Rilin Colloquial Expressions

  • Happy New Year — salɪs βø mems!
  • farewell, goodbye (for a longer time) — damaiɣa
  • see you later — tʃata
  • till tomorrow — jɛnla ni!
  • be well, take care — nijɛ na
  • how are you? (assuming a state of wellness) — nijɛ li/xy/zana?
  • how are you? (assuming a bad state of being) — ʃuki li/xy/zana?
  • feel better! — nijɛo li/xy/zana!
  • take it easy — bɛ paka
  • hurry up! come on! get with it! — paka na!
  • alright! that’s great!; more, more! — ɛɾiŋa ɛɾiŋa!
  • that sucks — fa dʌnun (lit. ‘It’s bitter’)
  • no luck; bad news — zazɛm zɛʂ (lit. ‘Dry inkwell’)

Other slang terms:

  • ziɾu (lit. snake) — a very quiet or low-key person
  • xaʃβø (lit. plunder, steal) — beat, be victorious over
  • webym (lit. toe) — child, kid
  • ʌʃ (lit. flat) — sexually uninterested
  • vi (lit. being, entity) — lover
  • ulo (lit. shoulder) — behind-the-scenes benefactor
  • tyŋa (from tyŋɛk (fiery-tongued) — sexually enthusiastic; sexually dominant
  • tʃa (lit. deep) — cool, nice
  • vy tsutla (lit. some syrup) — a silly, vapid person (“Fa vy tsutla, la na?”)
  • tsatsa — a bisexual person, usually a man (this isn’t necessarily derogatory)
  • mulaifi — someone who is generally easy-going, laid-back, or flexible
  • ɸiti (lit. stable) — good, satisfactory
  • vɛs (lit. insane) — amazing, interesting
  • kikik (lit. present, current) — confusing, weird
  • biʂas a moi! (lit. debt and deceit!) — that’s too bad, ah man!, that sucks
  • ʃɪliæ (lit. sprinkled, dispersed) — obnoxiously trendy; chintzy
  • uga (lit. dough) — crap, stuff, things
  • mʌ (lit. duckling) — naïve or inexperienced person
  • koxa (lit. hard alcohol) — something that is very rough or destructive
  • men (lit. land that is owned, property) — pad, place, hideout
  • axɛla (lit. laugh (v. intr.)) — cheat
  • ve (lit. light) — life
  • biʂua (lit. lullaby) — something insignificantly easy or unchallenging
  • tʃɪmɬʌ (lit. mash, goo) — a sycophant
  • lutɾɛ (lit. an important man) — asshole, bastard, jerk
  • døxɪn (lit. saccharine, mawkish) — trashy, stupid
  • aima (lit. meaning, sense) — malicious plot
  • ifa (lit. narrow) — painful
  • nyn (lit. naked) — truthful