| abstract
| - Turns of phrase that are clichéd or even passé in the UK, but turn up in television all the time. In US TV, often used to up the level of Britishness. Many of these were originally popularized by PG Wodehouse. Some, especially the ruder ones, are still regularly used in Real Life. Since early Australian English speakers were almost all British, a fair amount of these phrases would be familiar to Australians (even though some are rarely used) - others are very common in Australia. The reverse may also apply - Australian and British accents/phrases are sometimes confused (unfortunately this is quite common among Americans, particularly those scripting for or acting a fake Brit role). Many of these phrases are also common in Ireland. Compare Stock Phrases. See Did Not Do the Bloody Research for when British English goes wrong. See also: British English, and the Quintessential British Gentleman (who probably uses these a lot). Note that this article contains many colloquialisms which may not (indeed, rarely do) have fixed definitions, therefore to some extent your mileage may vary.
* Aggro: Agression, trouble, etc. Used in e.g.: It seems there's some aggro going on! This one is definitely more used in Australia.
* Arse: Ass is occasionally heard as a Bowdlerised version of arse, a sort-of Foreign Cuss Word. It tends to be used in the sense of "donkey", so that making an ass of yourself and making an arse of yourself are distinct and "ass" is slightly milder. The distinction is generally that an "ass" is a wilfully stubborn or unreasonable person (a donkey metaphor, obviously), while an "arse" or "arsehole" is a person who is unpleasant, yobbish or rude.
* Away: Used exclusively Oop North. With the emphasis on the first syllable, this is short for "get away," a mild and friendly way of saying "Stop your nonsense," generally used to get the addressee's attention or express mild disbelief.
* Aye. In Scotland, it's a more common word than "yes" in colloquial speak that means the same thing. Elsewhere, tends to be the preserve of sea-faring people of any kind, or else old/mysterious men, often smoking a pipe while ruminating on something.
* In the nautical world, "aye" (or "aye aye") is not just another word for "yes." It's shorthand for "I understand and will obey." In other words, "yes" is an answer to a question, while "aye" is a response to a command.
* Bad Show: Usually an upper-class character will utter this when they witness something going wrong.
* Its also used, or given as "Bad Form" when someone does something intentionally wrong.
* Bar: The counter of a pub. Often given as "I'm off to the bar" to denote going to the counter to order drinks.
* Berk: Berkley or Berkshire Hunt, Rhyming Slang. Pretty mild expression for an idiot. Also, berk is pronounced burk, whereas it's the Barkshire Hunt.
* Whereas berk is fairly polite, the word Berkshire Hunt is slang for is the worst word you can say on TV.
* Bint: Slightly contemptuous term for woman or girl, mainly used in London. Said to come from when Cockney troops were stationed in Iraq between the World Wars, as it's the Arabic word for girl.
* Bird: Woman. More common Oop North, though also used in cockney slang.
* Not to be confused with "doing bird," which means "being in prison."
* Blighter: scoundrel; enemy. 'Poor Blighter' = 'Poor Devil' or nowadays 'Poor Bastard'.
* Bloody hell!: Exclamation of surprise or frustration (Blooming heck is a regional euphemism, particularly Oop North, where it can be said like "Blummin' 'eck"; And yes, the word is derived from "blood", despite some folk etymology claiming it is derived from the expression "by our lady". Ruddy Hell is an alternative, usually associated with the upper classes, unless "Ruddy" is pronounced "Roody" in which case its Oop North again). Formerly quite an offensive expression; this is still in use but is normally considered mild.
* W. S. Gilbert once explained the difference to a critic who believed the operetta Ruddigore to be obscene. "That would mean that if I said I admired your ruddy countenance, which I do, I would be saying that I liked your bloody cheek, which I don't."
* Bob's your uncle.: "And then it will be simple". "All we have to do is get the explosives into place just as the guard rounds the third corner, and Bob's your uncle!"
* Occasionally, for comedic purposes, "and Robert's your mother's brother" or similar.
* The origin is believed to be when Robert Cecil was Prime Minister, and the next PM was Arthur Balfour.
* Bollocks: Nonsense. Literally 'testicles'; colloquially a slightly milder version of "bullshit". When referring to objects (cars, food etc) "The dog's bollocks" means something is the best you can get, "The bollocks" means it's amongst the best, while "Bollocks" means it's rubbish. "The dog's bollocks" may also be shortened to "The dog's" or "The mutt's" (as in "The Mutt's Nuts").
* Similar to the American use of "shit" wherein calling something "shit" means that it is bad, while calling something "the shit" means that it is good.
* Bruv: Cockney term of friendly address, short for "brother," equivalent to "mate" or "pal."
* Bugger: Reasonably mild curse. "Buggery" is another word for anal sex; the verb "bugger" is often used in places Americans would say "fuck" or "screw": "Bugger that, I'm out of here!". "Bugger that for a game of soldiers", "Bugger off!", etc.
* The word means having anal sex or sex with an animal; coming into British vernacular after disputes with the 'Bulgar' sect.
* While quite mild Oop North, it's rather more offensive down south, especially to the older generations. Same applies to "sodding" (see below).
* Cheerio: Goodbye. Somewhat archaic these days, mostly used by posh folk.
* Chips/Crisps: Our words for fries and potato chips, respectively. If you're an American and you ask for chips in a grocery store, you'll be directed to the frozen aisle. Hilarity Ensues for the shop assistant.
* Slightly complicated by the fact that very thin cut chips (in the British sense) are often still referred to as "fries" or "French fries". The dividing line between chips and fries is somewhat blurred, but the general rule of thumb is McDonald's sells fries whereas a fish and chip shop sells chips.
* Cor, blimey!: Exclamation of surprise; from 'God blind me'
* (Old) Cobblers: Nonsense/Bullshit, particularly if spoken. "That's a load of old cobblers, that is!"
* Has been explained as Cockney rhyming slang 'cobbler's awls'='balls', with 'balls' meaning 'nonsense' or 'I state you are incorrect/speaking nonsense'.
* Crikey! (Thanks to the late, lamented Steve Irwin, this is less British and more Australian.) 'Crickey riley' is also said, though possibly only amongst the working class.
* Unless you're Boris Johnson. Also possibly the only man in any era to use the phrase 'old bean' genuinely and while under pressure.
* Chavs are youth (usually) who generally causes discomfort amongst the middle class. Stereotypically clad in a hooded sweatshirt and Abercrombie tracksuit (benefits permitting) and clutching a can of cheap lager. Not usually a threat to the public, but is seen as such due to a large amount of robbery undertaken in the early 2000s by people in such clothing. The term Chav, according to some (disputed) sources is an acronym for 'Council Housed And Violent', but has been expanded to include anyone of working class and little use to the nation, probably from London. The precise meaning of the phrase is the source of much debate and changes much with background, region, etc.
* Chocks away! : "Here we go!"; dates back to the early days of aviation when an aircraft was prevented from rolling forwards while its engine was running by "chocks" (wedges of wood) under the wheels, to be pulled away by ropes before takeoff. Only used in a joking sense in modern times. (Pilots now use the phrase "off the blocks")
* Cuppa: Cup of tea.
* Darlin': (Slightly) abbreviated form of "darling". Used irreverently as a greeting towards women, "All right Darlin'?".
* Drink (meaning financial remuneration): Common Cockney term "Do this and there's a nice drink in it for ya."
* Doolally: Nonsensical, in a mess,"it's all quite doolally", or if refering to a person, insane, as in "Gone quite doolally" Another Indian import from the Empire, dhulali.
* Also may have been derived from the Deolali army sanitorium in India or the camp there as a whole. Simon Raven explains it as being derived from the fact that soldiers would be stationed there for long periods in the heat, and would go a bit mad, the phenomenon becoming known as the "Deolali tip."
* Duck: A term of endearment towards another person (though very occasionally used confrontationally in Stoke on Trent). Derives from "Duke". Nowadays, it's mostly affectionate; men will rarely call other men "duck". Almost exclusive to the Midlands and parts of South Yorkshire; people from outside these regions, even in England, will usually be somewhat baffled at apparently being called a flightless water bird.
* 'Ey up: extremely informal greeting from Oop North (equivalent of 'hey' or 'yo' - "'ey up, chuck" is one variation), used less these days but still around. Also used as a general exclamation to draw someone's attention to something. Often followed by chuck/lad/lass/love, if someone is being greeted, 'love' being used for any female person.
* "Ta ra" is the opposite, though slightly less informal, meaning "Goodbye" or "See you later".
* Fam: a close friend, used as a term of endearment; usually to signify mutual happiness. Comes from 'family', but would never, ever be used to a relative. Originated in London gangs, but has spread to most London working class culture.
* Fit: Good-looking, attractive (in a superficial way). Does not literally mean fit as in 'in good shape, muscular'. Used for both men and women, usually by younger people.
* Flat: A kind of apartment. There are minor semantic differences (there are apartments in the UK), but the distinction is slight, and mostly contextual.
* As a general rule, a 'flat' is a house which is all on one floor when in a building with more than one floor (i.e. bungalows don't count). 'Apartment' is generally used to describe a very high-class, expensive or impressive flat.
* Recently this has changed due to the building of more luxury apartments, but traditionally flats in Britain were viewed as a sign of either being lower-class, a failure, or going through a temporary rough patch.
* Flibbertigibbet: Quite the archaic phrase it refers to a silly, scatterbrained and ultimately irresponsible person the word derives from a name for an imp or fiend.
* Frightfully/Fearfully: Very, Extremely. Even more old-fashioned and upper-class-twit than 'Awfully'.
* Not to be confused with "Ghastly!" (as in, "That's absolutely...") which refers to something distressing or unpleasant.
* Good evening, all: semi-formal greeting introducing oneself to those present. In Dixon's case (see below), to the TV audience.
* Goodness gracious me!: Modern usage indicates that the speaker is highly camp or of Indian descent.
* Good show, lads: Well done.
* Gordon Bennett: "Holy crap!" or "Oh my God", etc. Actually named for an extravagant New Yorker, but it's definitely an English phrase.
* An alternative etymology: (Australian-derived?) General Gordon Bennett was an Australian army general who led his men abysymally badly during the military disaster in Malaya and Singapore. He abandoned his command to its fate and fled to Australia on one of the last boats that were able to get out before the Japanese enforced a surrender. his name became a byword for utterly unbelievable incompetence, cowardice, and other undesirable qualities.
* Guv'nah/Guv; Informal term for the boss, a corruption of "Governor". Can mean the literal boss of a company or site, the figural boss (such as the leader of a gang or someone acknowledged as being a "hard man", or ever jokingly referring to a wife when pretending to be henpecked) or as a form of address to a male ("Evening, Guv - got the time on you?"). Pronounced "Guv'nah" due to being used mainly by Londoners and truncated to "Guv" more often than not, especially when used to address someone. See also "It's a Fair Cop" below.
* Hello, what's this?: An expression of mild surprise.
* Howdo; Mostly Northern or above a certain age, an informal greeting or term of recognition. Although a truncated version of "How do you do?", it is used more like the term "'Sup" in that it neither requires nor expects a response explaining how the recipient is.
* "I bloody love you, you're my best mate, you are!" - expect any friendly drunk to come out with variations on this stock phrase.
* Innit, eh? Used by Cockneys or British West Indians with little to no provocation.
* "Innit" (isn't it) can also be appended to pretty much any sentence, in place of tag questions like "didn't she", "won't they", "couldn't we" etc. (East) Indians are also fond of using the full "isn't it" in the same manner.
* Compare the Welsh variant - "We're going to the pub then, is it?"
* For a more upper-class, old-fashioned variant, use "what?" As in, "I say, that's hardly cricket, what?"
* I say! (Or the full version, "I say, old chap, that's just not cricket".): "I say" might be an exclamation of surprise or agreement. Generally restricted to posh/old fashioned accents. "That's not cricket" means something is unfair or unbalanced/being done wrongly.
* "It's a fair cop": Just after being caught at something, roughly equivalent to "Yes, I did it." From "cop", to catch. The full version is "It's a fair cop, guv, you've got me bang to rights".
* Still used almost exclusively within Her Majesty's Prisons, as a form of address used by inmates addressing uniformed staff.
* Jolly good, or "jolly good show", often said in an Upperclass Twit voice.
* Karzi/Khazi: Toilet (Indian imported word). Alternatively, 19th century Cockney origin.
* Beginning to be more associated with Australia.
* Where in Australia?
* Ken: Borrowed from Scots-only word meaning 'know'. Archaically, was prevalent in all English, but noo juis the Scots fowk ken "Ken", ken min?
* Well, them and North-Easterners, but nobody kens that they ken the ken that you ken, y'ken?
* Kerfuffle: A disturbance or commotion. Often used derisively, in the same sense as "fuss". Originally a Scots word, "curfuffle", derived from the Gaelic "cior thual", meaning "confusion, disorder".
* Knackered: Tired. Formerly had some watershed issues, since it originally described a very specific kind of tiredness, and way before that was used to mean tired to the point of death. When a horse is too old to work, it's sent of to the knackers (glue makers) to cut off and boil up the hooves, as boiled hoof makes a sticky sludge.
* Can also be used in place of "broken", ie. "Looks knackered to me" or "Oops I've knackered my bike".
* Luv: An irreverent term for a women, but can be used to denote affection.
* "Cheers luv" when a woman is the server of a drink.
* Luvaduck!: my goodness; used by Cockney women.
* Malarkey: Nonsense.
* Match: Instead of saying "game" as Americans do. As in "I've got to get home to watch the match."
* Mate: Friend, informal. Can be used generically -- the rough equivalent of 'pal' or 'buddy' -- or specifically, ie. 'my best mate'.
* Minge: Brit slang for the female genitalia. Pronounced 'minj', unlike the derived terms minging and minger (below) which use a hard G sound like the Chinese dynasty.
* Minging: unattractive or distasteful, usually applied to women by men - "Eurgh, she's proper minging!".
* Minger: Someone who is minging.
* Muppet: Idiot. Often used in tandem with Shut it, you slag!, when parodying cockneys. The OED traces the colloquial usage to 1989, with no mention before the introduction of the proper Muppets around 1957.
* My word!: Milder form of "My God".
* Naff off!: Clear off!/Go away!
* Now then: This phrase is interchangeable with "well, look who it is!", "that's interesting", "right, pay attention", and "steady on", depending on context and the way in which the phrase is delivered. More common Oop North.
* Oi: "Hey", as in "hey, you!". Gained international usage in reference to the Oi! subgenre of Punk Rock, the name drawing on the working class roots of the original London-based scene.
* Old Bean, Old Fruit, Old Sausage, Old Crumpet, Old Cake, Old Egg: Deliberately silly alternatives to 'Old Chap'.
* Old china: Cockney term of endearment, from the rhyming slang "china plate" = "mate."
* Palaver: Fuss, or, archaically, conversation (comes from a West African word meaning negotiation, probably entered the language via the slave or gold trade). Stereotypically associated with the cliché "What a palaver!", meaning "What a fuss!".
* Pint: Beer is generally sold by the pint, so "going for a pint" means "going out for a drink." Often, in TV shows that want to avoid Product Placement, a character will go into a pub and simply ask for "a pint." Strangely, the bartender will never respond "of what?" That said, since bar people in real life are so used to people just asking for a pint without being specific, there will often be a default brand as long as they specify the type of product. So "a pint of cider" will usually default to Strongbow, for example.
* A British pint of any liquid does not equate to a US pint, just to add a little more confusion into the mix. A British pint is 20 fluid ounces, versus 16 for the US pint. The larger imperial units are all affected by this, for example a US quart is 2 US pints and a US gallon is 8 US pints. A British quart and gallon are 2 and 8 British pints, respectively, so all US imperial units from pint upwards are about 80% of the British equivalents.
* Pip pip, cheerio and all that rot. : "Cheerio" or "Cheers" is still used to mean "goodbye". Cheers is also a minor version of "Thanks", for instance if somebody holds the door if you're walking through it behind them.
* Poppycock! Means 'Nonesense!' or 'rubbish!'
* Unrelated to "cock" and perfectly safe for polite usage, but believed to be derived from a dialect Dutch word for "dung" (compare "cack").
* Porridge: Often given as "Doing Porridge", denoting the person is going through a term of imprisonment.
* Proper: Term of emphasis. "That's proper good, that is."
* Pub: The local drinking establishment, short for "Public House".
* Quite, quite! : Yes indeed; exactly
* Right ho: okay then (also "Righty oh", "rightio").
* Right you are: Means the same as either of the above two.
* Shag: To....well, "have relations".
* Interestingly, "shag" is considered a much harsher swear in Britain than in America. In America, nobody had even heard the phrase until Austin Powers and thought little of it. British censors, on the other hand, were not amused.
* "All shagged out" is quite a common alternative use, meaning tired/knackered.
* Shite: Like shit, but with an 'e'.
* Slag: Literally, a by-product of the smelting process and slang, a woman or man who's a bit loose, so to speak.
* To up the offensiveness of the line, "you cyyyant!" may be substituted; the word is apparently considerably less offensive in British English (although still top of the list).
* Smashing! : Good, fun.
* All usage is thought to be derived from the Irish "Is maith é sin", meaning "It is good". It just hung on in Scotland, perhaps because a Scots "smoshan" sounds slightly less stupid than an English "smeshing".
* Sodding : See above under "bugger", comes from "sodomy". Used in modern times for things that irritate people, like annoying little jobs that need doing. "I had to put more sodding paper in the photocopier", or "Oh, sod it." Perfectly usable before the watershed.
* I always thought that "Sodding" came from the word "Sod", which is a clump of dirt. It would explain why it is slightly less profane.
* Spot of Tea: The clichéd phrase to express British-ness that has rarely, if ever, been used non-ironically/seriously.
* Steady on, old chap : "Go easy", the "old chap" may be omitted.
* "Go steady" means much the same and doesn't refer to the American usage of "dating somebody".
* Stiff Upper Lip, and all that: Expression denoting reserve and practicality in the face of trouble. Ironically, the phrase "stiff upper lip" was originally an Americanism.
* Scots do this too, except without ever referring to it directly, although if pressed will call it "being a trooper".
* Strewth: From "God's (honest) Truth", a phrase which is possibly British in origin. This is much more associated with Australia and while it will be familiar to most Brits, is not actually in common use in Britain.
* Note that while the original phrase is used as a (somewhat feeble, if used by the speaker) argument to assert that a previous statement is accurate, the term "strewth" is typically used as an exclamation (particularly to communicate exasperation, though this may vary)
* Ta: "Thanks" (very informal). Probably derived from the Danish "Tak", and used mainly in Britain (particularly London and the North), though occasionally heard in Ireland and Australia as well. "Ta very much(ly)" is a common rendition.
* Tally-ho!: "Let's get this show on the road", especially if this show is a hunt of some sort. Also stereotypically used by more upper-class fighter pilots in the second world war. This is because "Tally-ho" is an actual hunting-with-dogs term, meaning the quarry has been sighted. The aviation usage is that an enemy plane has been sighted and the pilot is moving to engage.
* Has been explained as 'til es hault' or somesuch in French as used by the Norman overclass way back. 'He is halted'; meaning the prey hunted has stopped to fight or in exhaustion.
* Tickity-Boo: Running like a well-oiled machine.
* Toodle-pip: goodbye. Almost never used in modern times. Deliberately quaint mangling of 'Toodle-oo' and 'Pip-pip'.
* Tosh: nonsense.
* Toss(er): "To toss" (or, as per actual use, "to toss off"), as a verb, means "to masturbate"; most consider the term to apply specifically to males.
* "Tosser" is typically used as an insult meaning much the same thing as "wanker" (see below), though "tosser" is generally considered to be the milder of the two words. Note that its use is not necessarily used literally.
* Tosspot is an old, unrelated term meaning "drunkard" but has evolved into a slightly gentler form of "tosser" (simply because it sounds sillier). The image invoked is of someone tossing back their pint (presumably of good old-fashioned ale).
* Twat: Used today mostly to mean idiot, although it is used in its original sense as a name for female genitals, hence its relative strength. Though used in Eagle Land, is much more prevalent in the UK, and is notably pronounced to rhyme with 'hat' as opposed to rhyming with 'hot'.
* Wank(er): "To wank" (verb) is "to masturbate". The meaning of "wanker" is left as an exercise for the reader. Given that this is a reasonably strong swear word in the UK (not being used before the watershed as a rule), it is particularly entertaining to hear it used casually in US shows, with a similar level of severity as say "sillyhead" or "twit". Example - The Simpsons episode "Trash of the Titans" features two uses of the word and was broadcast at its usual 6pm slot in the UK, causing a rash of complaints and also much falling about with laughter.
* As a noun, "Wank" refers to a certain masculine fluid. Not to be confused with "a wank" (also a noun), which means a session wherein a person hasA Date with Rosie Palms
* Seems to be starting to make appearances in US shows in a context that indicates that the speaker knows what it means. For example in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica, "alone time" on extended Raptor missions has been called wanking. On the other hand that show is heavily Canada-based, so...
* The collective name for bankers: a wunch.
* Wang: Slang for penis and a common chinese surname.
* Wangle: An archaic phrase referring to getting someting done through manipulation and deceiving such as wangling your way out of a sticky situation.
* What's all this then?: What a bobby (patrol officer) says upon arriving at the scene of whatever mayhem is occuring. Usually preceded by "All right, all right", "'Ello, 'ello, 'ello" or "Now then, now then."
* You're nicked, chum: You're under arrest (Or its variant from The Sweeney: "Get yer trousers on -- you're nicked!"). Notable users of Stock British Phrases:
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)