bredren
The Jamaican word for 'best friend' is bredren.
bredren refers to an especially close and trusted friend.
Meaning: an especially close and trusted friend (noun)
Which one should you use?
bredren is typically used for male friends. For a female best friend, one would more commonly use sistren.
Did you know?
- The terms bredren and sistren are deeply associated with the Rastafari movement, where they signify spiritual kinship rather than just social friendship.
- The pluralization of bredren is an example of non-standard English morphology, where the '-en' suffix mimics ancient Germanic plurals like 'oxen'.
- While bredren and sistren sound like plural forms in English, they are frequently used to refer to a single individual in Jamaican Patois.
Examples in context
- him a mi bredren.He is my best friend.
- Dem a mi bredren fi life.They are my best friends for life.
- Mi bredren deh pon mi back.My best friend has my back.
Example conversation
Ricardo and Shanti are introducing their friends at a party.
- RicardoShanti, meet mi bredren, Andre.Shanti, meet my best friend, Andre.
- ShantiNice to meet you, Andre!Nice to meet you, Andre!
- RicardoHim a mi closest bredren inna di world.He is my closest best friend in the world.
- ShantiIt good to have a true friend like dat.It is good to have a true friend like that.
