British Slang Flashcards
being a loud mouth or offensive, loudly opinionated, prickish
gobby
“Bill Maher can be kind of gobby.”
a rear end
arse
“Chris Brown is a total arse.”
testicles or something useless or of poor quality, nonsense
bollocks
“Ben Affleck as the new Batman is a load of bollocks.”
exhausted, worn out
knackered
“I was knackered after a weekend at Coachella.”
upset or offended, irked
miffed
to fall head over heels
fall arse over tit
“I’ll never forget when Jennifer Lawrence fell arse over tit at the Oscars.”
an upset stomach or feeling of acute nervousness, butterflies in the stomach
collywobbles
How To Use It: “Before I met Harry Styles I got a serious case of the collywobbles.”
to be wealthy
minted
How to use it: “Bieber can buy whatever car he wants. He’s minted.”
tobacco
Baccy
shortened word for “tobacco;” also, “wacky backy” means marijuana.
term children might use to describe feces; also, an erection
biggie
various things
Bits ‘n Bobs
“My mother has a lot of Bits ‘n Bobs around the house.”
There you go! You’ve got it!
Bob’s your uncle!
to have a chat with someone, brief conversation.
chin wag
a piece of snot or booger
crusty dragon
to be dressed nicely or look dapper
dog’s dinner
vagina
fanny
amazed or awed by something, stunned/utterly blown away.
gobsmacked
completely clueless, like Alicia Silverstone in the 90s film
gormless
To discuss private matters in public
air one’s dirty linen/laundry
An argument or confrontation
argy-bargy
Girl, woman
bird
Policeman (2)
blue, bobby
After Robert Peel (Home Secretary in 1828
without money (2)
stoney broke, stoney
Bare skin, naked (2)
buff, starkers
1. Bare skin, naked as in ‘in the buff’.[66] 2. Having a lean, muscular physique (usually referring to a young man
The head or the nose. To strike the head or nose
conk
The face. 2. To spot, notice. 3. To hit as in “*** round the earhole”
clock
fat
tubby
Statement of incredulity, like “you’ve got to be kidding”, and such.
“Are you having a laugh?”: “You think I’ll hire your brother after he gets out of prison for armed robbery? Are you having a laugh?”
Aggressive/in someone’s face.
Aggro
An ambling walk
Bimble
toilet paper
bog roll
To sit with one’s mouth hanging open
catch flies
A mistake, to make a mistake (2)
clanger, to drop a clanger
To laugh heartily (so one’s face creases up)
creased up
Suspicious, dubious
dodgy
“I ate a dodgy curry last night and now my stomach’s off.”
The person who takes care of most tasks, especially menial ones
dogsbody
Exceedingly, horribly boring or plain
dull as dishwater
A severe reprimand
ear-bashing
“He got a right ear-bashing after crashing his dad’s car into that buffalo.”
Injured, lame, or painful
gammy
“My gran’s had a gammy leg ever since she fell off a horse.”
An overly excitable person
giddy kipper
A red-haired person
ginger
Unpleasant/disgusting (2)
grotty, manky
“The chicken you left on the counter for a week has gone manky.”
devastated
Gutted: “She was gutted after her boyfriend left her for her nephew.”
A meal that consists mostly of alcohol, rather than food
liquid lunch
Lost one’s mind/gone senile
Lost the plot: “My great-uncle thinks he’s an admiral with the United Federation of Planets, but of course, he lost the plot years ago.”
The flu, or other illness that makes you feel horrible
lurgy
cat
moggy
slightly hungry
peckish
petulant and sullen
peevish
pathetic person
sad arse
a restless, fidgety person
shufflebutt
creepy, sleazy
smarmy
to make out/fool around
snog
defeated/thwarted
snookered
“I give up.”
“Sod it.”
Used in a sentence: “I’ll never understand this math problem. Sod it, let’s go down to the pub.”
overly dainty, delicate, cute, or quaint.
Twee
“Her bunny-themed tea set is so utterly twee.”
unstable
Wonky
“The table leg’s a bit wonky; you might want to slide a book under it.”
to suddenly fail when everybody expects them to succeed or simply crumble at the very last minute when they were almost winning
do a Devon Loch
to leave a place in a hurry in order to avoid paying for something (like in a restaurant) or flee a difficult situation to escape punishment
do a runner
a surplus of anything
enough to cobble dogs with
this is the British humorous way of saying you acquired something that was probably stolen, or you are trying to sell something that’s stolen or illegitimate.
fall off the back of a lorry
this disparaging phrase was originally used by the British upper-crust to refer to someone who is ill-bred, dangerous or untrustworthy (2)
hairy at the heels, chav
“I can’t say I like Bob. I’ve once or twice had a row with him. He’s a bit hairy at the heels.”
panties
knickers
pants
trousers, Presently, britches reflects a common pronunciation often used in casual speech to mean trousers or pants in many English speaking parts of the world. Breeks is a Scots or northern English spelling and pronunciation.
to become very upset about something, usually something that is not important
knickers in a twist: “Now, before you get your knickers in a twist, let me explain the situation.”
the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, used to refer to the US or the UK depending on the speaker’s location.
across the pond
talks or boasts a lot but doesn’t deliver (3)
all mouth and trousers, all mouth and no trousers, all talk and no trousers
what happens in a person’s home or private life is their business and should not be subject to outside interference
an Englishman’s home is his castle
you refuse to accept a decision and argue about it
argue the toss
used to highlight a sexual reference, deliberate or accidental
as the actress said to the bishop
you have spare time but don’t know what to do with it, bored
at a loose end
you are at the limit of your patience or endurance
at the end of your tether
you are at a disadvantage and forced to be defensive of your position
on your back foot
something that is an embarrassment or causes problems
banana skin
a person who gives opinions on things they are not qualified to speak about
barrack-room lawyer
someone who has been hurt or looks as if they have been in a struggle
someone who has been in the wars
life is not all about self-indulgence and pleasure
life is not all beer and Skittles
something that happens very quickly.
something that happens “before you can say knife”
someone who is very cautious and takes no risks
someone who wears belts and braces
suspenders
braces
instant replay
action replay
airplane
aeroplane
advice columnist
agony aunt
counterclockwise
anticlockwise
tractor-trailer
articulated lorry
uneven bars
asymmetric bars
eggplant
aubergine
cookie sheet
baking tray
legal holiday
bank holiday
beet(s)
beetroot
check
bill
sponge bath
blanket bath
(window) shade
blind
apartment building
block of flats
coveralls
boiler suit
tube top
boob top
tow truck
breakdown van
cinder block
breeze block
bridge loan
bridging loan
fanny pack
bum back
cotton candy
candy floss
parking lot
car park
emergency room
casualty
slingshot
catapult
median strip
central reservation
drugstore
chemist
french fries
chips
movie theater, the movies
cinema
plastic wrap
cling film
durable goods
consumer durables
cornstarch
cornflour
Romaine lettuce
cos (lettuce)
crib
cot
crib death
cot death
cotton swab
cotton bud
housing project
council estate
zucchini
courgette
face card
court card
guardrail
crash barrier
chips, potato chips
crisps
alligator clip
crocodile clip
bias-ply
cross-ply
quarter note
crotchet (music)
checking account
current account
hazard pay
danger money
