noun
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taboo (in southern Africa) any Black African
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offensive (among Muslims) a non-Muslim or infidel
Sensitive Note
In reference to a Black person, Kaffir was a neutral term during the colonial period, but in post-apartheid South Africa it is considered hate speech, to be avoided by using the euphemistic K-word, much like the N-word.
Usage
In South Africa the use of this word is nowadays completely taboo, and is indeed actionable in the courts. It is also advisable not to use the word in any of the compounds to which it gave rise
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of Kaffir
First recorded in 1570–80; from Arabic kāfir “unbeliever, skeptic”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In the tasting room, adorned with vintage family photos, there are about two dozen dark-glass spritz bottles, each labeled hazelnoot, Kaffir lime, oranje-bloesem and an assortment of other fruits, nuts, herbs, flowers and spices.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 18, 2021
One of those former refugees, Hue Kim, 75, now spends her weekends selling Kaffir lime leaves, rosemary and other herbs on the sidewalk just a few feet from Ms. Nguyen’s bubble tea shop.
From New York Times ● Nov. 8, 2017
Lemon grass, ginger, Kaffir lime leaves or amchur, a tart preserved Indian mango, can have similar brightening effects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 23, 2015
He’ll serve it over sticky rice topped with red-curry coconut sauce from a 10-gallon batch and a slaw of Kaffir lime leaf, zucchini, carrots and peanuts, topped with micro-cilantro leaves.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 27, 2014
The girls shrieked with laughter, and then, under the direction of Noenti, brought out meat and thick Kaffir beer.
From The Golden Rock by Glanville, Ernest
"Padre," said Dan; "that poor, poor fellow, who loomed to the Kaffirs like a great and merciful god, he was a leper as white as snow!"
From Those Who Smiled And Eleven Other Stories by Gibbon, Perceval
Know by this that on the fourth day of this moon we gave battle to the Kaffirs who call themselves Inglees, having with us the Chief Hussein with ten thousand of the faithful.
From The Green Flag by Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir
The Yeomanry Corps being thus divided, the numbers of the foe unknown, and the sun just setting, it was deemed imprudent to attempt the capture of Mr Norden’s remains from the Kaffirs at that moment.
From The Cape and the Kaffirs A Diary of Five Years' Residence in Kaffirland by Ward, Harriet
A clever and good missionary was settled near here, and all the Kaffirs spoke very highly of him.
From Sporting Scenes amongst the Kaffirs of South Africa by Drayson, A. W. (Alfred Wilks)
On the 22nd of May, our troops and colonists sustained a severe loss by the capture and partial destruction of forty-one waggons in the frightful pass where Colonel Richardson’s affray with the Kaffirs took place.
From The Cape and the Kaffirs A Diary of Five Years' Residence in Kaffirland by Ward, Harriet
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
