Trending Nigerian Slangs And Their Meanings

Posted by Samson Kankan Entertainment, Latest Headlines Saturday, November 12th, 2022

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) –Nigerians have unique ways of expressing themselves. It’s so fun and entertaining, a foreigner may find it hard at the beginning to decipher such words but may eventually succeed if they persevere over time and give their best shot at learning it.
Below are interesting Nigerian slangs trending on the streets:

• Japa

This is a Nigerian slang derived from the Yoruba language which simply means ‘to run swiftly’ out of a dangerous situation.

To japa means to run, avoid, terminate, retreat or remove yourself from a situation. If used in a sentence, it would be articulated like: “His girlfriend told him

she was pregnant, that is why the guy japa”.

More importantly, it means to emigrate. “Almost every youth wants to japa from Naija.

• Sapa

The word ‘SAPA’ has been the most used word on social media lately and people have also used it to sing.

It is a term used in Pidgin English to describe a state of being extremely broke or poor, usually after spending extravagantly.

We can also call it the spirit of poverty that targets one almost all the time.

Aza

This is slang that simply means bank account digits. When a Nigerian says “send your aza”, he or she simply means send your account number.

Ment

Original word is ‘mental’. As a slang, it is used to question a person’s sanity or to say someone is outright mad. “You dey ment?” Or “All of una don ment.”

• We outside

This is slang that simply means to be down alone or with buddies doing crazy stuff in the streets. It’s used to say people are having fun outside the country.

When someone posts with friends or alone and captions it: “We outside”, the person is simply saying “We are having fun ‘outside’ (abroad).

• Chop breakfast/ serve breakfast

It literally means we will all (eventually) have breakfast. Colloquially, it has come to mean this life na ‘turn by turn’ and everyone will definitely have a taste of everything, especially heart break.

On social media, when someone says “She don chop breakfast” or “She has been served breakfast”, it simply means her heart has been broken.