'Ja' is one of the common South African expressions. It is an Afrikaans word for yes, but is used as an affirmation. Depending on the context, it could mean "I understand" or "I agree". It is the English equivalent of 'yeah'.

Other commonly used expressions include 'just now' and 'now now'. They are not used in the strictly literal sense. The former means sometime 'during the day', while the latter means 'sometime soon'.

South African slang and colloquialisms are often a mishmash of the 11 different languages spoken in the country. There is also a colonial English influence with the use of words such as 'lift' or 'flat'.

Other South African colloquialisms are

Lift

Elevator

Chemist

Drugstore or Pharmacist

Boot

Trunk of the car

Bakkie

Pick-up Truck

Flat

Apartment

Robot

Traffic Light

Braai

Barbeque

Boma

Fence or enclosure

Bushveld/veld

an open space or field often with dry vegetation

Biltong

air dried meat, similar to beef jerky

Takkies

sneakers

Lapa

any outdoor enclosure - originally was a courtyard in the middle of Ndeble huts

Yebo

Yes in Zulu

Sucker

lollypop or popsicle

Lekker

Nice/enjoyable

Some slang words are also borrowed from Greek, such as 'skollie', and Yiddish such 'kugel'.