tsotsi
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English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
Uncertain. Compare Shona tsotsi (“criminal”)
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
tsotsi (plural tsotsis)
- (South Africa) A hoodlum or street thug, especially one from the townships; a township skollie.
- 1979, André Brink, A Dry White Season, Vintage, published 1998, page 39:
- A gang of tsotsis – hooligans – attacked a group of older men, and when the owner tried to throw them out they ran amok in the place, smashing everything in their way.
- 1994, Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela, London: Abacus, published 2010, page 88:
- Gangsters – known as tsotsis – carrying flick-knives or switchblades were plentiful and prominent [...].
- 2006 March 17, Cape Times:
- Mandela, standing up for all the tsotsis out there, said: "Don't dismiss any youngsters who are not behaving according to your wishes."
Derived terms[edit]
Anagrams[edit]
Shona[edit]
Noun[edit]
tsótsi class 5 (plural matsótsi class 6)
Tlahuica[edit]
Noun[edit]
tsotsi
References[edit]
- Elpidia Reynoso González, Vocabulario Español-Tlahuica (1998)
Categories:
- English terms with unknown etymologies
- English terms derived from Shona
- English 2-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English lemmas
- English nouns
- English countable nouns
- South African English
- English terms with quotations
- Shona lemmas
- Shona nouns
- Shona class 5 nouns
- sn:Crime
- Tlahuica lemmas
- Tlahuica nouns
- ocu:Mammals