Meaning
A mosquito coil — the green spiral of incense-like repellent you light at dusk and let smoulder to drive away the mosquitoes through the evening and night. A cheap, near-universal household essential in a tropical, mosquito-plagued country, the coil glowing in its little stand and trailing its thin smoke is a fixture of the Jamaican evening, its faint scent the smell of nightfall. It belongs to the everyday battle against the biting insects of dusk, the poor household's shield against the whine and the bite of the maskita.
Examples
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Light di coil before di mosquito start bite.
Light the mosquito coil before the mosquitoes start biting.
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Di coil bun dung slow all night.
The coil burns down slowly all night.
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Buy a pack a coil from di shop.
Buy a pack of mosquito coils from the shop.
Origin
Named for its coiled spiral shape; the everyday mosquito-repellent coil, a household staple.
How it’s used
The mosquito-repellent coil (usually just 'coil'). Compare 'mosquito'. A dusk-to-dawn household essential.