mandem

M3A1N1D2E1M3

noun

A group of men or boys; male friends or fellow gang members.

OriginJamaican Creole man dem →
Scrabble 11
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Meanings

nounmandem pl (plural only)
  1. Multicultural London Englishpluralplural onlyA group of men or boys; male friends or fellow gang members.

    The mandem too inconsiderate, five-star hotel, smokin' cigarette / Mixin' codeine up with the Phenergan

    2023, “Sprinter”, performed by Central Cee x Dave
    4 more examples

    The mandem all used to go round there and get head off her, the sister blowing the man line by line while her brother shotted downstairs in the stairwell.

    2011, “Chyna”, in How I Escaped a Girl Gang: Rolling in a London Girl Gang

    She probably heard some hyped up version from the mandem but she don't know the truth. She ain't seen what I seen.

    2013, Polly Courtney, Feral Youth, page 169

    […] reports suggest he may have had links to that group and allied north London gangs such as the Broadwater Farm Posse and Tottenham Mandem.

    2013, David Childs, Britain since 1945: A Political History

    But you see my man over there with the pouch Dare one of you man try get loud All of my mandem move so foul

    2015, “Shut Up”, performed by Stormzy

Origin

  1. Jamaican Creoleman dem“men”
  2. Englishmandem

Borrowed from Jamaican Creole man dem (“men”). Equivalent to man + them.

More words from Jamaican Creole

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

mandem. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mandem

MLA

“mandem.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mandem. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “mandem,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mandem.

Source: mandem on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.