British slang

Regional slangs

Main articles: Yorkshire colloquialisms, London slang, and Cockney rhyming slang

Differences with American slang

Spelling

Some slang words are shared between British and American English, with a difference in spelling only is written as whatever comes readily to mind. This can generate confusion with readers who do not pronounce letters the same way. One particular concerns the letter "r", which some dialects of British slang assume isn't emphatically pronounced.

British	American
erm	um
arse	ass

Some words are slang in American but mean something ordinary in British, for instance "rubber", which means "eraser" in the United Kingdom but is a slang term for "condom" in the United States.

Meanings

British Slang	Standard English Equivalent
Aye	Yes
Arse Bandit, Bum Bandit, Ring Raider, Shit Stabber	Homosexual (offensive derogatory)
Arse raped	To be left speechless by insults, to get "had off", to be raped in the arse, to be punished
Bare	Much/Many
Bath	Rhymes with 'Laugh', but 'Laugh' in this context means 'Mock'. i.e. "You're having a 'bath' if you think I'm paying that! I'll never pay that much!"
Bell/Bell-End	The Glans of the Penis or 'a Fool'. "The 'Bell' of the Ball" means "Idiot of the Party"
Berk	Idiot; irritating person (from "Berkeley Hunt", Cockney rhyming slang for cunt)
Billy	Amphetamines. Derived from 'Billy Whizz' a British Comic Character
Bobby, The Fuzz, 'Old Bill', Plod, 5-Oh, Pigs, Rozzers, Bizzie(Liverpool), The Scum, The Filth	Police Officer i.e. "Look out! It's the Bizzies!"
Blagger	Liar or Robber. Also 'Blag' is 'lie to' or 'rob' someone
Blates/Blatantly	Obviously, in full view of something
Blindoh	Drunk
Bloke, Chap, Geezer	Man (informal), "He's a decent bloke."
Bloody	Damned (as an adjective)
Bog	Toilet
Bog off	Go away
Bog roll	Toilet paper
Bollocks	Testicles or Nonsense. However 'The Dog's Bollocks' or 'THE Bollocks' means 'Excellent!'
Bird	Girl
Brown Bread	Dead
Bugger	Anal sex
Buffting	Attractive woman
Bum	The Buttocks, The Anus or Both.
Buzz, Buzzing	To Laugh, In a State of Mirth. Alternatively: Intoxicated on Euphoric Pyschoactive Compounds
Camp	Effeminate
Chav	A person who dresses in a certain style, typically badly or in sports clothing. Often used as a form of derogation.
Cheers	Thank you or goodbye
Coolybox	Air Conditioning
Dinnee, Dinshee, Din-I, Dinnay, Dinnew	"Did He Not", "Did She Not", "Did I Not", "Did They Not", "Did You Not". E.g "Dinnee" is derived from common "Didn't He" which is "Did He Not" in standard English. Same process for the others.
Fanny	External Female genitalia
Fit	Sexually Attractive
Gary's	Ecstacy Tablets. Derived from Soccer Player/Coach name ONLY. 'Gary Ablett' (Rhyme: 'Ablett - Tablet')
Gaff, Yard	House
Gay	Bad i.e. "It was 'Gay' being mugged"
Ginger	Pronounced with a G, not a J: Ginger or Red Haired Person (offensive derogatory)
Git, Prick, Bell-end, Knob-end, Twat, Jeb-end	Incompetent, stupid, annoying, or childish person
Gob	Mouth; to spit
Gobbens	Lose items, stuff, belongings ("I forgot my gobbens")
Gobsmacked	Flabbergasted, dumbfounded, astounded, speechless
Gormless	idiotic, acting without common sense, switched off
Gyaldem	Girl
Half-Inch	To Steal. Rhymes with 'Pinch'.
Have your pants down	To be punished
Helmet	Also another word for 'Glans of the Penis' or 'fool'
Handbags	A harmless fight. Stems from handbags at dawn, which is a play on "pistols at dawn"
Hench	A muscular, well-built male or a derogatory term for large females
Ickle	Small
Innee, Inshee, Inn-I, Innay	"Is He Not", "Is She Not", "Am I Not", "Are They Not". Cockney/Southern England. Innee is derived from common "Isn't He" which means "Is He Not" in Standard English. Same as the other derivatives.
Jack, Raise	Steal
Jammy	Lucky. i.e. It is 'Jammy' to win the lottery (Also 'Spawny')
Jap's Eye	External Meatus of the Penis. The end of the Male Urethra
Jizz	Semen
Kip	Sleep, Nap
Knackered	Exhausted, Tired
Knob head	a stupid, irritating person
Knob jockey	homosexual (to ride the penis like a jocky rides a horse)
Lachmo, Lachcake, Dinlo, Fruitbat, Dopelegs, Spazmo	All refer to someone who is an idiot
Lagging/Laggin'	To be drunk or intoxicated. i.e. "I was full on laggin'"
Loo	Lavatory
Mandem	Group of Thugs or Hooligans
Manc	Someone from Manchester
Manky	Dirty, filthy
Mate	Friend
Meat & Two Veg (pronounced 'Vedge')	External male genitalia
Merk	To beat someone either physically or mentally
Minger	Ugly or filthy-minded person
Mint	Descriptive; meaning very good
Minted	Wealthy
Morfen	The desire to do something more often**
Mutt	a dog, someone dirty
Ney	no
Nick	Steal or Police Station "He's in the 'Nick'"
Nicked	Arrested or Stolen i.e. "He got 'Nicked' after he'd 'Nicked' that Car"
Nonce	Paedophile
Nutter	Insane person
Pig Pen	Police/Constabulary Station
Pillock	Someone who is brain-dead
Pinch	Steal
Pip(s)	Seed(s) (of fruit)
Pissed	Drunk
Ponce	A pimp; a posh, effeminate man.
Poof/Poofter, Fairy, Queen, Bender, Bent, Shirtlifter	Homosexual
Pram	A Baby's Carriage, Stroller
Pussy/pussyole	someone who is soft, and backs out of things.
Rare	when something is rare, it is weird, "that was rare mate"
Rarted	Rough
Red	Manchester United fan
Reeker	Someone from the lower classes, generally lives on a council estate, similar to chav.
Ring	Anal Sphincter
Rubbish	Trash, garbage
See A Man About A Dog	Attend a secret deal or meeting.
Scouser	Someone from liverpool
Scrote	Scrotum or pestilent child or teenager
Shag	Have sex with
Shank	To stab something
Shiner	Black Eye or Erection
Sick/ill	Used commonly to describe something as brilliant
Skint	Poor (having no money)
Skanked	Ripped-off, daylight robbery, expensive
Skank	To Dance
Sket	Sweaty, dirty girl
Slag, Slapper, Tart, Scrubber, Scutter, Bint	Prostitute, Loose woman
Slash	(noun) the act of urinating, "I need a slash."
Smart	Clever
Snog	Excessive kissing
Sod	And idiot, moron, or annoying person (from sodomite, homosexual, pervert, etc)
Sod Off	Go away, i.e., fuck off.
Steaming	Extremely Drunk
Struggle and grunt	Cunt
Steek	see Reeker
Spawny	Lucky (e.g. a basketball shot that you would never expect to go in, and it does)
Take the piss (out of)	To mock, "Are you taking the piss?"
Tax or Taxed	To Mug, Rip Off, To Steal OR Mugged, Ripped Off or Stolen
Tosser	Literally someone who masturbates (to toss off), but generally means an idiot or someone whom the speaker doesn't like
Twit	A foolish or annoying person
Twat	Female genitalia or an idiot
Wahgwan	Chavvy way of greeting people, "wahgwan blud"
Wank	Male masturbation
Wanker	Literally someone who masturbates (verb - to wank), but generally means an idiot or someone whom the speaker doesn't like.
Whizz	Amphetamines. Derived from British Comic Character 'Billy Whizz'. See also 'Billy'
Willawonks	Groceries
William	Amphetamines. Derived from slang term 'Billy' from British Comic Character 'Billy Whizz'.
Wuss	A weakling or meek person. I.e. "Stop screaming you big wuss! It's only a ladybird!"

See also

• British English

External links

• The English-to-American Dictionary– British words and terms translated into American English

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