(pronounced heyta) "How are you?" in English and a mix of Afrikaans and Xhosa.
I for Is it/izzit?:
An expression of surprise, used even when the preceding statement did not include the verb "to be", eg "Brazil first play North Korea" or "I have a toothache." Response: "Is it?"
J for Just now/now now:
Denote varying levels of urgency. Phoning someone "now now" is sooner than "now" or "just now" but not as soon as "right now."
K for Kugel:
A middle-class Jewish girl or woman from northern Johannesburg, who speaks with a nasal voice and is preoccupied with her appearance
L for Lekker:
From the Afrikaans word for delicious, meaning nice or fun, eg "We had a lekker time last night."
M for Muti:
A catch-all term for African medicinal remedies and rituals. Footballers can use muti to bring bad luck on a rival team.
N for Ne:
Is it not so? Used liberally by Afrikaans speakers for emphasis, e.g. "I went to the shop, ne, and I bought some milk, ne, and then I came home, ne...
O for Ouma:
Afrikaans word for grandmother or old woman. Also the name of a brand of rusk - Ouma Rusks.
P for Pap:
A stiff porridge made of maize. Pap 'n vleis (meat stew, pronounced flays) is the staple dish in townships.
R for Robot:
Traffic lights, which you "jump" rather than go through, eg "Jump the robot and take a short (first) right."
S for Sharp:
sharp Understood, agreed, sorted.
T for Tsotsi:
A gangster or thug. Also the title of an Oscar-nominated South African film about a robber in Johannesburg.
U for Umqombothi:
(pronounced um-kom-bo-tee, from Xhosa) Popular cheap beer made of sorghum and maize.
V for Vuvuzela:
Plastic trumpets blown by South African fans, which are being talked up as the 12th man of the host team because they have the effect of deafening their opponents
W for Woza:
"Come here" or "Come on" in Zulu, eg "Woza 2010!"
X for Xhosa:
One of South Africa's biggest ethnic groups and a language of the same name that is sprinkled with clicks. The "xh" in Xhosa is pronounced as a click.
Y for Yebo:
"Yes" in Zulu.
Z for Zulu:
South Africa's most populous nation and widely-spoken language. - Sapa-dpa