Wi

Meaning

The first-person plural pronoun — 'we', 'us', and 'our'. Like 'mi', it keeps one form for subject, object, and possessive: 'wi deh yah' is we're here, 'tell wi' is tell us, and 'fi wi' is ours. This single, unchanging form is a hallmark of Patois grammar, which does away with the English shifts between we/us/our, and 'wi' is among the most common words in the language, binding the speaker into the group — the family, the crew, the people — that so much of Jamaican life turns on.

Examples

• Wi a go a beach.

  We are going to the beach.

• Dem cyaa stop wi.

  They can't stop us.

• A fi wi country dis.

  This is our country.

  'fi wi' marks possession — 'belonging to us'.

Origin

The Jamaican pronunciation of English 'we', extended like 'mi' to cover object and possessive roles too.

How it’s used

'Wi' carries a strong sense of collective identity — 'wi likkle but wi tallawah' (we're small but mighty) is a point of national pride.