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Meaning of kaffir | Babel Free

Noun CEFR B1
ˈkæfə

Definitions

  1. In Islamic contexts, a non-Muslim.
  2. Alternative letter-case form of kaffir.
    alt-of
  3. A member of the Nguni people of southern Africa, especially a Xhosa.
  4. A black person.
  5. A language spoken by the Nguni peoples of southern Africa, especially Xhosa.
  6. South African mining shares
  7. Ellipsis of kaffir corn.

Equivalents

Afrikaans kaffer kaffers
Dansk kaffer
Ελληνικά κάφρος
Suomi kafferi
Français cafre
हिन्दी काफ़िर
Nederlands kaffer
Русский кафр
Српски crnčuga црнчуга

Examples

“He […] put me in imminent danger of my life, by telling the natives that I was a Caffer, and not a Mussulman.”
“… the Hambonaas, a nation quite different from the Kaffers, having a yellowish complexion […].”
“I rang the bell, and a smiling Kafir boy answered it.”
“If you ask a Kaffir why he does so-and-so, he will answer—"How can I tell? It has always been done by our forefathers."”
“I once heard him say to the gardener, 'Come along, son.' His wife scolded him saying, 'He's not son, don't call him son, he's a kaffir.'”
“"… and today here a white man is calling me a kaffir. This term that I absolutely resented." And that, says Nofomela, is his political motive.”
“Monkey see, monkey do ... which in this case refers to the baboons in Rhodesia - proves just how vulnerable the whities are in the hands of the kaffirs.”
“This man, seeing a white person enter, moved aside for her, but she saw Joss's eyes on her, and said in kitchen kaffir, ‘No, when you've finished.’”
“Kaffirs bouyant most of last week”
“This market reports only one or two cars per day, selling by the hundred weight, and at a price a little lower than that of Indian corn. As to the purpose for which the marketed kaffir is used, there is some uncertainty.”

CEFR level

B1
Intermediate
This word is part of the CEFR B1 vocabulary — intermediate level.
See all B1 English words →

See also

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