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nyam. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
nyam, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
nyam in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
nyam you have here. The definition of the word
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English
Verb
nyam (third-person singular simple present nyams, present participle nyamming, simple past and past participle nyammed)
- (Jamaica) To eat.
Catalan
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
Probably from Wolof ñàmbi (“cassava”) or a related word. Compare Spanish ñame.
Noun
nyam m (plural nyams)
- yam (edible root of Dioscorea vine)
Etymology 2
Onomatopoeic
Noun
nyam
- (childish) food
Derived terms
Further reading
Jamaican Creole
Etymology
Borrowed from Wolof nyam, nyami, nyamnyam (“food; to eat”), or from Fula nyama, nyami, nyamgo (“to eat”). Possibly via Ghanaian Pidgin English. Cognate of Sranan Tongo nyan (“food; to eat”). Many other West African languages use similar terms for "flesh" or "meat", such as: Chichewa nyama, Efik unam, Esimbi ɛnyimi, Hausa nama, Lingala nyama, Swahili nyama, and Zulu inyama. Also compare Hausa nyamnyam, yamyam (“cannibal”) and Luba-Kasai nyama (“animal”).
Pronunciation
Noun
nyam
- food, meal
Verb
nyam
- to eat (eat)
Dem man nyam di whole ah di bread. And wan' come gi' wi crumbs.- Those guys ate all of the bread, and now they want to give us crumbs.
- to consume, use up, (wastefully) spend, waste (waste)
We cyaan nyam everything weh we get. Wi haffi save some and invest some.- We shouldn't waste everything we get. We have to save and invest some of it.
Me jus go home and nyam di money.- I just went home. Then I spent all the money.
Related terms
References
- Richard Allsopp, editor (1996), Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage, Kingston, Jamaica: University of the West Indies Press, published 2003, →ISBN, page 410
- nyam – jamaicans.com Jamaican Patois dictionary
- nyam at majstro.com
- Huber, Magnus (1999) Ghanaian Pidgin English in Its West African Context, John Benjamins Publishing, →ISBN, page 102
- Cassidy, Frederic Gomes, Le Page, Robert Brock, editors (2002), Dictionary of Jamaican English, 2nd edition, University of the West Indies Press, →ISBN, page 325
- Sheller, Mimi (2003) Consuming the Caribbean: From Arawaks to Zombies, Routledge, →ISBN
Nigerian Pidgin
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Noun
nyam
- yam
References
Sranan Tongo
Verb
nyam
- Pronunciation spelling of nyan.
Noun
nyam
- Pronunciation spelling of nyan.