dwang, noun
/dwæŋ/
- Origin:
- AfrikaansShow more Afrikaans, ‘compulsion’, ‘coercion’, ‘constraint’, from dwing to force.
slang
In the (euphemistic) phrase in the dwang in trouble, constrained.
1994 G. Ralls Informant, Grahamstown (now Makhanda, Eastern Cape)We can only afford to employ him for about a week each month, so if we hired a proper contractor we’d really be in the dwang.
1994 V. Wild Informant, Grahamstown (now Makhanda, Eastern Cape)You’d better not let your father know what you’ve done or you’ll be in the dwang again.