Some popular street slangs in Nigeria

Nigeria is a beautiful place no doubt, but to survive on its streets and especially in the capital Lagos, you will need to be “smart” and also know the street language known as “Naija”.

There are several slangs Nigerians uses to communicate with each other whenever they see their fellow:

Waka: which means to travel/go/walk away,

Eke Don Come oooh: which means ” the police is around”,

Sabi: which means “to know something”,

You don kolo: just means “You have gone crazy”,

Chop: means ” to eat”,

Comot: it simply means “To leave, To go out, To take a walk”,

Woza: “to slap”

kpai: means ” die”,

Bad belle: When someone calls you bad belle, they simply meant that “You are jealous”,

Ojoro/Wayo: means “Cheating”,

Gbeborun/Amebo: ” Gossip”,

How Body? When you hear ‘how body’ the speaker is just asking “How are you?” and usually the response is ‘ Body dey where e dey or Body dey inside cloth’.

Pam: This word is said to get someone calm. Pam means “To be patient”

ITK: is a word which means “I too know/I know more than others/ even the over serious people”.

Though it’s not just about knowing the language of the street or speaking them either, the attitude you put up while saying it also matters. Just like an adage that says ” When you go to Rome, you behave like the Rome”.