abdabs | Noun. Terror, the frights, nerves. Often heard as the screaming abdabs. Also very occasionally 'habdabs'. [1940s] |
ablute | Verb. To wash oneself. E.g."She's in the bathroom abluting." {Informal} |
absobloodylutely | Adv. Absolutely. |
Abysinnia! | Exclam. Goodbye! A jocular and intentional mispronunciation of "I'll be seeing you!" |
accident | Noun. An act of incontinence, especially in children. E.g."Stop the car at the next services, Lucy's had an accident." {Informal} |
accidentally-on-purpose | Phrs. Seemingly accidental but with veiled malice or harm. |
AC/DC | Adj. Bisexual. |
ace (!) | Adj. Excellent, wonderful. Exclam. Excellent! |
acid | Noun. The drug LSD. Lysergic acid diethylamide. [Orig. U.S. 1960s] |
ackers | Noun. Money. From the Egyptian akka. |
action man | Noun. A man who considered strong, active and brave, who generally participates in macho activities. |
Adam and Eve | Verb. Believe. Cockney rhyming slang. E.g."I don't Adam and Eve it, it's not true!" |
Adam's ale | Noun. Water. |
adorkable | Adj. Socially unfashionable or awkward but likeable and appealing. A combination of the words 'dork' and adorable. Expression popularized in the U.K. by the titular book by Sarra Manning. [Orig. U.S. Late 1990s] |
advert | Noun. An advertisement. {Informal} |
aerated | Adj. Over-excited. Becoming obsolete, although still heard used by older generations. Also as aeriated. |
afters | Noun. 1. Any course after the mains during a meal, such as dessert, pudding, cake, etc. {Informal} 2. In sport, frequently football, a confrontation between players after a foul or incident. E.g."I'm not surprised he's gone in for some afters, that foul could have broken his leg." {Informal} |
afto | Noun. Afternoon. [North-west use] |
afty | Noun. Afternoon. E.g."Are you going to watch the game this afty?" [North-west use] |
aggro * | Noun. 1. Aggressive troublemaking, violence, aggression. 2. Trouble, bother, inconvenience. E.g."I don't like going to the January sales, there's just too much aggro and I come home with a headache." * Also as agro. Abb. of aggravation. |
aggy | Adj. Annoyed, irritated, aggitated. Abb. of aggravated. E.g."My mum's getting a bit aggy because my brother won't tidy his bedroom." |
agricultural | Adj. Clumsy, unsophisticated, especially in a sporting context. E.g."That was a very agricultural tackle by the defender, but it did the job and saved a sure goal." {Informal} |
agony aunt | Noun. A woman who, in response to reader's letters, provides advice on personal and relationship problems via a newspaper or magazine column. Rarely, also agony uncle. {Informal} |
air biscuit | Noun. An expulsion of air from the anus, a fart. See 'float an air biscuit'. [Orig. U.S.] |
airhead | Noun. A stupid person. [Orig. U.S.] |
airlocked | Adj. Drunk, intoxicated. [N. Ireland use] |
airy-fairy | Adj. Lacking in strength, insubstantial, vague. {Informal} |
air guitar | Noun. An imaginary guitar played by rock music fans whilst listening to their favourite tunes. |
aks | Verb. To ask. E.g."I aksed him to move his car from the driveway." [dialect] |
Alan Whickers | Noun. Knickers, underwear. Rhyming slang, often shortened to Alans. Alan Whicker was a popular British journalist and TV presenter from the 1950s through to the turn of the century. |
alcopop | Noun. Sweet, ready-mixed fruit drinks containing alcohol. A combination of the words alcohol and 'pop' (noun 1). Cf. 'tart fuel'. {Informal} |
aled (up) | Adj. Drunk, intoxicated by alcohol, usually beer (ale). |
alkie | Noun. An alcoholic. Also as alky. |
all fingers and thumbs | Phrs. Lacking manual dexterity, clumsy. E.g."Can you help me thread that needle? I'm all fingers and thumbs." {Informal} |
all fur coat (and no knickers) | Phrs. Of a woman, having a superficial appearance with no real substance beneath. Derog. |
all mod cons | Noun. All the fixtures and fittings necessary and expected. An abb. of all modern conveniences. {Informal} |
all mouth and (no) trousers | Phrs. Boastful and without just reason. E.g."You shouldn't pay any attention to him, he's all mouth and no trousers." |
all-nighter | Noun. A club night or entertainment event that lasts all night. {Informal} |
all over the place | Phrs. Disorganized, chaotic, confused, in disarray. E.g."I was all over the place; I'd had half a dozen a pints and couldnt string a sentence together." {Informal} |
all over the shop | Phrs. 1. In a mess, out of order, disorganized. 2. Everywhere. E.g."I've been all over the shop this morning and I can't find her anywhere." |
allow (it) | Verb. Forget it, don't bother. [Orig Black/ London use] |
all quiet | Noun. The vagina. Abb. of all quiet on the Western front, rhyming slang on 'cunt'. |
all time loser | Noun. A public house, a bar. Rhyming slang on 'boozer'. |
all to cock | Phrs. Messed up, useless, in ruin, out of order, in a bad condition. |
all to pot | Phrs. Messed up, in disarray. E.g."Our whole holiday went all to pot when Dad got arrested for being drunk." |
almond rocks | Noun. Socks. Cockney rhyming slang, often shortened to almonds. |
alright! | Exclam. Hello. A greeting. No answer is expected to what is inherently a question. Northern dialect has created the phonetic corruption alreet which sounds more like awreet. |
amazeballs(!) | Adj. Amazing, very impressive. Also used as as exclamation. |
amber nectar | Noun. Lager. [Orig. Aust.] |
anchors | Noun. Brakes. Also put the anchors on something. E.g."I slammed on the anchors and hit my head on the steering wheel." |
(the) Andrew | Noun. The Royal Navy. |
ane | Noun. Abb. of anus. |
ankle-biters | Noun. Children, particularly crawling babies. [Orig. Aust.] |
anorak | Noun. An often socially inept person, having an obsessive interest in a hobby or subject. Usually has little or no fashion sense, and errs towards eccentricity. Originates from the 'trainspotter' look, of wearing anoraks; spending so much time at the end of station platforms in all weather necessitates the wearing of such attire. Derog. Cf. 'trainspotter'. |
answers on a postcard | Phrs. If anyone has any ideas, or a response, to the question/problem that has just been posed, please let me know? From when, during the 1970s and 80s, blank postcards were used by viewers to mail answers to competition questions posed on TV programmes, in the hope of winning a prize. The advent of SMS and phonelines ensured the end of the postcards as a means of entering competitions. |
antsy | Adj. Nervous, agitated, restless. |
antwacky | Adj. Old fashioned. Possibly from antique(y) or antiquated. E.g."I'm not wearing those shoes, they're so antwacky and something my gran might wear." [Merseyside/West Lancashire use] |
any cop | Phrs. Of value, of any worth. E.g."Have you heard their new CD? I heard it was atrocious but do you think it's any cop?" See 'cop' (adj). Cf. 'no cop'. |
any road | Adv. Anyway. Also spelt anyroad. [Northern use] |
apeshit | Crazy, beserk, furious. See 'go ape/apeshit'. |
apeth | Noun. A pet name for a silly person. A shortening of daft apeth. Apeth, derived from haypneeworth (half a penny's worth) but pronounced ha'p'orth. |
apple (core) | Noun. 20. Cockney rhyming slang on 'score'. [1950s] |
apples and pears | Noun. Stairs. Possibly the most commonly expressed piece of Cockney rhyming slang that is used as an example of such, or used in jocular mimicry. |
April | Noun. Bottom, buttocks, 'arse'. Rhyming slang from April in Paris rhyming with 'arris'. |
Archer | Noun. £2000. From the amount of money given by Jeffrey Archer to a prostitute (Monica Coughlan) to enable her to leave the country, and in order to buy her silence over services rendered. Jeffrey Archer, ex-member of Parliament and best selling author, served a prison sentence for perjury and perverting the course of justice. |
are you talking to me or chewing a brick | Phrs. Rhetorical, confrontational question to a person who is considered to be talking nonsense of too much. |
Argie * | Noun. A person from Argentina. Occ. derog. Adj. Argentinian. * If not coined, then certainly popularized by the British Sun newspaper during the 1982 war with Argentina over the Falkland Islands. |
argue the toss | Vrb phrs. To argue or dispute loudly and at length. |
argy-bargy | Noun. Trouble, noisy quarrelling, arguing. {Informal}. |
arris | Noun. Buttocks, 'arse'. Convoluted Cockney rhyming slang for 'arse'; Arris, an abbreviation of Aristotle, rhyming with bottle, and thereafter leading to bottle and glass rhyming with 'arse'. Also spelt aris. |
arrows | Noun. Darts, the equipment and the game itself. |
arse | Noun. 1. The buttocks. The similar 'ass' isn't used as frequently, remaining more of an Americanism. Arse was s.e. from 1600s until mid 1800s. [1000's] 2. An objectionable person. 3. A mistake, a poor job. E.g."He's made such an arse of that plastering job that I think we'll need to redo it." Exclam. Expressing anger or frustration. E.g."Arse!" |
arse about/around | Verb. To mess around, to waste time. E.g."I spent 4 years after college arsing around and enjoying myself." |
arse about face | Phrs. Back to front. |
arse about tit | Phrs. Back to front. |
arse-ache | Noun. 1. A bad mood, bad temper. E.g."I've got the arse-ache with my mate - he owes me £200 and won't pay it." 2. A bother, trouble. E.g."It's an arse-ache having to mow the lawn every week. Why can't we just pave over the garden?" |
arse antlers | Noun. A wide tattoo located at the base of the back, which typically look a little like antlers. Cf. 'tramp stamp'. [Orig. Aust.] |
arse-bandit | Noun. A homosexual male. Derog. |
arse crack | Noun. The cleft between the buttocks. |
arsed | Adj. Concerned, bothered. Usually heard in the negative sense of can't be arsed. E.g."I can't be arsed with work today, it's too damned hot." |
arse-end | Noun. Somewhere remote and unappealing. Often used in the phrase the arse-end of nowhere. Also, but less commonly, as ass-end. E.g."We were at the arse end of town and had to walk 5 miles to get home." |
arseface | Noun. 1. An ugly person. 2. A contemptible person. |
arsehat | Noun. A contemptible person. Anglicized version of the original U.S. version, 'asshat'. |
arsehole * | Noun. 1. The anus. 2. An idiot or irritating person, a contemptible person. * also as arse-hole. Cf. bumhole. |
arseholed | Adj. Very drunk. |
arse-lick | Verb. To grovel, to ingratiate oneself. E.g."You can guarantee if there's any arse-licking to be done, Donald will be at the front of the queue." |
arse-licker | Noun. A sycophant. |
arse-licking | Adj. Sycophantic behaviour. Noun. An act of sycophantic behaviour. E.g."If he keeps giving the boss an arse licking at the rate he's currently doing, then he'll be first in line for a promotion." |
arse load | Noun. In large quantities, a lot of, a great amount. E.g." She's given me arse loads of paperwork to complete before lunch." |
arsemonger | Noun. 1. A contemptible person. Also arse monger. 2. A homosexual male. Derog. |
arse-on | Noun. 1. A bad mood. E.g."Keep out of Andy's way, he's got the arse-on." 2. A difficult task. E.g."It was a right arse on to repair it." |
arse over kettle | Phrs. Fall over. Also arse over tea kettle. |
arse over tip | Phrs. Fall over, head over heels. E.g."She went arse over tip on the ice outside." |
arse over tit | Phrs. Meaning the same as 'arse over tip'. |
arse-up | Noun. A shambles, a mistake, a mess-up. Verb. To make a mistake, to mess-up'. E.g."You wouldn't have arsed it up if you'd revised for your exam like everyone else." |
arsewipe | Noun. 1. Toilet paper. 2. A contemptible person. |
arsey | Adj. Bad-tempered, moody, disagreeable. E.g."He got a little arsey when I told him the truth about his brother's life in crime." |
article | Noun. An objectionable person. E.g."Come on, go and tidy your bedroom you lazy article." |
arty-farty | Adj. Overly and pretentiously artistic. {Informal} |
arvo | Noun. Afternoon. Usually heard as 'this arvo'. [Orig. Aust.] |
as fuck | Phrs. An intensifier. E.g."It was rusty as fuck, so wasn't worth repairing." |
as per usual | Phrs. As usual. Occasionally abb. to as per. E.g."As per usual it was raining in Manchester when we arrived." {Informal} |
as rare as hen's teeth | Phrs. Very rare, non existent. From hens not having teeth. |
as rare as rocking horse shit | Phrs. Very rare, non existent. |
as right as rain | Phrs. Satisfactory, comfortable, well. |
ass | Noun. A variant of 'arse' and more commonly used in North America. |
ass bandit | Noun. A homosexual male. Derog. Cf. 'arse bandit'. |
ass clown | Noun. An idiot. [Orig. U.S.] |
asshat | Noun. A contemptible person. Cf. 'arsehat'. [Orig. U.S.] |
asshole | Noun. See 'arsehole'. |
ass lick | Verb. To ingratiate oneself, to be sycophantic. Less commonly used than 'arse-lick'. |
ass-licker | Noun. A sycophant, an obsequious person. Cf. 'arse-licker'. |
ass-licking | Adj. Sycophantic behaviour, grovelling. Noun. An act of sycophantic behaviour. |
asswipe | Noun. Meaning the same as 'arsewipe'. [Orig. U.S.] |
as the actress said to the bishop | Phrs. A jocular catch phrase that draws attention to an otherwise innocent statement by imbuing sexual innuendo. Other variations include "as the mistress said to the gardener". |
Auntie | Noun. Affectionate and dated pet name for the BBC (The British Broadcasting Corporation). |
Aussie kiss | Noun. Cunnilingus, from the fact that it's the same as a French Kiss, but given down under. |
away and shite (!) | Vrb phrs. Go away! [North east use] |
'ave it | Verb. Go for it. See 'have it' |
aviation blonde | Noun. A female with hair dyed blonde. From blonde hair, black box black box being an aeroplane flight recorder and 'box' also being slang for vagina. |
avvy | Noun. Afternoon. Abb., usually heard as 'this avvy'. |
away with the mixer | Phrs. Not quite in touch with reality, in a dreamy state. [Merseyside use] |
awesome! | Adj. Great! Excellent! [Orig. U.S.] |
awfully | Adv. Very, extremely, very much. E.g."We had an awfully good time at Tommy's party." {Informal} |
awks | Adj. Abb. of awkward. E.g."Well, that was a bit awks, saying she was a bit unhygienic when she was stood right behind me." |
awlarse | Noun. A contemptible person. Also auldarse, allarse. Possibly from old arse. [Merseyside use] |
awright (!) | Adj./Adv./Exclam. An alternative spelling and pronunciation of alright (all right). |
axe | Noun. A guitar. |
axe wound | Noun. Vagina. Cf. 'hairy axe wound'. |
Ayrton | Noun. Ten pounds (monetary). Rhyming slang for tenner, on Ayrton Senna, the motor racing driver. |
ay-up! | Exclam. A greeting, hello. [Midlands/North use. Dialect] |