Kolonko 🔊

Usage examples

• Yu na wan big kolonko, yu nar go chenjam.
  You are a real bitch — you're never going to change.
• Dat kolonko dey gi mi proplem evri dei.
  That bitch gives me problems every day.

Etymology

Origin uncertain. Kolonko is used in Krio, the English-based creole language of Sierra Leone, as a strong vulgar insult. Krio developed from the language contact between freed slaves, indigenous West African peoples, and British colonizers beginning in the late 18th century, and its vocabulary reflects multiple African and English sources. The specific root of kolonko has not been documented in published linguistic sources.

Cultural notes

In Sierra Leone Krio, kolonko is a strongly offensive gendered insult aimed at women, broadly equivalent in force and register to English "bitch." Krio is spoken as a lingua franca across Sierra Leone and is the primary language of Freetown, and the term circulates widely in informal urban speech. As with many Krio profanities, it is considered highly inappropriate in formal settings or directed at elders.

Same meaning, other languages

Accuracy

73% of 15 voters say this translation is accurate.