{"id":2579,"date":"2015-03-06T15:04:11","date_gmt":"2015-03-06T14:04:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buzznigeria.com\/?p=2579"},"modified":"2021-12-01T13:48:14","modified_gmt":"2021-12-01T12:48:14","slug":"15-wrong-words-and-phrases-commonly-used-by-nigerians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buzznigeria.com\/15-wrong-words-and-phrases-commonly-used-by-nigerians\/","title":{"rendered":"15 Nonexistent Words and Phrases Commonly Used by Nigerians"},"content":{"rendered":"
New English, Modern English, International English, South African English, Australian English, Indian English are some of the designations used to describe the new varieties of English\u00a0burgeoning\u00a0all over the\u00a0world.<\/p>\n
These new \u201cEnglishes\u201d are the result of the global spread of English that began with British colonialism during the nineteenth century.<\/p>\n
However, two kinds of English language are recognized in the world today \u2013 The British English and the American English. Nigeria, being colonized by Britain is supposed to speak the British English by default. But today we have found \u2018our own way\u2019 of communicating among ourselves with almost total disregard for the rules of the language.<\/p>\n
Some even boast about it, calling it the \u201cNigerian English.\u201d \u00a0Below is a list of some wrong words and phrases commonly used by Nigerians which were\u00a0imported into the English language and are not (and will never be) recognized internationally. This distinction is important for mutual intelligibility in international communication in English.<\/p>\n
1. Complimentary Card:<\/strong>\u00a0This is what we call a \u201cbusiness card.\u201d\u00a0This phrase is very senseless because the word \u201ccomplimentary\u201d simply means \u201cfree,\u201d (example: \u201cthe artiste gave me a complimentary copy of his new CD\u201d). So a \u201ccomplimentary card\u201d will simply mean a \u201cfree card\u201d and therefore has nothing\u00a0that\u00a0denotes business or work. Rather than say “complimentary card,” make use of the term “business card” or “contact card.”<\/p>\n 2. Upliftment:<\/strong>\u00a0This is a word so common among the Nigerian populace.\u00a0 We use it to mean \u201cimprovement.\u201d We invented it as a forward-formation from \u201cuplift.\u201d But in Standard English, \u201cuplift\u201d is both a verb and a noun. For instance, we say, \u201cmy foundation will ensure the moral upliftment of the society,\u201d but it should actually be, \u201cmy foundation will ensure the moral uplift of the society.\u201d<\/p>\n 3. Working Experience (as used in CVs):\u00a0<\/strong>This is another phrase from which I don\u2019t know where it was imported from. So many Nigerian graduates prepare their CVs with the phrase \u201cWorking experience\u201d when it should actually read, \u201cWork experience.\u201d Maybe ‘the experience’ in question is actually a human that is working, pooh!<\/em><\/p>\n 4. Disvirgin<\/b>:<\/strong> This word is used on a daily basis across all sectors of Nigerian society when they intend to say that a woman has lost her virginity or that they are using something for the first time. The correct word to use, however, is deflower, because \u201cdisvirgin\u201d is not even a word.<\/p>\n Don’t Miss:<\/strong>\u00a010 Correct English Words Misused By Nigerians<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n 5. Cross-carpeting:<\/strong> Ask a Nigerian politician or political analyst about a politician who has dumped his political party for another party, usually a rival party and the first word you are surely going to hear from his mouth is \u201ccross-carpeting\u201d. The right words to use when describing this scenario are \u201ccrossing the floor,\u201d \u201cparty switching,\u201d and \u201cdefection\u201d and not \u201ccross-carpeting.\u201d Sadly, our learned political analysts are guilty of using this wrong term repeatedly.<\/p>\n see more non-existent words Nigerians have invented on the next page<\/p>\n 6.\u00a0Yesteryears:\u00a0<\/strong>This old-fashioned word, which is sometimes used for literary effects, has no plural in Standard English. It remains \u201cyesteryear\u201d whether it is used in a singular or plural context.<\/p>\n