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Greetings & Conversation
124 entries in this part of the language, each with meanings, pronunciation and worked examples.
- A lie 'That's a lie!' or, as an exclamation, 'no way!' / 'you're kidding!'.
- A nuh lie 'It's no lie' — an emphatic way of swearing that what you've said is the honest truth.
- A so it go 'A so it go' — that's how it is, such is life.
- A so life go 'That's how life goes' — a philosophical shrug in the face of hardship or an unexpected…
- A suh it guh 'A suh it guh' — that's how it goes.
- A true 'It's true' / 'that's true' — an affirmation and agreement, from 'a' (it is) + 'true'.
- All fruits ripe Everything is going well and coming to fruition — all is prosperous, sweet, and in season.
- Back-chat Impertinent talking back — answering an elder or someone in authority with a cheeky…
- Big tings a gwaan 'Big tings a gwaan' — literally 'big things are happening', used to announce that good…
- Big up yuhself A phrase of respect, greeting, and hype — telling someone to hold themselves high and…
- Bless up A greeting or parting expression of goodwill — roughly 'blessings to you' or 'stay blessed'.
- Blouse an skirt A mild, comical exclamation of surprise or dismay — a 'clean', family-friendly stand-in for…
- Bossman A respectful, friendly term of address for a man — like 'boss', 'chief', or 'sir'.
- Bwoy Literally 'boy', but frequently used as an exclamatory filler expressing emphasis…
- Chat To talk or speak — but in Jamaican it very often carries the sharper sense of gossiping or…
- Chat bare foolishness To talk pure nonsense or rubbish;
- Chat bout A dismissive exclamation of scorn or disbelief — 'chat bout!' — thrown at something…
- Cho An exclamation of dismissal, mild annoyance, impatience, or disbelief — roughly 'come on'…
- Chups To suck the teeth — that sharp sound made by drawing air through the teeth to show…
- Come yah Come here — 'yah' being the Patois for 'here'.
- Coo Look! — a sharp imperative used to draw attention to something.
- Cool nuh 'Calm down, take it easy, relax' — a soothing plea to someone who is worked up, upset, or…
- Damm A mild exclamation of annoyance, surprise, or emphasis — the Patois 'damn'.
- Dodo Baby-talk for sleep — 'go dodo' means go to sleep, said soothingly to a baby or a small…
- Easy Easy — take it slow, calm down, no rush, all is cool.
- Eeh A versatile little exclamation and question-tag.
- Eh-eh An exclamation of surprise, disbelief, or mild indignation — 'eh-eh!' bursts out when you…
- Ello Hello — the Patois pronunciation of 'hello' with the initial 'h' dropped, a common feature…
- Everyting criss A phrase confirming that all is well, sorted, and looking good — but stronger and more…
- Everyting is everyting 'Everyting is everyting' — all is well;
- Fi real Means 'for real', 'truly', or 'genuinely'.
- Gi mi a bly 'Give me a break' — a plea for leniency, a chance, or a let-off.
- Give thanks 'Give thanks' — to express heartfelt gratitude, to God, to life, or to a person.
- Greetings A warm, dignified hello — especially the Rastafari way of greeting a brethren or a…
- Gud maanin The morning greeting, equivalent to English 'good morning' but pronounced with the vowel…
- Gud mawnin Good morning — the standard morning greeting, and, importantly, a courtesy that manners…
- Guh weh Go away! — a sharp dismissal telling someone to clear off or leave you alone, and also an…
- Gwaan do yuh ting 'Gwaan do yuh ting' — go ahead and do your thing.
- Gwaan good Two everyday uses.
- Gwaan so Literally 'go on so' or 'goes on so', used to affirm that something is correct, is how a…
- Gwaan strong 'Carry on strong' — an encouragement to keep going, stay firm, and push through.
- Gweh A dismissive command telling someone to go away, get lost, or stop talking nonsense.
- Hail up A warm greeting or acknowledgement — to greet, salute, or send respect to someone.
- Have mercy 'Have mercy!' — an exclamation of shock, dismay, or a plea for relief, often opened by…
- Hiya A friendly, casual hello — 'hi there'.
- Hol on A request to wait a moment or pause — 'hold on', 'hang on a second'.
- Holla To shout or call out — and, in everyday and dancehall use, to contact or get in touch with…
- How yuh mean An emphatic 'of course!' or 'absolutely!' — an exclamation of strong agreement, meaning…
- Howdy A greeting — 'hello', 'how do you do'.
- Hush An expression of sympathy and comfort — 'sorry', 'there there', 'my condolences'.
- Inna di morrows A casual way of saying goodbye that means roughly 'see you tomorrow' or 'catch you later' —…
- Jeezan A mild exclamation of surprise or dismay — a softened, minced form of 'Jesus!', much like…
- Jesas 'Jesus!' — an exclamation of shock, alarm, or dismay, calling on the name in surprise…
- Jusso Just like that;
- Kiss teeth To make the drawn-out sucking sound with the teeth and lips that expresses annoyance…
- Labrish Idle chatter, gossip, or lively casual talk about other people's business — and, as a verb…
- Lang time An exclamation used on meeting someone you haven't seen in a while — roughly 'long time, no…
- Lata Later — used both as a casual farewell and to mean 'at a later time'.
- Lawd 'Lord' — by far the most common Jamaican exclamation, calling on the Lord in surprise…
- Lawd a massy 'Lord have mercy' — an exclamation of shock, distress, dismay, or exasperation.
- Lawd God 'Lord God' — a heartfelt exclamation of distress, alarm, pity, or amazement, calling on God.
- Lawd have mercy An exclamation of shock, distress, exasperation, or sometimes awe.
- Lickle more 'Later / see you later' — a casual sign-off meaning until a bit later, catch you soon.
- Likkle more A parting expression meaning 'see you later' or 'catch you in a bit', literally 'a little…
- Link up To meet up with someone, make contact, or connect socially.
- Lowe it 'Leave it alone / let it go / forget it' — 'lowe' (allow) plus 'it': drop the matter, don't…
- Manners Manners — courtesy and respect, prized deeply in Jamaican upbringing.
- Massa God 'Master God' — a reverent exclamation calling on God, used in moments of pleading…
- Matta A matter, issue, or what's wrong — the Patois pronunciation of 'matter'.
- Mawnin Morning — and, as a greeting, 'good morning'.
- Mi a tell yuh 'I'm telling you' — an emphatic aside that presses the truth or seriousness of what you're…
- Mi cyaan bada 'Mi cyaan bada' — I can't be bothered, I can't deal with it.
- Mi deh pon it 'I am on it' — I'm handling it right now, an assurance that a task is actively being dealt…
- Mi deh yah Literally 'I am here' — the standard, steady reply to a greeting, meaning roughly 'I'm all…
- Mi gone A departure phrase announcing that the speaker is leaving now — literally 'I'm gone', but…
- Mi nah lie An emphatic assertion of truthfulness, roughly 'I'm not lying' or 'honestly', used to…
- Mi nuh know 'I don't know' — a statement of not knowing something.
- Mi seh Literally 'I say', but chiefly used as an emphatic discourse opener — to introduce a…
- Mi swear An emphatic assertion that one is telling the truth — equal to 'I swear' or 'I promise'.
- Mind yuh business A sharp instruction to stop meddling in someone else's affairs.
- Mix-up Gossip, meddling, and drama — being caught up in other people's business and scandal.
- Mon Man — the relaxed, rounded pronunciation of 'man', tagged onto the end of phrases for…
- More life 'More life' — a blessing and well-wish meaning long life, more good living, more strength;
- More time A friendly way of saying goodbye — 'see you later', 'catch you another time'.
- Nuh badda A directive meaning 'don't bother' or 'don't even try it' — used to warn someone off an…
- Nuh mek mi vex 'Nuh mek mi vex' — don't make me angry.
- Nuh true A tag question or agreement-seeker meaning 'isn't that so?' or 'right?' — added to the end…
- Rahtid A mild exclamation of surprise, shock, annoyance, or emphasis — roughly 'wow!', 'gosh!', or…
- Respeck Respect — both the regard you show and owe, and a warm greeting or sign-off in its own…
- Respect due 'Respect is owed' — a phrase of acknowledgement, greeting, and giving props.
- Respek Respect — used as a warm greeting, a farewell, and an expression of honour and solidarity.
- Same way An expression of agreement or affirmation meaning 'exactly', 'likewise', or 'that's right'.
- Seen 'I understand, I agree, got it' — an affirmation used to show you follow and accept what…
- Small up yuhself A request to make room by shrinking your space, literally 'make yourself small', used when…
- Soon come An assurance that the speaker will return or arrive shortly — 'I'll be right back' or…
- Steups The written form of the long teeth-sucking sound that expresses contempt, annoyance…
- Tan deh Literally 'stay/stand there', from 'tan' (stand, stay, remain).
- Tek time An instruction to go slowly, be careful, or handle something gently.
- Tek weh yuhself A blunt command telling someone to leave, clear off, or remove themselves from a place or a…
- Tenky 'Thank you' — the everyday Patois 'thanks', warm and quick.
- Tings a gwaan Things are happening;
- Tings nuh easy 'Things aren't easy' — a plain, common acknowledgement of hard times: money short, life a…
- Travel good A farewell wishing someone a safe journey — 'safe travels', said to a person setting off on…
- Wagwan 'What's going on?' — the everyday Jamaican greeting, a run-together of 'what a gwaan'.
- Wah do yuh 'What's wrong with you?' or 'what's the matter with you?' — asked of someone acting oddly…
- Wah fi do 'What can you do?' — a resigned shrug at a situation you can't change.
- Wah gwaan The everyday Jamaican greeting — literally 'what's going on?' It works both as a genuine…
- Wah mek An interrogative meaning 'why' or 'what makes it so', literally 'what makes'.
- Wah yuh a seh Literally 'what are you saying?', but used as a warm, everyday greeting like 'what's up?'…
- Walk good A parting blessing meaning 'travel safely' and 'take care of yourself' — a warm wish for…
- Wam 'What's the matter?' or 'what's wrong?' — a run-together contraction of 'what happen'.
- Weh yuh deh Literally 'where are you?', but used both as a genuine request for someone's whereabouts…
- Weh yuh seh Two uses.
- Whappen 'What's happening?' — a casual greeting run together from 'what happen'.
- Wi deh yah We're here;
- Yah mon 'Yes, man' — an affirmation meaning yes, sure, of course, or no problem.
- Yeah man 'Yeah man' — an easygoing 'yes', 'sure', 'of course', or 'no problem', the relaxed…
- Yow A call for attention or a casual greeting — 'hey!', 'yo!', 'listen up'.
- Yuh good A casual check-in greeting meaning 'are you okay/are you doing alright', asked with rising…
- Yuh nuh see it 'You know? / You see what I mean?' — a rhetorical tag dropped at the end of a point to seek…
- Yuh see mi A conversational tag meaning 'you understand me?' or 'you know what I mean?' — used to seek…
- Yuh si 'You see / you know' — a filler and agreement-seeking tag, and a way to press a point: 'yuh…
- Yush A casual, energetic greeting between friends — like 'yo!', 'hey!', or 'what's up!'.
- Zeen An expression of agreement, understanding, and acknowledgement — much like 'I see'…