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Asue or Asue draw: a form of lottery traced to a Yoruba custom; similar schemes are common in other Caribbean countries, eg. the susu in Barbados.
Conchy Joe: a white Bahamian.
Chal or Chile: a form of address used frequently by women. From English child.
Dat ain no tru or Dine no tru: that is not true
Cut eye: a pan-creole expression found in many Caribbean Creole Languages meaning to glare at someone and look away swiftly, blinking the eyes firmly.
God spare life: similar to 'God willing'.
Yinna: plural form of 'you' possible connected to the Yoruba word 'nyin' of the same meaning.
Wutless: Lazy, useless, from English word "worthless"
Pickney or Pickananni: Child or Children.
Obeah: A local form of mysticism with African roots.
Fix: To curse or work "obeah" against somebody.
Jungaless: a woman who is uncouth by nature and has no apparent desire to change.
Mudda sick (dred) or Muddos: an expression of disbelief, or after a mistake has occurred.
Benne: Sesame Seed, grown locally and used in the popular treat "Benne Cake" found in Various forms throughout the African Diaspora.
Jook: To stab or poke, from the West African word of the same meaning.This word is found in many Caribbean creole languages
Bey: an occasional form of address. From English boy.
Solid: a different meaning than the English word, usually used to express attraction (dat ga look solid dred), or to express happiness (Solid!!)Can Be used to describe a female with a large shape or notably large hips.
Pie: a pretty girl
Baser or Joneser: a homeless person; bum
Gyal: pronunciation of the English word girl
Ise: another way to say I am
Hail: To visit someone or to greet them. It is customary especially in smaller communities to "hail" people if you pass them in the street
Earl: oil
Bearl: a pustule or sore from the English word "phrase" of the same meaning
De I dem: a slang phrase which refers to the first person singular tense. Originated in the Rastafarian community.
Dred: refers to a person,usually a young male, worthy of respect or notoriety.
Funny: Homosexual "he funny"
Wybe: A world with multiple meanings including to have hate or a grudge for someone or something. It can also be used as a noun meaning any object "pass me dat wybe."
Red: a mulatto or light skinned person of African or mixed decent.
Kole: when a person makes a bold statement. E.g. "My boys gone beat him bad bey...kole."
Bongie: butt or bottom.
Biggity: a bossy person. From English bigoted.
Galavantin: exploring or looking for something.
Missan: by accident or unintentionally, " Ven I was goin ta work I missan drop my purse." Literally "missed and"
Mudda or Mammie: A respectful way to address an elderly woman.
Musse or Mussy: Literally "Must be" commonly used for hypothetical situations or when guessing. "You mussy wan get sick goin out in dat rain?" "I mussy forget ta tell 'im bout da mettin."
Dey: They
Yorns: yours
He own: his
Dese: they're
We own: ours
Mout: mouth
Mout gern like parch Benny: Talkative
Yinnas: yours
Dey own: theirs
Mines: my own
I is: I am
You is: you are
We is: We are
Yinna: y’all or all a ya
Dis: this
Dat: that
Mundee: Monday
Tuezdee: Tuesday
Wensdee: Wednesday
Tursdee: Thursday
Fridee: Friday
Proud Flesh: Keloid Skin
Georgie bundle: Bags- ga pack up my georgie bundle and go, phrase used when ending a relationship.
Grabalicious: greedy, as in wanting everything they see
Gubment: government
Mangra Skin: Light skinned black person
Tirty: thirty
Tink: think
Tree: three
Das yuh book?: Is that your book?
You see are tings?: Have you seen our things?
No, but das dey car over dere: No, but that’s their car over there
Only me one sing: I’m the only one who sang
Craic: Joke
Only you one was dere: You were the only one there
Only him one gone: He was the only one who went
Only we one gone: We were the only ones who went
Dey the only ones wat come: They were the only ones who came
Only Mary one gone to Nassau: Mary was the only one who went to Nassau
He like sing: He likes to sing
She like lie: She likes to tell lies/She lies a lot
I drink plenny rum las night: I drank a lot of rum last night
I eat peas an rice ta'day: I ate peas ‘n’ rice today
I did eat peas an rice yes’dee: I ate peas ‘n’ rice yesterday
We did see dem at the t’ea-et-er: We saw them at the theater
She tell him already: She already told him
He gone tell her she was fat: He told her she was fat
Why you gone do dat?: Why did you do that?
He gone tell her she was fat: He told her she was fat
Why you been do dat?: Why did you do that?
I been Eleuthera last week: I was in Eleuthera last week
Baby maker: getting alot of women pregnant
Baker: oven as "fresh out of the baker"
Back-back: to go in reverse in a car
Big-eye: greedy
Big up/heavy: Pregnant
Bitch-up: to make a mess of something
Boom-boom: rear end
Boonggy: hip/backside, rear end; considered a national word
Boun: constipated
Bread/Crabbie: female gentitals
Bright: light complexion
Bubby: breasts
Buck up: to crash, as in car
Burlup: a potion, that is "boiled" up, as in Cerasee, a flower that is a "burlup", or penicillin, for the flu bungy: anus
Bus-up: badly drunk or intoxicated
Calm head: No hair in a female
Grinen: having sex
Camolly: lump, or bruise
Conch: large mollusk; considered to be an aphrodesiac; national food
Confuddle up: to get confused
Corporation: in some cases, a pot-belly
Cowboy: to take an abbreviated bath, without getting in the bath.
Cuckoo soup: soup into which certain bodily fluids are placed to "tame a man", especially one who is trying to win the heart of that man; said to have magical powers in winning the man in marriage
Cut hip: to give a beating
Dead: used as an adjective to intenisfy anything ("dead" ugly)
Dialing new york: drunk vomiting into toilet
Doggie: male genitals
Duff: boiled, fruit-filled dough; a national desert, much loved, with a rum flavored sauce
Fast: describes someone who steals, or cannot mind their own business
General: form of address from man to man
Gin up: to screw up, mismanage
Gussy-mae: fat Bahamian girls, with large "bubbies" and "boonggy"
High: bad smell
Hurt/fix: to put a hex on
Jack: friend
Jam up: to crowd
Jook: to stab
Jumbey: spirit
Leg short: arrived too late
Lover: generic name for all Haitian males
Low fence: someone that is easy to take advantage of
Muggage up: to beat up
Outside: away from the marriage, as in outside children
Eat parrot ass: one who talks too much
Picky head: short, thin hair
Pucketery: in a jam, or quandary
Pump: to pass gas
Purge: to vent rage
Quarm: to walk in an affected way
Shuttail: without pants
Sip sip: gossip
Skylark: good natured horseplay
Show sef: show off
Spilligate: to go out on the town
Spirit agree: to get along well with someone
Springchicken: an old lady acting younger then she actually is
Stiff-toe gang: rigor mortis, or to die
Swallow water-melon: pregnant
Sweetheart: affair
Tarpree: low class, gullible; like "low fence"
Terreckly: soon, from 'directly'
Tote news: to gossip
True, true: I agree with you
Bahamian Proverbs
"Hog know where ta rub he skin": A biggedy (bossy) person who knows exactly who they can and cannot bully.
"Fattening frog for snake": Taking care of a woman only for a next man to enjoy her
"Where you catch your cold you blow your nose": Where ever you get in problems go back there.
"Fisherman don’t smell he own basket": You could never see your own wrong doings.
"Ya ca give a man a fish,ya feed him for a day: but if ya teach a man ta fish ya feed him for a lifetime": When someone does'nt know how to do something, show them how to do it.
"Hard head bird don't make good soup": "When a person don't lesson, he/she will learn the hard way".
"If ya make ya bed hard, ya lay in it hard": "If you get in trouble, you suffer the consequence!"
"New Broom Sweep Clean, But Ole Broom know where ya dirt is": "Never forget your old friends when you make new ones".
"Every day the bucket goes to the well, one day the bucket will fall out.”: "One may get away with doing wrong for a season; however beware, one day your luck will run out."
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