Bahamian Slang

On this blog, I may slip into my Bahamian dialect from time-to-time. Bahamians, Caribbean people and some Africans will get it, but I want to make sure that my readers outside of The Bahamas understand what I’m talking about. I like to say that Bahamians are bilingual. We know how to speak the Queen’s English and we know how to break it down Bahamian style.

So, here’s a list of some of my favorite Bahamian words and what they mean.

Ain’t Gat	Don’t Have/Doesn’t Have.
Bey	Originally meant as boy, but can also be used to refer to a woman. Can also mean, look here, as in, pay attention to this point. Examples: You see how he was carrying on, bey? Bey, I tired of going to this job, ya know.
Broughtupcy	The way you’re brought up. Example: Her children were in the food store throwing down cans and screaming through the aisles. They ain’t gat no broughtupcy.”
Chirren	Children.
Dat	That.
Fresh Up	Dressed up, dressed to the nines.
Ga	Is going to.
Gyal	Girl.
I’s	I am.
Muddasick	This is an expression used to express excitement, shock or surprise. For example, if you’re standing on a street corner and witness a car hitting a pedestrian, you might scream out, “Well muddasick!”
Mussy	Must be. Example: He spent all of his money on jewelry. He mussy know how he ga pay his rent this month. Notice, I didn’t say, “He mussy knows.” Bahamian dialect isn’t grammatically correct. But, it’s authentic.
Tief	Thief. This is both a noun and a verb. He is a tief. She mussy tief dat money (steal).
Tingsy	This is our unique way of saying that a person is materialistic. Basically, the person likes things. For example, “She was ‘round here talking ‘bout she is only wear Gucci. She real tingsy.”
Tingum	A word used to refer to a person, place or thing whose name cannot be easily recalled. It usually requires an explanation or else the person you’re speaking to won’t know who, what or where you are referring to. Dat gyal used to live over there by tingum dem.
Trapsy	Ratchet, tricky and not to be trusted. This person likes to trap individuals and stir up trouble.
Yinna	You all (you plural).