Lexifari DictionaryPreview

mzinga

noun

a bottle, especially a full-size bottle of alcohol; also a cannon in standard Swahili.

The surrounding scene distinguishes the drinking sense from the standard dictionary sense.

Origins

Swahili mzinga already named cylindrical objects such as a cannon or beehive; the Sheng bottle sense still needs a reviewed link to that history.

A. C. Madan, Swahili-English Dictionary (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1903), 296.
Records mzinga as a cylindrical object, native beehive, and cannon.

Examples

Alinunua mzinga baada ya sherehe.
They bought a full bottle after the party.
Mzinga ilikuwa nzito.
The full bottle was heavy.
Usifungue mzinga hapa.
Do not open the bottle here.
Mzinga ilikuwa baridi.
The bottle was cold.
Usinywe mzinga peke yako.
Do not drink a full bottle alone.
Walibeba mzinga kwa party.
They carried a bottle to the party.
Mzinga imeisha.
The bottle is finished.
Alificha mzinga chini ya meza.
They hid the bottle under the table.
Bei ya mzinga imepanda.
The price of a full bottle has gone up.