Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. a brother, usu. the eldest/favourite.

1959		E. Mphahlele Down Second Avenue 90: Boeta Lam (Brother Blade) from down our street easily collected a nice bunch of hangers-on.
1980		E. Patel ‘Haanetjie in front of Buckingham Palace’ in They Came at Dawn 48: Boet bring die camera quickly!
1993		P. Slabolepszy ‘Mooi Street Moves’ Mooi Street (1994) 278: I’ll get you the money as soon as I see my boet.

2. a friendly mode of address between whites.

1980		A. Dangor ‘Waiting for Leila’ in Mutloatse Forced Landing 163: Ow, Boeta Harry, don’t you trust me?
1980		A. Dangor ‘Waiting for Leila’ Waiting for Leila (2001) 5: Ow, Boeta Harry, don’t you trust me?
1989		P. Slabolepszy ‘Smallholding’ in Mooi Street (1994) 177: You’ll be in charge over my dead body, ou boeta!
1996		CyberBraai Lex. at www.matriots.com 🌐 BOET: This an Afrikaans word meaning ‘brother’ which is shared by all language groups. Pronounced ‘boot’ as in ‘foot’, it can be applied to a non-brother. For instance a father can call his son ‘boet’ and friends can apply the term to each other too.
2003		IOL News Western Cape) 24 Oct. 🌐 Hey boet... why do you ride around with that hoer. I p... her at university you know. She’s a f... fierri.
2005		A. Lovejoy Acid Alex xiv: Few men have friends like you [...] Ja, Ridley and my boeti The Hobbit – not forgetting all the bras and the seriously sexy chicks next door.
2018		Sowetan Live 2 Mar. 🌐Just having fun boet .

3. a pej. nickname for a black male employee.

1961		D. Bee Children of Yesterday 203: You understand, don’t you, ou boet.
1969		A. Fugard Boesman and Lena Act II: And you, ou boeta, you’re in trouble!
1989		B. Simon ‘Score Me the Ages’ Born in the RSA (1997) 136: I’m waiting for my boetie, my niggie my sissie.
2003		‘SA English’ on Joburg.org.za 🌐 Boet (pronounced like book) – ‘Boet’ is the Afrikaans word for ‘brother’. Once again it is used as a term of affection, as in: ‘This guy is my boet!’ Beware, however, when a huge Neanderthal says to you: ‘Hey boet, don’t tune me grief.’ Then it is probably time to leave.

4. a fellow gang-member.

1977

C. Hope Ducktails in Gray Theatre Two (1981) 36: You heard of my boetie, Paulie – ? And ou Abba and those jollers?

5. an Afrikaner or any overly aggressive, macho male.

1976

J. McClure Rogue Eagle 179: Well, you know the boets [...] Afrikaners are an emotional lot.