Patois contraction of "go on", used in several distinct everyday senses: as a greeting equivalent to "what's going on?" (often in the phrase "wha gwan?" or its shortened form "wagwan"), as encouragement meaning "carry on, you're doing well" ("gwan, mi yute!"), as an acknowledgement of someone's style or hustle ("him a gwan good"), and occasionally as a dismissive "go away, get out of here".
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Regional slang from around the English-speaking world — British, Australian, Irish, Caribbean, Nigerian, Filipino, AAVE, and the hyphenated-English dialects that make the internet sound local.
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Jamaican Patois greeting: "what's going on?" Also spelled "wah gwan," "wa gwan," or "wagwan." A universal opener that signals familiarity — you don't throw a "wha gwan" at a stranger.
Greeting; "what's going on?" / "what's up?" Caribbean origin, common in MLE.
Patois pronunciation of "thing", with the initial "th" softened to "t" as is standard in Jamaican English. Used in all the ordinary English senses — an object, a matter, a situation ("dat a different ting") — but also carries a distinctly Caribbean and Multicultural London English meaning: a romantic interest, a girl one is seeing or attracted to ("she my ting"). The word travelled from Patois into UK road rap and grime in the 2000s and 2010s and is now mainstream slang across the UK, often heard in lines like "peng ting" (an attractive person). Tone and context determine whether the speaker means an object, a situation or a person.
Patois contraction of "go on", used in several distinct everyday senses: as a greeting equivalent to "what's going on?" (often in the phrase "wha gwan?" or its shortened form "wagwan"), as encouragement meaning "carry on, you're doing well" ("gwan, mi yute!"), as an acknowledgement of someone's style or hustle ("him a gwan good"), and occasionally as a dismissive "go away, get out of here". Pronounced roughly "GWAHN". Massively common across Jamaica, the wider Caribbean and the UK Caribbean diaspora, and a staple of reggae, dancehall and grime lyrics. Multifunctional enough that meaning depends almost entirely on tone, surrounding words and facial expression.
wha gwan mi bredren, long time mi no see yuh
A quick vibe check framed as a greeting — essentially asking whether someone's energy or situation is good. Used when you want to gauge how a person or group is doing in the most casual way possible, like a welfare ping dressed up in UK slang.