Cape Town - South Africa's word of the year for 2018 is "land expropriation without compensation". Yes, we know it's actually a phrase, but it was chosen because it has been so widely used over the past year
The Pan South African Language Board chose the evocative term from three shortlisted words. The other contenders, which according to PanSALB "capture the ethos, mood, or preoccupations of 2018" were "Thuma Mina" and "Commission".
The announcement of the word of the year, which was televised live, coincides with International Dictionary Day.
“The SA Word of the Year need not have been coined within the past twelve months,” said PanSALB acting CEO Angelina Netshiheni. “To qualify for consideration we look for evidence that its usage was on everybody’s lips and that its usage has increased significantly across a broad range of media.”
Some of the other words the board looked at included:
* State Capture
* Sha sha
* Kuzobalit
* On fleek