Gets on My/Your Wick
Phrase: Gets on my/your nerves; annoying; aggravating.
Plain as a Pikestaff:
Phrase:
When something is very obvious.
Pushing up Daisies:
Phrase: When a person is dead and buried .
London Slang
and Rhyming Slang:
London slang is almost a language of its own and is constantly changing. Some well know examples are:
clodhopper (street dancer), The Smoke (London), toby (tramp), flattie (policeman). Rhyming Slang is a product of the Cockney
population, a game of replacing certain words with phrases ending with a word that rhymes with the replaced word: boat
race (face), daisy roots (boots), Mutt and Jeff (deaf), and plates of meat (feet) are just a few of the most well
known. However, others are quite complicated and not so easily deduced. See Septic.
Watering the Daisies:
Phrase:
Urinating.
Safe as Houses:
Phrase: Perfectly safe.
Shacked Up With:
Phrase: Not married to the person of the opposite
sex you are living with.
VAT:
Value Added Tax. Unlike in the USA where sales tax is added to the advertised price
when you pay for the item, in the UK the VAT is already included in the advertised price.
Back of a Bus:
Phrase:
A person is very plain looking: "She has a face like the back of a bus."
Put a Sock in it:
Phrase: Be quiet!
As Easy as Kiss Your Hand:
Phrase: As easy as pie.
Plain Sailing:
Phrase: When something is simple to do,
with no obstructions.
Bob a Job:
During "Bob a Job Week" Boy Scouts go door to door offering to do odd jobs for
payment. Originally they would ask for a bob (one shilling.)
By Appointment to Her Majesty the Queen:
By tradition,
any shop that is specifically asked to provide goods for the the Queen can put a plaque bearing this message above their doorway.
Down
the Spout:
Phrase: When something is wasted: "I paid good money for a load of rubbish - that's ten quid down the spout."
As Dim as a Toc H Lamp:
Phrase: Thick headed; dim witted. From the dimly lit lamp hanging in front of the Talbot House
rest centers .
As Near as Makes no Odds:
Phrase: Just about; give or take a bit.
Eating your meat the British way:
First, let's take a look at
how the average American eats a steak. Supposing he is right handed; with his fork in his left hand he sticks it into his
steak and with the knife in his right hand he cuts a piece off the outer edge of the steak. He then takes the fork out of
the steak, puts down his knife, switches his fork to his right hand, spears the piece of meat and puts it into his mouth.
Now, the British eat with more of an economy of motion. The Brit keeps his fork in his left hand and his knife in his right
hand. He sticks the fork into the outer edge of his steak and uses his knife to cut that piece from the rest of
the steak, and puts it into his mouth. Simple!
Two Brass Farthings:
Phrase: Farthings were a part of the old monetary
system and were worth a quarter of a penny, even back then practically worthless. When a person says "I don't have two brass
farthings to rub together, he's saying he is broke.
Blot One's Copybook:
Phrase: Spoil one's good record.
On the Game:
Phrase: Prostitution.
Goggle for Gapes:
Phrase:
To gape: "They watched the parade go by, goggles for gape."
Don't Get Your Knickers in a Twist:
Phrase: Don't
get upset. One can presume this phrase came into being because actually getting your knickers in a twist would be painful,
to say the least.
Different as Chalk and Cheese:
Phrase: World's apart.
Have a go:
Phrase: In the days of my youth ... um ... let's not elaborate on that time.
Anyway, "having a go" meant you were fighting someone. Or, challenging a person to fight, you would say: "Come on, have a
go then!" It also means to take a turn.
Faster Than You Can Say Jack Robinson:
Phrase: John Robinson was a close
associate of Pitt, a man of great influence and master at arranging and managing seats at time of election. To say it was
done "faster than you can say Jack Robinson" means it was done very quickly.
Thin End of the Wedge:
Phrase: Meaning
to push the limits of acceptability. "I don't mind lending him a couple of quid but when he spends it on booze, that's the
thin end of the wedge."
A Storm in a Teacup:
Phrase: Much ado about nothing.
Keep Your Pecker Up:
Phrase:
Keep your spirits up.
Gains on the Swings, Loses on the Roundabout:
Phrase: An expression of resignation; you win some, you lose some.
Thin on the Ground:
Phrase: Scarce.
Down in the Dumps:
Phrase: Depressed, sad.
The Left Side of the Road:
Very important. In the UK you
drive on the left-hand side of the road.
Bob's Your Uncle!"
Phrase: A way of saying easily done. "It's simple.
I put this piece here, and this piece here, and Bob's your uncle!"
Drinkin Up Time:
The last ten minutes before
the pub closes.
"Time, Gentlemen, Please!"
The publican will make this announcement when it's time for patrons
to leave the premises.
Send to Coventry:
Phrase: Ostrasize.
Long the the Tooth:
Phrase: You're pretty
old .
Stone the Crows!:
Phrase: A phrase evincing surprise.
Belts and Braces:
Phrase: To overcompensate.
Why would you need a belt and braces?
Put the Boot In:
Phrase: To attack, fight. Originated by Skin Heads
whose favourite method of attack was to kick with their Bovver Boots.
Common or Garden:
Phrase: Plentiful, ordinary.
See Common.
In the Club/A Bun in the Oven:
Phrase: Both phrases applied to a women who is pregnant.
Round
the Twist:
Phrase: Applied to a person who is crazy; around the bend.
Pipped to the Post:
Phrase: Outdone.
"I thought I had the promotion but I was pipped to the post by Johnston."
Keep Your Hair On!"
Phrase: Calm down!
Having You/Me On:
Phrase: Teasing you/me.
Do Your Nut:
Phrase: Throw a tantrum.
Cheap and
Cheerful:
Phrase: Inexpensive but still good to have.
Fell Off the Back of a Lorry:
Phrase: Stolen goods.
The V Sign:
Another important one. Clench your fist and raise your index and first finger to form a V. If your
knuckles are facing in, toward you, it's the Victory Sign. But if your knuckles are facing outward it's the equivalent of
giving the finger in the USA.
Not Half Bad:
Phrase: Actually it's very good. "That movie wasn't half bad!" See
Half.
Mutton Dressed up as Lamb:
Phrase: Sarcastic way of saying someone is trying to appear
better than they
are, or trying to make something appear better than it is. Although lamb is a tender meat and mutton, from a fully grown sheep,
is tough and tastes completely different, mutton was sometimes passed off as lamb in the butcher's shop.
Naughty But
Nice:
Phrase: It isn't at all good for you but it surely is nice to have. Originated from television commercial for cream
cakes which are "naughty but nice."
Sick as a Parrot:
Phrase: You're definitely unhappy about something.
Cold
Comfort:
Phrase: Not much of a consolation; not really any comfort at all.
That Takes the Biscuit:
Phrase:
Expressing surprise. In the USA you might say "that beats all!"
Daft as a Brush:
Phrase: You're really stupid.
Not on Your Nelly:
Phrase: Definitely not, never!
Don't Give a Tinker's Curse:
Phrase: You don't give
a damn. This comes from the practice of tinkers - who very often were gypsies - going door to door selling services and items
that were mostly worthless. If you purchased you received the gypsy's blessing but if you did not you could earn a gypsy's
curse; or at least it was considered unlucky (probably by the gypsy!) Here in the USA I once heard the phrase "don't give
a tinker's damn."
Have it Off/Have it Away:
Phrase: Have sexual congress.
Sweet Fanny Adams:
Phrase:
Meaning, you got nothing at all. "He promised me the moon and I got Sweet Fanny Adams."
Sweet eff-all:
Phrase: Not a damn thing; useless.
Seems to originate from Sweet Fanny Adams, but nowadays the "eff" is more likely to denote "fuck" i.e. "fuck all."
Take the Mickey:
Phrase: Tease; make fun of.
Three
Sheets to the Wind:
Phrase: Drunken oblivion.
Out on the Tiles:
Phrase: Being out all night having a good
time.
How Do You Do?:
A greeting, same as saying hello. When I was a child good etiquette dictated you ask "How
do you do?", never say "pleased to meet you," when you met a person for the first time.
Spend a Penny:
Phrase:
At one time you had to pay to use many of the public toilets in England. Each stall had a slot, into which you'd insert a
penny before the door would open. The phrase can now be applied to using a bathroom, whether payment is required or not. I
was chastised via email by someone who told me these "pay to pee" conveniences no longer exist, but I beg to differ. During
my last visit home in May 2005 I had to pay 10p in Salisbury, 10p in Brighton and 20p in the nicer public loos
in Paddington Station.
Common as Dirt/Common as Muck:
Phrase: Does not allude to plentitude but to a person considered
inferior. See Common.
A Month of Sundays:
Phrase: A very long time.
Pull up a Bollard:
Phrase: Take
a seat.
I Should Cocoa!:
Phrase: Meaning, "I should think so!"
Knock About With:
Phrase: Spend time
with; hang around with.
A Good Job:
Phrase: Same as saying "a good thing." "It's a good job I left work early
or I would have missed the train home."
Over the Top:
Phrase: Overdo it; go overboard.
Tit for Tat:
Phrase:
Respond in a like manner.
Mothering Sunday:
This already three-hundred year old English tradition was adopted
informally in America as Mother's Work Day as early as 1858. It was formalised as Mother's Day, now observed in May, in 1903.
Mothering Sunday in the UK is in March.
City:
Until very recently, it wasn't a city unless it had a cathedral;
if it didn't have a cathedral it was a town. It's not a village unless it has a church; if it doesn't have a church it's a
hamlet. But I read in the newspaper that this rule is changing and many large towns are applying for the right to be called
a city.
Pancake:
The British pancake is very like a thicker crepe. It's served rolled with a sweet filling as
a dessert or folded with a savoury filling as an entree. Not a breakfast food. The traditional filling is demerera sugar and
lemon juice.
Go Like the Clappers:
Phrase: Go very fast.
Scott
Free:
Phrase: To get away with an illegal or immoral act, unharmed and unpunished.
Not Cricket:
Phrase: The
game of cricket is (supposedly) based on good gamesmanship and fair play. When anything is "not cricket" it is unfair or unethical.
Tailpike Day:
Traditionally, April Fools Day ends at noon and Tailpike Day begins.
Get Your Own Back:
Phrase:
Get revenge; be avenged.
Harvest Festival:
Celebration of the harvest. The church is decorated with sheaves of
grain, fruit and flowers. Parishoners take produce to church to be distributed to the needy.
Marks and Sparks:
Marks
and Spencers shop, trademark St. Michael. Sellers clothing and superior foodstuffs.
Never-Never:
Slang for
buying on credit. After WWII this was introduced to the working classes for purchase of furniture and household items. If
they didn't keep up payments the items were repossessed, yet they had to continue with payments for something they no longer
had. Not only that, they didn't get the items back when fully paid for! Indeed, finding themselves without furniture they
would often go to another dealer and purchase more on credit, therefore committing to two payments, which they very often
"never-never" paid off. Also Hire Purchase.
Boxing Day:
The day after Christmas Day. In bygone years this was
the day when the aristocracy gifted their servants with a "Christmas Box" which was not, in fact, a box, but often a gift
of money for men and a length of material for women.
Bonfire Night:
November 5th celebration to remember an attempt
to blow up the Houses of Parliament in 1605. Also called Guy Fawkes Night after the ringleader of the rebels. See Guy.
According to Cocker:
Phrase: According to best usage. Cocker was a popular
17th century writer on arithmetic.
On One's Pat:
Phrase: On one's own. From the rhyming slang Pat Malone,
for alone.
On One's Tod:
Phrase: On one's own. From the rhyming slang Tod Sloane,
for alone.
Fried Bread:
When I was a child fried bread was eaten at breakfast with
bacon and eggs. You got a good thick slab of bread, damped both sides with water (to prevent it absorbing the grease) and
fried it quickly in bacon grease till golden brown. We usually spread jam on it - believe me it was delicious. I hear that
nowadays fried bread is generally made by buttering the bread on both sides and frying it, perhaps similar to Texas toast?
I'll Be Bound:
Phrase: I bet. This phrase always comes at the end of a
sentence: "He'll have a good time in Costa Rica, I'll be bound."
French Toast:
Deserves a mention because it is not like the French Toast
made in America. French Toast in England is made from buttering one side of the bread and toasting the other side.
Clap Eyes On:
Phrase:
Set eyes on; see.
Clapped Out:
Phrase: Beat, frazzled, worn out.
Big Four:
Nickname for the four big banks in the U.K: National Westminster,
Barclays, Lloyds and Midlands.
Best of British Luck!:
Phrase: Best of luck, but said with irony.
Between Whiles:
Phrase: Between times; in between.
Beer and Skittles:
Phrase: Fun and games; amusement. Almost always used
in a negative way: "Our holiday wasn't all beer and skittles."
The Ball's in Your Court:
Phrase: It's up to you now; it's your move.
Assisting the Police:
Phrase: Being held by the police for questioning.
Against the Collar:
Phrase: Hard going; difficult.
On Your Bike:
Phrase: Get lost!
Cat Among the Pigeons:
Phrase: To introduce something highly
inflamatory into a conversation, or into a situation.
Do You Well or Do Someone Well:
Phrase: Treat you/them right.
Short and Curlies:
Phrase: To have someone by the short and curlies is
to have them at a disadvantage. See Curlies.
