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1

Words not widely used in USA and UK

This book has two parts, the first part will be "List of American words not widely used in
the United Kingdom", and the second part will be "List of British words not widely used
in the United States".

.

United Kingdom

used in the

not widely

American words

list of

-

1

•

Words with specific American meanings that have different meanings in British
English and/or additional meanings common to both dialects (e.g. pants, crib) are to
be found at

List of words having different meanings in British and American English

.

When such words are herein used or referenced, they are marked with the flag
[DM].

•

Asterisks (*) denote words and meanings having appreciable (that is, not occasional)
currency in British English, but nonetheless distinctive of American English for their
relatively greater frequency in American speech and writing. Americanisms are
increasingly common in British English, and many that were not widely used some
decades ago, are now so (e.g. regular in the sense of "regular coffee").

•

American spelling is consistently used throughout the article, except when explicitly
referencing British terms.

0-9

101

(pronounced "one-oh-one") label for introductory college courses ("English 101"),

figuratively denoting something intended for beginners ("real estate 101")

401K

(pronounced "four-oh-one K";) 401k is an employer sponsored retirement plan in

the U.S.[A traditional individual retirement account (IRA), 401(k)]. Employees can

contribute a portion of their income into the plan on a pre-tax basis. The maximum

amount of the contribution is limited by the U.S. federal government and the plan

itself. An employer can select to contribute tax-deferred matching funds into the

employee's account. This type of plan is called a defined contribution plan since the

employee decides the percentage of their income to contribute. Once the employee

retires, their distribution will depend on the amount the plan has grown. Because of

this, the employee should choose the investments carefully. Once the employee

starts taking distributions, the withdrawals are taxed. If money is withdrawn before

reaching age 59 1/2, there is also an early withdrawal penalty.

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2

411

(pronounced "four-one-one"; colloquial) information about something (from

4-1-1

,

directory assistance

number)

5-0

(pronounced "five-oh", often "the five-oh"; colloquial) the police (from

Hawaii Five-

O

, an American television series)

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3

A

AC

air conditioning (UK: air con)

acclimate

(verb) (UK usually: acclimatise, acclimatize)

acetaminophen

(or

Tylenol

)

(UK: paracetamol)

addicting

(UK and US: addictive)

affirmative action

providing opportunities in education or work based on (e.g.) race or gender (UK:

positive discrimination)

airplane

fixed-wing aircraft

. Alteration of UK aeroplane, probably influenced by aircraft

aluminum

(UK: aluminium)

AMBER alert

[1]

see article

amtrac

Landing Vehicle Tracked

(not to be confused with

Amtrak

, the passenger railroad

corporation)

arroyo

a usually dry

creek

.

arugula

, rugola

the herb also known as rocket or garden rocket. Borrowed from southern Italian

dialect in the early 1960s ("Ask Italian greengrocers for arugula, rucola or ruccoli; ask

other markets for rouquette, rocket salad or, simply, rocket." — The New York

Times, May 24, 1960, in

OED

).

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4

B

baby carriage

pushable vehicle for transporting babies, also called stroller, buggy or regionally

baby coach (UK: perambulator (old-fashioned or formal), pram, or, for the type that

an older baby sits rather than lies in, pushchair)

bachelorette

a usually young unmarried woman; not quite the same as "spinster"

[

clarification needed

]

backhoe

a piece of excavating equipment (UK usually digger, mechanical digger, excavator, or

JCB

,

genericized trademark

)

ballpark

a baseball

stadium

; a range of approximation or accuracy ("in the ballpark"; "a

ballpark figure") *

Band-Aid

*

(trademark) bandage for minor wounds, (UK: Elastoplast (trademark), plaster [DM]);

also, a makeshift solution

bangs

front part of the hair cut to hang over the forehead (UK:

a fringe

)

barf

to vomit (slang) (throw up)

barrette

hair slide

baseboard

skirting board

bayou

(from Louisiana French) an often marshy slow-moving minor watercourse, usually

located in a low-lying area (as in the

Mississippi River

delta region of the

southern

United States

)

bedroom community

a commuter town or suburb (UK: dormitory town [DM])

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5

Bear Claw

A kind of sweet pastry served mainly on the

West Coast of the United States

.

bell pepper

a mild (not spicy) red or green pepper or

capsicum

in Australian English and Indian

English

blacktop

a road surface [DM] composed of

asphalt concrete

; also a verb ("to blacktop a

parking lot") (UK: compare

tarmac

)

blinders

(on a horse) (UK: blinkers)

blood sausage

black pudding

boardwalk

a walkway usually made of planking, typically along a beach (as that of

Atlantic City

)

bobby pin

hair grip, Kirby grip

booger

(slang) a piece of nasal mucus (UK: bogey)

bookmobile

a large vehicle housing a mobile lending library (UK: mobile library)

boombox

a large portable stereo, syn. with ghettoblaster, which is also American in origin but

is common in the UK.

boondocks

(also the boonies) rough country; a very rural location or town; backwoods; the

"sticks". Sometimes refers to rough, poor neighborhoods in a city. From

Tagalog

.

boondoggle

slang term for a scheme that wastes time and money; also

scoubidou

, a knotting and

plaiting craft

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6

Botts' dot

see

raised pavement marker

(UK:

cat's eye

)

breadbox

a box for keeping bread (UK: usually bread bin)

bro

from brother; informal for a brother, or a friend or pal (UK: bruv,)

broil

to cook food with high heat with the heat applied directly to the food from above

(UK: grill) [DM]. Apparently first used by Chaucer.

brownstone

a type of residential building found in New York and other large cities

buddy, bud

a friend; also used as a term of address (UK similar: mate)

bullhorn

a

megaphone

burglarize

to carry out a

burglary

(UK: burgle; burgle is very rare in US, and burglarize virtually

nonexistent in UK)

busboy

junior restaurant worker assisting waiting staff, table clearer, water pourer etc. (UK:

busser; runner)

butte

an isolated hill with steep sides and a small flat top

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7

C

caboose

a train car attached usually to the rear mainly for the crew's use (UK: guard's van' or

brake van'); also (colloquial) the buttocks

Canadian bacon

Ham, usually pressed and sliced back bacon.

candy apple*, candied apple

toffee apple

canola

a trademarked variety of

rapeseed

careen

(of a vehicle) to travel fast and out of control, usually swerving or cornering (UK:

career)

carhop

someone serving food at a

drive-in

, often on

rollerskates

catercorner

(or catercornered, catacorner, kitty-corner, catty-corner, etc.) (adverb) diagonally,

diagonally opposite ("The house looks catercorner to mine"). Cater Corner is the

original form (from the French ‘quatre’ and English 'corner' = four + corner), but the

forms kitty corner and catty corner (

folk etymology

) are usual in speech, the former

especially in the North and the latter in the Midland and South. Sometimes

(dialectal, regional) also kitty/catty wampus/wumpus (unclearly derived), which can

also mean "awry".

catsup

alternative spelling of ketchup that rarely sees use in the UK.

cell phone

(short for cellular telephone) a portable telephone; UK: mobile phone, often

abbreviated to mobile

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8

central air

central air conditioning

ChapStick

*

(

trademark

, sometimes used generically) a lip balm

checkers

a popular

board game

(UK:

draughts

)

charge account

in a store or shop (UK: credit account)

checking account

the type of

bank account

used for drawing checks; distinguished from savings

account. (UK: current account or cheque account)

cilantro

coriander

leaf, while in the US, coriander refers only to the seed.

cookout

informal meal cooked and eaten outdoors, a cross between a picnic and a barbecue

or a cooking competition taking place outdoors

co-ed, coed

female student at a

coeducational

college (e.g. "He saw the party as an opportunity

to meet co-eds."); any group of people with members from both genders (e.g. "My

soccer team is co-ed.")

cooties

fictional disease, a term used by children (UK:

lurgy

); also a term for

lice

costume party

party where costumes are worn (UK: fancy-dress party)

cotton candy

spun sugar often sold at fairs (UK: candy floss)

counterclockwise

(UK: anti-clockwise)

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coveralls

a one-piece outer protective garment (UK:

overall

, boiler suit)

critter

(informal) a creature; an animal (as a horse in the South or a bull in the North); often

used jocularly (as in "congresscritter", a

congressperson

); sometimes a term of

endearment

crapshoot

risky and uncertain venture; from

craps

, a dice game

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10

D

diaper

An absorbent undergarment (UK: nappy)

dime

a 10-cent coin. Derived from the Latin word for ten decem. A variant on Disme, the

original spelling.

Five-and-dime

, dime store, a store selling cheap merchandise; a

dime a dozen, so abundant as to be worth little; on a dime, in a small space ("turn on

a dime") or immediately ("stop on a dime"); nickel-and-dime, originally an adjective

meaning "involving small amounts of money" and then "insignificant", also a verb

meaning "to rip-off via many seemingly insignificant charges". (The nickel [DM] is the

5-cent coin.) In Britain, the old

sixpence

, a small coin worth the equivalent of 2.5

p

,

was formerly used in similar expressions before

decimal currency

was introduced in

the early 1970s.

direct deposit

a method of payment by bank transfer, similar to European

giro

, almost exclusively

used for deposits of pay checks or government benefits

dishrag

a

cloth

for washing dishes (UK: dishcloth)

dish towel

a

towel

for drying dishes (UK: tea towel)

divided highway

a road with a

highway median

(UK: dual carriageway)

docent

a university lecturer; also a volunteer guide in a museum or similar institution

doohickey

word used for an

unknown item

(a thingamajig or just a thingy) (UK: wotsit)

douche

device for rinsing the vagina; also douchebag is used as an insult

downspout

pipe for carrying rainwater from a gutter to the ground (UK & US: drainpipe)

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11

downtown

(noun, adv., adj.) (in, to, toward, or related to) either the lower section or the

business center of a city or town—compare uptown, see

article

for

New York City

usage; (noun) in

basketball

, far from the basket (as outside the three-point line)—

used of a shot; (adj., adv., noun) a euphemism to describe

oral sex

, the act of

performing oral sex, or to refer to genitalia

driver license,

driver's license

(UK: full driving licence)

drugstore

a pharmacy, or a store selling candy, magazines, etc. along with medicines (UK

approx.: chemist or "corner shop" [DM])

druthers

preference of one thing over another derived from a contraction of "I would rather"

or "I'd rather" (e.g. "if I had my druthers, I'd...")

drywall

gypsum board, plasterboard, or any process that builds interior walls without the

use of water (UK: plasterboard)

duct tape

(or Duck tape)

a fabric tape used for quick repairs (originally heating ducts) )UK:

gaffer tape

)

dude

A male or a farm hand at a horse ranch. Americans often use this as the combined

equivalent of the British usage of "mate" and "bloke", or, even closer, as the

equivalent of Caribbean "man/mon". Dude has become more common in the UK

because of television, movies, etc.

Dumpster

(trademark: might be becoming

genericized

) large trash receptacle (UK approx.: skip

[DM]); to

dumpster-dive

, to rummage through a Dumpster

dweeb

a boring, studious, or socially inept person (nerd,geek)

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12

E

eggplant

the plant Solanum melongena (UK: aubergine); "eggplant" is common in the

Commonwealth outside the United Kingdom.

Emergency brake

brake in motor vehicle operated by a lever used to keep it stationary. (UK:

handbrake)

eminent domain

the power of the government to take private property for public use (similar to UK

compulsory purchase)

English muffin

(UK: "muffin", "hot muffin") (for more, see article)

envision

to envisage

eraser

(UK: rubber)

expiration

As in

expiration date

(UK: expiry)

expressway

A type of multi-lane divided highway

exurb

The ring of prosperous rural communities beyond the suburbs, see

Commuter town

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13

F

fanny pack

pouch-like bag that ties or snaps around the wearer's waist (UK: bum bag). See also

fanny in [DM].

faucet

water outlet (UK and US: tap [DM])

feedlot

*

(see article)

flack

a publicist or press agent; sometimes also an alternate spelling of flak "negative

commentary", which is used in the UK. Although flack "press agent" was first

recorded just one year after

flak

"Flugabwehrkanone", the two are likely unrelated.

flashlight

portable battery-powered electric lamp (UK: torch)

flatware

knives, spoons, and forks (as opposed to

holloware

); (UK usually

cutlery

[DM],

although flatware is used in the UK antiques trade as a specialist word)

freeway

(see article)

French press

Device for making coffee (UK: cafetière)

freshman *

a first-year student in college or high school (also fresher in UK)

(French) fries

pieces of potato that have been deep-fried. Originates from Belgian style of cooking

potatoes (UK sometimes distinguishes between thick chips [DM] and thin fries)

frosting

A confection applied to cakes (UK: "

icing

")

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14

G

garbage

(UK: rubbish)

gasoline

(esp. in the past also spelled gasolene; abbreviated gas) (UK: petrol)

gee-whiz

as an interjection, a euphemism for "Jesus"; as an adjective, denotes something

characterized by or meant to cause excitement or sensation ("gee-whiz technology";

"a gee-whiz attitude")

general delivery

(UK: poste restante)

green thumb

(UK: green fingers)

grifter

*

a con artist, transient swindler, or professional gambler (UK: con man); also grift can

mean an act of thievery or trickery

gotten

Archaic in the UK, only found as part of the phrase 'ill-gotten gains'.

grits

A

maize

(sweetcorn) porridge common in the southern U.S. and unknown in the UK

grunt

Slang for

infantryman

: (UK:

squaddie

)

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15

H

half bath

a

bathroom

[DM] that lacks a

shower

or

bathtub

(i.e., a bathroom which lacks a

place to actually bathe.) Equivalent to a British

W.C.

or

Cloakroom

heavy cream

double cream (UK)

hickey

a bruise on one's skin resulting from kissing or sucking; (UK: love bite)

highball

(see article)

ho

The word "

whore

", synonymous with

tramp

(harlot) or

slut

and often used as an

insult. The spelling is associated with

African-American English

, though it does no

more than reflect a non-Rhotic pronunciation of the standard word, similar to what

can be heard in Boston ("haw" or "ho-wuh") or Australia.

hobo

tramp (BrE); subculture of wandering homeless people,[1] particularly those who

make a habit of hopping freight trains. Becoming more popular in the UK

homemaker

The

British National Corpus

contains 634 occurrences of housewife and 18 of

homemaker; the

BYU Corpus of American English

contains 972 occurrences of

housewife and 633 of homemaker.

hominy

processed maize, see also

grits

hood

engine compartment cover of front-engine automobile (UK: bonnet)

play hooky

to play truant from school; to cut class (UK also: skive, bunk off)

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horseback riding

simply "riding" or horse riding in the UK

howdy

(short for how do you do) casual greeting that originated in the Southern States.

hush puppy

a deep-fried pellet of cornmeal mush commonly eaten with Southern American

seafood.

HVAC

Heating + Ventilating (or Ventilation) + Air Conditioning (used in technical circles in

the UK)

I

intimate apparel

lingerie; used mainly in advertisements.

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17

J

jack off, jerk off *

(slang) to masturbate, UK usage would be "to wank". If used as a disparaging noun,

as in "that guy is such a jackoff [or jerkoff]", the UK equivalent would be "that guy is

such a wanker [or tosser]". In this sense, sometimes written "jagoff". (It is generally

not considered as vulgar or insulting as "wanker" is, however.)

jackhammer

(UK: pneumatic drill)

Jane Doe

See John Doe.

jeez

minced oath

for "Jesus", sometimes spelled geez

Jell-o

(trademark) gelatin dessert (UK: jelly [DM])

john

(slang) a toilet; also, the client of a prostitute

John Doe

unnamed defendant or victim (as in a

lawsuit

), or a person whose identity is

unknown or is intended to be anonymous; also, an average man ; compare John Q.

Public (UK equivalent is Joe Bloggs, or John Smith). The female equivalent is Jane

Doe, or less frequently "Jane Roe" as in

Roe v. Wade

. Also Baby Doe.

John Hancock

a signature (from the name of the President of the

Second Continental Congress

,

who was the first signer of the

United States Declaration of Independence

and who

also wrote his signature the largest) -- "put your John Hancock here"

John Q. Public

the

common man

, typical member of the general public. Also stated as Joe Public,

Joe Blow, Joe Schmoe, Joe Six-Pack, Eddie Punchclock, or Joe Lunchbucket. (UK: Joe

Bloggs)

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18

K

kitty-corner

see catercorner

L

ladybug

a red, black-spotted beetle (UK: ladybird)

laundromat

a public place to wash laundry (UK: laundrette)

learner's permit

a restricted license for a person learning to drive, who has not yet passed the

necessary driver's test (rules vary from state to state); also called driver's permit (UK:

provisional driving licence)

left field *

a source of unexpected or illogical questions, ideas, etc. ("that proposal came out of

left field"); for the baseball sense see

left fielder

; see

English language idioms

derived from baseball

(now becoming more common in the UK)

letter carrier

a person who delivers mail to residences and businesses; also mail carrier, mailman

(UK: postman)

license plate, license tag

vehicle registration plate

(UK: number plate)

lye

caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) or potassium hydroxide (archaic in UK)

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19

M

mail carrier

a person who delivers mail to residences and businesses; also letter carrier (UK &

US: postman, postwoman, although people are encouraged to use postal worker, in

an effort to prevent sexism.)

mailman

see mail carrier

mailbox

(UK: post box, letter box, pillar box)

mass transit

(UK: public transport)

math

mathematics (UK: maths) - can also mean sum.

Merry Christmas (USA / UK)

(UK: Happy Christmas)

midsize

medium size

Miranda

(

Miranda warning

) the warning (usually "You have the right to remain silent. If you

give up that right, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of

law." etc.) given to criminal suspects when arrested; (Miranda rights) the right of a

criminal suspect when arrested, as established in the

United States Supreme Court

case Miranda v. Arizona; hence mirandize, to recite the Miranda warning to (a

criminal suspect). In the UK this is referred to as "reading rights" or "cautioned as to

his rights" (not to be confused with a

police caution

).

mohawk

a type of haircut (UK: mohican)

mom, mommy, mama, mamma, momma

mother (UK often: mum[my]',mam,ma')

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20

mom-and-pop

single-family operated

small business

("a mom-and-pop store") (UK: corner

shop/store/off-licence/offy)

mono / mononucleosis

(UK:

Glandular fever

)

mortician

an undertaker,

funeral director

N

narc

law enforcement narcotics agent; but 'to narc on' someone is to inform on them to

an authority figure, used also as a noun labeling a person who does such (UK: Grass)

(This term is also used in New Zealand)

New York minute

see

New York minute (time)

nightstand

encompassed by

bedside table

normalcy

normality. Used, although not coined, by

Warren G. Harding

("a return to normalcy")

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21

O

obligated

(UK: "obliged")

off-the-rack

of clothes, etc. (UK: off-the-peg)

oftentimes *

often (archaic in Britain but colloquial in America, especially clause-initially)

ornery

irritable, crotchety, cranky, troublemaking (from ordinary)

ouster

ousting, overthrow ("the ouster of a regime"; "the ouster of the CEO")

outage *

temporary suspension of operation ("a

power outage

", UK: powercut); the amount

of something lost in storage or transportation [DM]

overpass *

(UK: flyover)

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22

P

pacifier

(UK: dummy [DM], comforter [DM])

pantyhose

(UK:

tights

, a term used for similar non-sheer garments in the U.S.; "pantyhose"

refers only to sheer or semi-sheer nylon-based tights)

paper route

a regular series of newspaper deliveries (UK: paper round)

parking garage

multi-storey car park

parking lot

a usually outside area for the parking of automotive vehicles (UK: car park)

penny-ante

(adj.) petty, insignificant -- from penny ante, poker played for a very low ante

Popsicle

A trademarked brand of frozen juice, or flavored ice on a stick. The term is widely

used to describe all such confections without regard to brand. (UK:

ice lolly

)

plastic wrap

polymer material for sealing food items (UK: cling-film)

plumber's butt

or

plumber's crack

buttock cleavage, also called the working man's smile (UK: builder's bum brickie's

bum or builder's cleavage)

plushie, plush toy

soft toy

(UK: cuddly toy)

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23

powdered sugar

(UK: icing sugar)

pre-authorized payment/withdrawal

(UK: direct debit (variable amount)/standing order (fixed amount))

public holiday

(UK: bank holiday, although public holiday is also used, more formally, when

referring to New Year's Day, Good Friday, Christmas Day, and Boxing Day). See

Federal holiday

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24

R

rad

different or interesting, exceptional; synonym for cool

raincheck

The metaphorical raincheck is used in the US to indicate that the person "taking the

raincheck" regretfully cannot accept the current invitation but would like to be

invited to a future event. In the UK the person "taking the raincheck" may attend an

event, but is warning the host that there is a possibility that they may not be able to

make it. Both usages are becoming more common in UK English, particularly

amongst office workers.

raised pavement marker

commonly called reflector, Botts' dot or cat's eye (UK:

cat's eye

)

rappel

to descend on a rope (UK:

abseil

)

Realtor (trademark)

member of the

National Association of Realtors

; as a

genericized trademark

, any

real

estate broker

or real estate agent (UK:

estate agent

)

recision

a cancellation ("This bill would authorize the recision of the adult day health care

license"). Now rare in the UK; a different word from rescission

roil

to render muddy by stirring up the dregs of; as, to roil wine, cider, etc., in casks or

bottles; to roil a spring; also, to disquiet or disturb (also rile in the sense of "to

anger", riled up for "angry")

roustabout

an unskilled laborer, especially at an oil field, at a circus, or on a ship

rowhouse

(UK: terraced house)

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Rube Goldberg

Absurdly complex machine (see

Heath Robinson

).

rutabaga

the

turnip

Brassica napus napobrassica (UK: swede)

RV (

recreational vehicle

)

see article for usage of the terms RV, motor home, and the British camper [DM] and

caravan [DM]

RV park

(UK: caravan site or less usually caravan park)

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26

S

Saran wrap

(Saran is a trademark)

plastic wrap

(UK:

cling film

)

sawbuck

sawhorse; also a ten dollar bill

scads

great amounts of something

scallion

*

also used in Ireland; also known as spring onion in Great Britain and the US

scuttlebutt

gossip, rumor; originally meant water fountain (UK: rumour)

sedan

automobile

(UK: saloon)

self-rising flour

self-raising flour

shill

*

A shill is a person who is supposed to appear like a member of the general public

who usually attempts to lend credibility or excitement to a confidence scheme e.g. a

person who claims to have received benefit from snake oil. Recently popularized by

eBay

("shill bidding" or bidding to drum up excitement with no intention of buying).

The UK equivalent to a shill would be a "plant", from having someone "planted" in

an audience or amongst bystanders. The term "plant" is equally used and

understood in the United States.

shuck

the husk of an ear of

corn(maize)

, an oyster shell, etc.; used in plural to mean

something worthless or as an interjection ("shucks!"); (verb) to remove the shuck;

also, to discard, get rid of, remove ("I shucked my coat")

Shyster

A lawyer or accountant of dubious ethical standards. This phrase commonly

indicates a person with no ethical restraints. (From German Scheister)

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27

sidewalk

usually paved path for

pedestrian

traffic

, often constructed of

paving slabs

(either of

concrete or less usually of stone) (UK: pavement [DM], footpath [DM]). A sidewalk

superintendent is someone spectating a construction or demolition job - UK:

bystander (but no specific term)

skim milk

(UK: skimmed milk)

s'more

A camp fire treat consisting of a roasted marshmallow and a slab of chocolate

sandwiched between two pieces of graham cracker.

sneaker

(usually pl.) a form of

footwear

, also called tennis shoe or "gym shoe"—see

regional

vocabularies of American English

(UK: trainer, plimsoll, regional dap,pump, [DM])

soda fountain

(see article)

sophomore

a second-year college or high school student (

Trinity College Dublin

has sophister in

this sense); (adj.) the second in a series (as in, an athlete's "sophomore season", a

band's "sophomore album") From the Greek: Sophos - Wise; and Moros - Fool,

Moron (UK:

undergraduate

has this extended sense)

specialty *

(UK: speciality, though specialty is used in law and medicine)

spyglass

a

telescope

or set of lenses used to observe subjects at distance

(Once common in UK usage, but now only in dialect.)

station wagon

automobile with extended rear cargo area (UK: estate (car))

steam shovel

a large mechanical excavator (UK:digger or

JCB

)

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28

stickshift, stick

(car with)

manual transmission

, as opposed to an

automatic

(UK: gear stick or gear

lever for the stick; manual for the car)

strep throat

a sore throat caused by

Streptococcus

stool pigeon, stoolie

police informer (UK: grasser) (From the use of captive birds as hunting decoys)

streetcar

vehicle on rails for passenger transportation [DM] usually within a city; also called

trolley [DM] or trolley car if electrically powered by means of a trolley (UK:

tram

)

stroller

vehicle for

baby transportation

featuring the child in a sitting position, usually facing

forward (UK: pushchair, buggy [DM])

SUV

*

Sport-Utility Vehicle. Often referred to as a 4x4 ("four by four") in the UK; in the US

"4x4" usually refers to a

four wheel drive

pickup truck

.

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29

T

taffy

a type of chewy candy; see

taffy (candy)

tailpipe

exhaust pipe

takeout

(UK: takeaway; Scotland & US also: carry-out)

teeter(-totter), teeterboard

a seesaw

telecast

to broadcast by television

teleprompter

(see article) (UK: compare

autocue

)

thru

Through. An abbreviation mostly used in the fast food industry, as in Drive Thru. Also

used in traffic signs ("Thru Traffic Keep Left", i.e. traffic that is continuing through an

interchange rather than exiting should keep to the left) and occasionally road names

("New York State Thruway") and sometimes in newspaper headlines. Generally not

considered acceptable spelling in other contexts.

thumbtack

short nail or pin with a large, rounded metal head (UK: drawing pin)

track and field *

(UK usually

athletics

[DM]); see also track [DM]

trackless trolley

a

trolleybus

; see trolley in [DM]

trashcan

(UK: dustbin rubbish bin)

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30

trunk

rear storage compartment of a sedan automobile (UK: boot)

turnpike

(see article)

turn signal

direction-indicator lights (US also directionals; UK usually indicators or flashers[DM];

US and UK also blinkers [DM])

two-bits

literally, worth 25 cents or a

quarter

(a bit is an eighth of a dollar); figuratively,

worth very little, insignificant (informal). In UK the phrase

two bob

exists although

this far more common in London and the south-east. Likewise

mickey mouse

.

two cents, two cents' worth

an opinion, a piece of one's mind (as in, "I'm gonna go down there and give him my

two cents") - (UK similar: two pence, two penneth, two penn'orth or tuppence worth)

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31

U

undershirt

an upper undergarment with no collar, and with short or no sleeves, worn next to

the skin under a shirt (UK: singlet, vest [DM], semmit in Scotland and Northern

Ireland

[1]

)

upscale

relating to goods targeted at high-income consumers; upmarket

uptown

(noun, adj., adv.) (in, to, toward, or related to) either the upper section or the

residential district of a city; e.g. in

Manhattan

,

New York City

the term refers to the

northern end of Manhattan, generally speaking, north of 59th Street; see also

Uptown, Minneapolis

;

Uptown, Chicago

;

Uptown New Orleans

; compare downtown.

Often has implications of being a desirable or upscale neighborhood. However, in

Butte, Montana

and

Charlotte, North Carolina

,

"Uptown"

refers to what would be

called "downtown" in most other cities.

V

vacationer

someone taking a vacation [DM] (UK: holidaymaker)

vacay

informal shortening of vacation (comparable to UK hols)

variety meats

offal

varmint

(from vermin) pest which raids farms, rather than infesting them

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32

W

washcloth

(UK: flannel, UK often & US less frequently facecloth; US less frequently also

washrag)

washrag

See washcloth.

wastebasket

synonym for trash can (UK: dustbin; wastepaper basket is an interior object for

waste from each room.)

weatherization

weatherproofing of buildings

windshield

the front window of an automobile (UK: windscreen)

winningest

Most winning; (sports) having the most wins

wiseguy

a mobster; also smartass ("alright, wiseguy...")

woodsy

abundant in trees, suggestive of

woods

; woody, wooded

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33

Y

Y'all

(regional —

Southern American

,

African-American

, and

Appalachian

) contraction of

You all, used as second-person dual or plural pronoun. Also all y'all, comparable in

meaning and register to north-English and Scottish "youse, yous".

yellow light

as in the color at a stoplight (q.v.) or traffic lights. In the UK, this is referred to as an

amber

light (though railway signals are a different shade, and are referred to as

yellow, not amber). In the UK, the red and amber light together immediately in

advance of the green (giving a light sequence of 1.red, 2.red and amber (together),

3.green, 4.amber (alone), 5.red).

Yinz

, yunz, you'uns

(Western Pennsylvania, especially

Pittsburgh

) plural you; derived from you ones

Z

zinger

a witty, often caustic remark; something supposed to cause surprise or shock

ZIP code

(for Zone Improvement Plan) the

postal code

used by the

United States Postal

Service

composed of 5 digits as in

90210

, sometimes a

suffix

of 4 digits after a

hyphen

is used. (UK equivalent:

postcode

or

post code

or rarely

postal code

)

zipper

*

(UK usually zip [DM])

zucchini

the plant Cucurbita pepo, also zucchini squash. (UK: courgette)

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34

2-list of

British words

not widely used in the

United States

.

•

Words with specific British English meanings that have different meanings in
American and/or additional meanings common to both languages (eg pants, cot) are
to be found at

List of words having different meanings in American and British

English

. When such words are herein used or referenced, they are marked with the

flag [DM] (different meaning).

•

Asterisks (*) denote words and meanings having appreciable (that is, not occasional)
currency in American, but nonetheless notable for their relatively greater frequency
in British speech and writing.

•

British English spelling is consistently used throughout the article, except when
explicitly referencing American terms.

A

abseil

to descend on a rope (US: rappel). From German abseilen

accountancy

calculating and tracking financial matters (US: accounting).

In the UK accounting is the school subject, but accountancy is the professional

qualification.

advert

advertisement (US and UK also: ad,

classified ad

, commercial).

agony aunt

the author of an agony column – a magazine or newspaper column advising on

readers' personal problems. The image presented was originally that of an older

woman providing comforting advice and maternal wisdom, hence the name "aunt".

Better known to most Americans as a "

Dear Abby

" column or

advice column

.

Similarly,

agony uncle

.

aggro

aggressive or confrontational behaviour, extreme irritation or exasperation.

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35

alight

to descend from a car, train, or bus. (US: deboard).

answerphone

(originally from trademark

Ansafone

) automated telephone answering device (US

and UK also: answering machine).

anti-clockwise

direction opposite to clockwise (US:

counterclockwise

).

approved school

school for juvenile delinquents; reform school. Note that such institutions have not

been referred to officially as "approved schools" since 1969. Juvenile delinquents,

depending on their level of malfeasance, are now sent to PRUs (Pupil Referral Units)

or YOIs (Young Offender Institutions – a correctional facility for juvenile

delinquents). (US: juvenile detention center, juvenile hall, (slang) juvie.)

Argie

(pejorative) an

Argentine

.

argy-bargy

(informal) pushing-and-shoving or outright fighting.

arse

*

(vulgar; UK and Canada)

buttocks

(US equivalent: ass), backside or

anus

, depending

on context; to be arsed: to be bothered to do something, most commonly as a

negative or conditional (e.g. I can't be arsed, if/when I can be arsed). Sometimes

used in the US but only as a noun.

[to fall] arse over tit

(vulgar, alternatively arse over tit/tip) [to fall] head over heels. (US: ass over tea

kettle).

artic (lorry)

(abbreviation of 'articulated lorry') (US: semi,

semi-trailer truck

, tractor-trailer)

ashet

(Scottish) a deep plate or dish.

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36

aubergine

a

solanaceous

plant bearing a fruit of the same name, commonly used as a

vegetable

in cooking (US:

eggplant

).

autocue

a prompting system for television announcers (

genericised trademark

, after a

leading manufacturer) (US:

teleprompter

).

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37

B

Batty

London West Indian term for an

arse

or a

homosexual

, e.g. "Batty Boy". The word

"botty", used by children to refer to the backside, is pronounced "batty" in the West

Indian accent.

balls-up

(vulgar) error, mistake, (see Cock-up)

SNAFU

bang to rights

(slang) in the act of committing an offence, red-handed (US: dead to rights)

banger

(1) a sausage (from the tendency of sausages to burst during frying), (2) a

firework

,

(3) an old car (allusion to their tendency to

backfire

)

banksman

(not widespread) person in charge of vehicle movements at a construction site or on

a bus/taxi stand (US: dispatcher)

bap

soft bread roll or a sandwich made from it; in plural, breasts (vulgar slang)

barmaid *, barman

a woman or man who serves drinks in a bar. Barman and the originally American

bartender

appeared within a year of each other (1837 and 1836); barmaid is almost

two centuries older (circa 1658).

barmcake

see bap (mostly used in the north of England)

barney

a fight or argument.

barrister

*

(UK, Canada) a type of lawyer (one qualified to give specialist legal advice and argue

a case in both higher and lower law courts). Sometimes used in US with pejorative

connotations.

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38

beck

small watercourse; stream; creek (regional, especially

Yorkshire

and the

Lake

District

)

bedsit (or bedsitter)

one-room apartment that serves as a bedroom and a living room (US: see

SRO

;

compare

studio apartment

,

efficiency (apartment)

)

Belisha beacon

orange ball containing a flashing light mounted on a post at each end of a

zebra

crossing

(qv); named after the UK Minister of Transport who introduced them in

1934.

berk

a mildly derogatory term for a silly person. The word is an abbreviation of either

'

Berkshire

Hunt' or '

Berkeley Hunt

' (it is uncertain which is the original phrase),

cockney rhyming slang

for

cunt

. (Note that 'berk' rhymes with 'work', whereas the

first syllable of both 'Berkshire' and 'Berkeley' is pronounced 'bark'.)

bimble

to wander aimlessly or stroll/walk without urgency to a destination.

bint

a derogatory term for a woman. Usage varies with a range of harshness from 'bitch',

referring to a disagreeable and domineering woman, to only a slightly derogatory

term for a young woman (from the Arabic for a girl).

biro

a

ballpoint pen

. Named after its Hungarian inventor

Laszlo Biro

(

IPA

:

/ˈbaɪroʊ/

)

bish bash bosh

emphatic way of stating that something is simple, and will be/has been easy to do.

black pudding

(US. Blood Sausage)

blag

(slang) to obtain or achieve by deception, to bluff, to scrounge, to rob, robbery, tall

story, bluff, deception

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39

blimey

(informal) an exclamation of surprise. (Originally gor blimey, a euphemism for God

blind me, but has generally lost this connotation.)

bloke

(informal) man, fellow

bloody hell

(informal, mildly vulgar) oh my God, what the hell; essentially a weaker version of

"fucking hell".

blues and twos

(slang, uncommon) emergency vehicle with lights and sirens (emergency services in

the UK generally use blue flashing lights and a two-tone siren) (US: lights and sirens)

boardies

long shorts used for surfing or beachwear (US and UK also: board shorts or

swimming trunks)

bobby

police officer, named after Sir

Robert Peel

, the instigator of the world's first

organised police force

Bob's your uncle

"there you go", "it's that simple".

[1]

Also used to signify that no further explanation

for the situation being described will be forthcoming. Sometimes extended to

"Robert's your mother's brother" for emphasis. It derives from the name of a British

Prime Minister

Arthur Balfour

, whose uncle

Lord Salisbury

(given name Robert), had

been his political mentor and also prime minister.

bobbins

something of low quality or (more commonly) someone who lacks ability at

something, (e.g."Our new striker is bobbins")

bodge

a poor job (repair) that just about works. See

Bodger

.

boffin

scientist or engineer, geek, nerd, sometimes abbreviated to boff

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40

bog roll

(roll of) toilet paper (slang)

bog-standard

completely ordinary, run-of-the-mill, unadulterated, unmodified

boiled sweet

type of confection (US: hard candy)

bollocks

(vulgar; originally ballocks, colloquially also spelled as bollox) testicles; verbal

rubbish (as in "you're talking bollocks") (US:

bullshit

). The somewhat similar bollix is

found in American English, but without the anatomical connotations or vulgar sense

meaning 'mess up'. The twin pulley blocks at the top of a ship's mast are also known

as bollocks, and in the 18th century

priests

'

sermons

were colloquially referred to as

bollocks; it was by claiming this last usage that the

Sex Pistols

prevented

their album

Never Mind the Bollocks from being banned under British obscenity laws. Related

phrases include bollocksed, which means either tired ("I'm bollocksed!") or broken

beyond repair; bollocks up, meaning to mess up ("He really bollocksed that up"); and

[a] bollocking, meaning a stern telling off.

The dog's bollocks is a fairly common phrase used in British English, although this

has the opposite meaning – something described as "The dog's bollocks" or

sometimes even just "The bollocks" is something considered to be very good. In

mixed company this phrase may be toned down to "The mutt's nuts", or the phrase

"The bee's knees" may be used as a polite substitute. The etmyology of this

expression is said by some to derive from

printers

' slang for the

punctuation

symbol

':-' when printing involved the use of carved metal blocks to form

typesetting

.

[

clarification needed

]

bonce

(informal) person's head (mainly used in London and the South East, though said in

the North too)

bone-idle

lazy

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41

brass-monkeys

cold – from "cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey". This phrase is often

said to derive from cannonballs stowed on a brass triangle named after a "powder

monkey" (a boy who runs gunpowder to the ship's guns) spilling due to the frame's

contraction in cold weather. However this is doubtful since these were wooden

(possibly for this reason) and its more obviously vulgar derivation may be the correct

one.

bristols

(vulgar,

Cockney rhyming slang

) breasts; from football team

Bristol City

= titty

brolly

(informal) umbrella

bubble and squeak

dish of cooked cabbage fried with cooked potatoes and other vegetables. Often

made from the remains of the Sunday roast trimmings. (Irish:

colcannon

)

bugger-all

little or nothing at all; "I asked for a pay rise and they gave me bugger-all"; "I know

bugger-all about plants"; damn it all. US: zip, jack or (offensive) jack shit; US and UK

also (offensive) fuck-all.

building society

an institution that provides mortgage loans and other financial services (US

equivalent:

savings and loan association

)

bum bag

a bag worn on a strap around the waist (US: fanny [DM] pack)

bumf, bumph

useless paperwork or documentation; from "bum fodder"

toilet paper

)

bureau de change

an office where money can be exchanged (US: currency exchange)

burgle *

(originally colloquial, back-formation from burglar) to commit

burglary

(in the US,

burglarize is overwhelmingly preferred, although burgle is occasionally found).

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42

busk

1: * to play live music, perform or otherwise entertain in a public place, usually in

the hope of receiving small monetary contributions from spectators and passersby.

American English has no exact equivalent, but a busker is a "street musician" or

"street performer". Gradually, "busk" (v) and "busker/

busking

" (n) are becoming

increasingly common in US English usage, at least among professional musicians.

2: used to imply rapid improvisation in a working environment, for example: "we'll

have to busk it" (we'll have to make it up as we go along). The latter meaning comes

from the former, specifically from the concept of performing without sheet music or

script.

butty

(North England colloquialism, also understood in the south) a buttered sandwich,

often with chips [DM] (

chip butty

)

(Northern and Central England) a workmate, and thus an unpowered barge towed

by a powered one, such as a

narrowboat

(Welsh English colloquialism) friend, similar to usage of word mate (usually "butt").

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43

C

cach

commonly used in Scotland (from the Gaelic word for fæces), See cack below.

cack

(slang) faeces (feces); nonsense or rubbish: "what a load of cack" could equally be

used to describe someone talking nonsense or as a criticism of something of poor

quality. Also spelt "kak". Derived from an ancient Indo-European word, kakkos,

cognate with German word

Kacke

; US: crap, caca. See also kaka one's grits below

cack-handed

(informal) clumsy; left-handed. Derived from cack, meaning "fæces (feces)", with

reference to the Quranic rules that only the left hand should be used for cleaning

the 'unclean' part of the human body (i.e. below the waist). (US: butterfingers)

cafetière

device for making coffee (US:

French press

)

cagoule

type of lightweight hooded waterproof clothing

call box, phone box

public phone (US and UK also: payphone)

call minder

(rare) telephone message recorder (US and UK also: answering machine; voicemail

machine)

candidature

synonymous with

candidacy

candy floss

spun sugar confection (UK, Canada) (US:

cotton candy

; Australian English: fairy floss).

Otherwise, "candy" is a not a broadly used term, though it would be understood if

used in an American context. ("eye candy" is used)

canny

(primarily used in northern England, Scotland, Ireland), wise, able to see the best

course of action (e.g., "he's a canny lad") or very, as in "it is canny big"

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44

caravan park

area where caravans are parked (US:

Trailer park

for near-permanently-installed

mobile homes, or RV park for areas intended for short term recreational vehicle

parking. Trailer parks are typically low-income permanent residencies; RV parks are

a holiday destination.)

car hire

car rental

car park

area where cars are parked (US usually

parking lot

if outdoor,

parking garage

if

indoor).

carriageway

the part of a road that carries the traffic; see also s.v. dual carriageway (US and UK

also: lane)

carrier rocket

a rocket used to place a satellite in orbit (rare, US: "

launch vehicle

" generally used in

both).

cash machine, cashpoint

automated teller machine

. ("Cashpoint", strictly speaking, refers only to the ATMs of

Lloyds TSB

, although the term has become generic.)

cats eye

reflector used to mark lane divisions and edges of roads, also written cat's-eye,

genericised from the trademark Catseye (US:

raised pavement marker

; Botts' Dots

are similar)

central heating boiler

(US:

furnace

)

central reservation

division between carriageways of a road (US:

median strip

)

chamber pot

porcelain receptacle kept under the bed

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45

chancer

(slang) an opportunist

char, cha

(informal)

tea

. From the Chinese,

chá

.

char

(informal) short for charwoman or charlady, a domestic cleaner

Chartered Accountant

(UK, Canada) one authorised to certify financial statements (US: Certified Public

Accountant)

char-wallah

a usually South Asian servant whose role is to provide freshly brewed tea on

demand. From Urdu chai, tea, and -wallah, -man.

charwoman

(dated) a woman employed as a cleaner, especially as an office cleaner

chav

(slang, often derogatory) typically a

working class

person of lowish intelligence who

wears designer label (eg Burberry) copies, fake gold

bling

, and is a trouble-maker.

"Chav" is used nationally, though "charv" or "charva" was originally used in the

northeast of England, deriving from the

Roma

word charva, meaning disreputable

youth. The closest US equivalents to the chav stereotype are arguably

wiggers

,

although the cultural differences are vast.

cheeky

(UK, Canada) impertinent; noun form, cheek, impertinence; a child answering back

to an adult might be told "don't give me any of your cheek".

chimney pot

smoke-stack atop a house. But refers to the cylindrical topmost part. The part below

is the chimney or chimney stack.

chinagraph pencil

pencil designed to write on china, glass etc. (US: grease pencil, china marker)

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46

chip shop

(informal)

fish-and-chip

shop (Scot, Ire: chipper), also chippy (see also

List of words

having different meanings in British and American English

)

chinwag

(slang) chat

choong

(slang) attractive person - usually referring to a female. Used mostly in a urban

youth/

chav

setting.

chuffed

(informal, becoming somewhat archaic, originally

Liverpudlian

) proud, satisfied,

pleased. Sometimes intensified as well chuffed; cf. made up

chunter *

(sometimes chunner) to mutter, to grumble, to talk continuously; "What's he

chuntering on about?"

clanger

(informal) a big mistake, blunder, bad joke or faux pas ('to drop a clanger')

clapped out

(informal) worn out (said of an object)

cleg

horse fly

clingfilm

thin plastic film for wrapping food (US:

plastic wrap

,

Saran wrap

)

cob

a bread roll of any kind in the West Midlands and East Midlands

cobblers

shoemakers; (slang) a weaker version of bollocks, meaning 'nonsense' (often "a load

of old cobblers"), from rhyming slang 'cobbler's awls' = balls

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47

cock/cockle

(informal) affectionate term used in Northern England, London and elsewhere,

similar to love or darling. "Are you alright, cock?" Use in this sense is limited as

"cock" is generally understood to mean "penis".

cock-up, cockup

(mildly vulgar) error, mistake

codswallop, cod's wallop

(becoming old-fashioned) similar to bollocks but less rude, "You're talking

codswallop" (US: You're talking trash)

compère

master of ceremonies, MC

compulsory purchase

the power of the governmental authority to take private property for public use

(similar to US:

eminent domain

)

conservatoire

music school

(US usually conservatory)

cool box

box for keeping food and liquids cool (US and UK also: cooler)

cop off with

(slang) to successfully engage the company of a potential sexual partner, to "pull"; to

copulate (have sexual intercourse) with.

Cor Blimey

see Gor Blimey

cotton bud

wad of cotton wool fixed to a small stick, used for cleaning (US: cotton swab, Q-Tip)

cotton wool

Spun cotton, used for cleaning wounds or make-up (US: Absorbent cotton, cotton

ball)

council house/flat , also council housing or estate

public housing. (US: projects)

[e-mail]

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counterfoil *

stub of a cheque, ticket etc.

courgette

the plant Cucurbita pepo (US:

zucchini

)

cowl

a

wind deflector

fitted to a chimney top.

craic

joking talk among lads, common over cards or pints. Pronounced "crack." Irish

usage.

crikey

(becoming old-fashioned) exclamation of surprise (once a euphemism for Christ's

keys or perhaps Christ Kill Me)

crisps

very thinly sliced fried potatoes, often flavoured, eaten cold as a snack (US: potato

chips)

crotchet

a musical note with a duration of one count in a time signature of 2/4 (US: quarter

note; see

Note value

)

cuddly toy

soft toy

(sometimes used in the US; also stuffed animal, plush toy)

current account

personal bank account used for everyday transactions (US:

checking account

)

curriculum vitae

a document summarising occupational experience used to obtain a job, often

abbreviated CV (US:

resume

)

curry

a meal flavoured with curry spice (in the US, it usually refers to only the spice itself)

[e-mail]

49

D

daft *

odd, mad, eccentric, crazy – often with the implication of it being amusingly so.

"Don't be daft" and "don't be silly" are approximately synonymous.

dekko

(informal) a look, reconnoître "I'll take a dekko at it later." –

British

military

slang

derived from the

Hindustani

dhek/dekho meaning "to see". Also less commonly

decco, deccie,deek, deeks.

dene

wooded valley or seaside dune

div, divvy

(slang) a fool or idiot; adjective form, divvy, foolish or idiotic.

dodgems

fun-fair or fairground bumper cars

dodgy

unsound, unstable, and unreliable

dogsbody *

someone who carries out menial tasks; a drudge

the dog's bollocks

(vulgar) something excellent or top quality, the "bee's knees" (the business), the

"cat's whiskers". Nowadays is becoming "mutt's nuts".

dole *

(informal) welfare, specifically

unemployment benefit

. Sometimes used in the US,

esp. older generation

dosh

(slang) money (US: dough) "how much dosh you got on ya?"

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50

doss

(from docile) to be lazy, "I've been dossing all day", also can mean to truant,

"dossing off" (similar to bunking off). Also "dosser", a lazy person, or a tramp (US

bum); "to doss down", to find a place to sleep, to sleep on some substitute for a bed

such as a sofa, the floor, or a park bench; "doss-house", temporary accommodation

for tramps or homeless people, cheap dilapidated rented accommodation with low

standards of cleanliness.

double first

an

undergraduate degree

where the candidate has gained First-Class Honours in two

separate subjects, or alternatively in the same subject in subsequent examinations

(see

British undergraduate degree classification

)

double parked *

(slang) having two drinks in your hand at once (US: double fisting). Could also mean,

or even originate, from the term 'double park'; which involves parking a vehicle to

the side of another parked vehicle.

draper

a dealer in drapery (i.e. clothing, textiles, etc.) (US: dry goods [DM])

draughts

the board game (US: checkers)

drawing pin *

pin with a large, flat head, used for fixing notices to noticeboards etc. (US:

thumbtack)

dress circle

the seats in the first balcony of a theatre (US: balcony or loge although dress circle is

used in a few very large opera houses that have many levels of balconies)

drink driving

operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol (US: drunk driving; dui; dwi)

driving licence

document authorising the holder to drive a vehicle (US: driver's license, driver

license)

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51

dual carriageway

major road with some physical barrier or separation between the lanes going in

opposite directions (US: divided highway)

dustbin

(sometimes used in the US) receptacle for rubbish, very often shortened to simply

'bin'. (US: trash can; wastebasket)

dustbin man

rubbish collector (US: garbage man; trash man; sanitation engineer)

[e-mail]

52

E

Elastoplast

an adhesive bandage placed on a minor cut or scrape (UK also: sticking/sticky plaster

[DM]; US:

Band-Aid

)

electric fire

domestic electric heater (US: space heater)

engaged tone

tone indicating a telephone line in use, (US: busy signal)

estate agent *

a person who sells property for others (US: realtor)

estate car

a

station wagon

ex-directory

(of a telephone number) unlisted; also informally of a person "he's ex-directory",

meaning his telephone number is unlisted

extension lead

mains extension cable, (US and UK also: extension cord)

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53

F

faff

to dither, futz, diddle, “I spent the day faffing about in my room”. Also related noun

("That's too much faff")

fairing

a gift, particularly one given or bought at a fair (obsolete); type of cookie (biscuit)

made in

Cornwall

fairy cake

a small sponge cake (US and UK also:

cupcake

)

fairy lights

Christmas lights

face flannel

a facecloth

fancy dress

a costume worn to impersonate a well-known character, animal etc., typically at a

fancy dress party (US:

costume party

)

feck

(vulgar) mild expletive employed as an attenuated alternative to

fuck

(including

fecker, fecking, etc.) (originally

Hiberno English

)Note that British people tend to

incorrectly perceive the word to be vulgar, whereas in hiberno English it is not

fettle

(uncommon except in dialect) state of something, as in "My business is in fine

fettle"; to fettle (dialect word) : to sort out, fix (e.g. "that's fettled it") : to adjust with

the intention of fixing (e.g. "He's got his head under the

bonnet

fettling the engine").

Previously referred to making final adjustments to parts of assemblies before

installation, before close-tolerance manufacturing processes made this practice

obsolete.

fiddly *

requiring dexterity to operate ("the buttons on the tiny mobile phone were too

fiddly")

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fittie

(slang) one who is sexually attractive (US: hottie)

fiver

five pounds

fiz, fizog, fizzog

(dated slang, now uncommon) face, also spelled phiz etc. (from physiognomy)

fizzy drink *

carbonated

soft drink

(US: soda, pop, coke

depending on the region

)

footie

(slang) football (US: soccer)

fortnight

*

a period of 14 days (and nights) or two weeks

fourpenn'orth

(old-fashioned) four pence worth (fourpenn'orth is literally "four pennies' worth")

french letter

(slang) condom

[1]

funfair

a travelling fair with amusements, stalls, rides etc. (US: carnival; in the UK

"amusement park" refers to a larger and more permanent establishment)

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55

G

gaff

(dated

Cockney

slang) cheap music hall, theatre, pub, club, shop, hangout; home

gaffer *

(informal) old man; (informal) boss; football manager (US: soccer coach); Also in US:

(professional) chief electrician on a theatrical or film set.

gaffer tape

*

strong, woven, cloth adhesive tape, originally sourced from the

gaffer

on a film set.

(US:

gaffers tape

, gaff tape,

duct tape

)

gangway *

a path between the rows of seats in a theatre (US aisle; gangway is a naval

command to make a path for an officer))

gearbox

system of

gears

in a vehicle or other machinery (US transmission)

gear-lever / gearstick

handle for changing

gears

in a vehicle or other machinery (US gear shifter)

gen

(informal) information, info (short for "intelligence") (US: intel)

get off with *

to engage in passionate kissing and fondling - does not usually imply sexual

intercourse. (US: make out)

Ginger

(becoming dated) In the west of Scotland, refers to any kind of fizzy juice. (dated

Cockney rhyming slang

) homosexual, short for Ginger Beer, rhymes with "queer"

(somewhat known in US due to use by radio personality and rock musician

Steve

Jones

)

git

(mildly derogatory) scumbag, idiot, annoying person (originally meaning illegitimate;

from archaic form "get", bastard, which is still used to mean "git" in Northern

dialects)

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gobsmacked

(slang) utterly astonished, openmouthed

go pear-shaped

see pear-shaped

googled

confused (from a cricketing term for a type of delivery bowled, the googly; predates

Google

)

Gor Blimey

exclamation of surprise, also Cor Blimey (originally from "God blind me")

gormless

lacking in intelligence; with a vacant expression

go-slow

a protest in which workers deliberately work slowly (US: slowdown or work to rule)

grotty

disgusting, dirty (originally from grotesque, though now rarely used with quite that

meaning). In a scene from the 1964 film

A Hard Day's Night

, George Harrison has to

explain the meaning and origin of the word; the impression is given that it was then

considered modern slang, known only to trendy youngsters (this is no longer the

case).

[2]

green fingers

talent for growing plants (US: green thumb)

greengrocer

a retail trader in fruit and vegetables

greengrocery

a greengrocer's profession, premises or produce

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guitar lead

high impedance coaxial guitar cable (US guitar cord)

gurn/girn

(colloquial) To pull a face; grimace deliberately (England) The face pulled when one

is about to climax during sexual intercourse (Yorkshire); to cry/weep (Scotland,

Northern Ireland).

gutties

running shoes, tennis shoes, maybe from "gutta percha" old source of natural

rubber

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58

H

hand brake

Parking brake operated by a hand control, usually a lever (US: Emergency brake);

handbrake turn, a stunt where the handbrake is used to lock the rear wheels and the

resulting oversteer enables the car to be turned rapidly in a small space.

ha'penny

(pronounced "HAY-penny" or "HAYP-nee") half a penny; a coin of this denomination,

no longer in circulation

hash sign

the symbol "#" (US:

number sign

, pound sign [DM])

haver

(Scottish) talk nonsense or babble

headmaster, headmistress, headteacher *

the person in charge of an educational institution (US: principal [DM]; headmaster

and the like are usually used for private schools)

Heath Robinson

(of a machine or contraption) absurdly complex (see

Rube Goldberg machine

).

hey up

(informal greeting) ( often pronounced: AY up) how's it going?

high street

primary business and shopping street (US:

main street

)

higgledy-piggledy

in disarray

hire purchase

a credit system by which debts for purchased articles are paid in installments (US:

installment plan or layaway if the item is kept at the store until the final payment is

made)

hob

the hot surface on a stove (US: burner)

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holidaymaker

person on holiday [DM] (US: vacationer)

hols

(informal) short for holidays [DM]

home and away

fixtures played at alternating venues (US: home and home). Also 'first and second

leg' (US series).

hoover

vacuum [cleaner], to vacuum (archaic in the US) (

genericised trademark

, from

The

Hoover Company

, the first main manufacturer of vacuum cleaners)

hot up

to become more exciting or intimate (US: heating up)

how do, 'ow do

terse greeting in the north of England, shortened from formal 'How do you do?'

hundreds-and-thousands

coloured sugar sprinkles used for dessert decoration (US: sprinkles,non-pareils,

jimmies)

[e-mail]

60

I

ice lolly

frozen fruit juice on a stick; ice pop (US:

Popsicle

),

iced water

water in an iced state

icing sugar

(UK, Canada) (US: powdered sugar)

industrial action

(see article; US: job action)

inverted commas

quotation marks

(see also

American and British English differences – Punctuation

)

invigilator

person who monitors an examination (US: proctor [DM])

ironmongery

ironware, hardware; hardware store

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61

J

jacket potato

baked potato

jam sandwich

(slang) police car. So called as, in the past, most UK police vehicles were white with a

horizontal yellow-edged red fluorescent stripe along the entire length of their sides,

giving a certain resemblance to a white bread sandwich with a coloured jam (jelly)

filling. (US: black-and-white. In many cities of the US, police cars are painted black at

the hood and trunk and white on the doors and roof.)

jammy (git)

(slang) lucky (person)

jemmy

To break into a lock (US: jimmy)

jerry

(slang) pejorative term for a German or Germans, (US and sometimes Canada:

Kraut

)

jimmy

(

Rhyming slang

) urinate, as in jimmy riddle - piddle

jitty

An alley way connecting two streets.

jobsworth

(slang) Originally a minor clerical/government worker who refuses to be flexible in

the application of rules to help clients or customers (as in "it will cost me more than

my job's worth to bend the rules"). Also used more broadly to apply to anyone who

uses their job description in a deliberately obstructive way. (US: see

DMV

)

johnny

(slang) a condom (US:

rubber

)

John Thomas

(slang) To engage in sexual intercourse. Better known as slang for penis or "dick"

(US: cock, dick, or johnson)

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62

Joey

Term of abuse used of someone perceived to be foolish, stupid, incompetent,

clumsy, uncoordinated, ridiculous, idiotic. Originated with the ill-considered decision

of children's TV programme

Blue Peter

to feature cerebral palsy sufferer

Joey

Deacon

on several programmes; still a popular insult among adults who saw the

programmes as children.

[2]

jumble sale

(see article; US: rummage sale)

jumper

a pullover sweater

jump leads

booster cables used to jump-start a car (US: jumper cables)

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K

kaka one's grits

(not in widespread use) to soil one's pants

Karno's Army

a chaotic, ineffective team (usually: Fred Karno's Army)

kappa-slappa

(derogatory slang)

promiscuous

lower-class female, similar to "

kev

" or "

chav

" (from

Kappa

, a clothing brand supposedly worn by such women, and slapper, a slovenly,

sluttish woman)

kecks

(informal) trousers or underpants

keep fit costume

exercise, dance or training suit

ken

to know (Scotland and northern England) - also used to refer to one's specific range

of knowledge (e.g. "beyond my ken"), ; can also mean "house" (e.g.: our ken = our

house)

kerfuffle

a disorderly outburst, disturbance or tumult, from Scottish origin (UK, Canada)

kev

(slang) Derivative of "Kevin", has become equivalent to "chav" - typically a working

class person that wears designer labels, fake gold, has to always be "in", is most

likely a troublemaker and most likely smokes. Its use to describe the majority

troublesome teenage subculture predates the use of "chav"; the British comedian

Harry Enfield

based one of his characters on this use.

khazi

(slang) lavatory (numerous alternative spellings are seen, such as karzy, karsey,

carzey etc.)

kip

(informal) sleep (US and UK: nap)

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64

kitchen roll

paper towels

knackered

(slang) exhausted, originally 'sexually exhausted', perhaps derived from knacker's

yard

knackers

(colloquial) testicles ( e.g., "Ouch, she kicked me right in the knackers")

knacker's yard

premises where superannuated livestock are sent for rendering, etc. (glue factory).

Sometimes refers to the same for vehicles, a scrapyard (US: junkyard)

knickers

girl's and women's underpants (US: panties)

[e-mail]

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L

ladybird

red and black flying insect (US:

Ladybug

)

launderette

self-service laundry (US:

Laundromat

)

lav

also, lavy (informal, increasingly uncommon) lavatory, toilet (in the US, airplane

restrooms are typically called lavatories)

legacy accounts

funds left in a budget (US: funds remaining)

let-out (n.)

a means of evading or avoiding something

letter box

1. a slot in a wall or door through which incoming

post

[DM] is delivered (US: mail

slot,

mailbox

)

2. (less common) a box in the street for receiving outgoing letters and other mail

(more usually called a

postbox

or

pillar box

) (US:

mailbox

)

See also

Letterbox

(US & UK): a film display format taking its name from the shape of

a letter-box slot

loch

,

lough

Scottish

and

Irish Gaelic

word for lake or narrow sea inlet. Loch primarily used in

Scotland, as in "

Loch Ness

", Lough primarily used in Ireland, as in "

Lough Neagh

"

lock-in *

illegal gathering in a pub at night to drink after the pub is supposed to have stopped

serving alcohol, where the landlord "locks in" his guests to avoid being caught by

police. Unless the landlord charges for the drinks at the time, the people in the pub

are considered his personal guests; if money is exchanged beforehand or afterwards

then it is considered a gift from the guest to the landlord for the hospitality (US: may

refer to a large and highly chaperoned "sleep over" at a church, school, etc.)

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66

lodger

tenant

[3]

lollipop man

/ woman / lady

a school crossing guard who uses a circular

stop sign

lolly *

1. lollipop /ice lolly (US: popsicle); (q.v.)

2. (slang) money

loo

toilet

(usually the room, not just the plumbing device) (US: bathroom, restroom)

lorry

a large goods-carrying motor vehicle (US and UK also:

truck

)

loudhailer

megaphone

(US: bullhorn)

lower ground

the lower of two floors at ground level (for example, if a building is built on a slope).

See "ground floor". Also used as a euphemism for "basement" when trying to sell a

flat [DM].

lurgy

An imaginary illness allegedly passed on by touch--used as an excuse to avoid

someone. (c.f. US: cooties) From a legendary sketch on the

Goon Show

.

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67

M

mains power, the mains

230V AC electrical current, provided by the electricity grid to homes and businesses;

also attrib. ("

mains cable

") (US: variously called: line power, grid power, AC power,

household electricity, etc.)

manky

(slang) feeling ill, rough, out of sorts; filthy, dirty, rotten. (poss. from French

"manqué" - missed, wasted or faulty)

mardy

(derogatory, mainly Northern and Central England) describes someone who is in a

bad mood, or more generally a crybaby or whiner or "grumpy, difficult,

unpredictable". Used, for example, by children in the rhyme "Mardy, mardy

mustard...", and in the title of the

Arctic Monkeys

song "Mardy Bum". The verb to

throw a mardy means to display an outburst of anger.

maths

mathematics (US: math)

MD (

managing director

)

equivalent of US CEO (

Chief Executive Officer

), also used in the UK

mentioned in despatches

identified for valor or galantry in action (US: decorated)

mercer

(rare, old-fashioned) a dealer in

textiles

, esp. expensive ones; a dealer in small wares

merrythought

(rare or old-fashioned) wishbone

mince *

1.

ground meat, especially beef (US:

ground beef

, hamburger meat, mince

typically describes a chopping style) 2. Walk daintily. 3 "Mince your words;"

to obfuscate or conceal when talking or writing.

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68

minge

(vulgar) (rhymes with singe) female genitals or pubic hair

minger

(originally Scottish slang, rhymes with singer) slob, someone who is unattractive

minging

(originally Scottish slang, rhymes with singing) dirty, rotting, smelly, unattractive etc

minim

a musical note with the duration of one count in a time signature of 2/2 (US: half

note; see

Note value

)

mither

(Northern England) to pester persistently or annoyingly ("Stop mithering!"). To

whinge (Aus), to haver (Scots). First vowel as in "eye"; also spelt myther, moither.

moggie, moggy

(informal) non-pedigree cat; alley cat; any cat regardless of pedigree;

Morris Minor

car;

Morgan

car

mong

(slang) disgusting, dirty, foul, idiotic person, possible derivation from

mongoloid

,

now obsolete term for someone with

Down's syndrome

monged (out)

(slang) being incapable of constructive activity due to drug use, alcohol consumption

or extreme tiredness

motorway

a class of major road designed for fast, high volume traffic, usually with three lanes

in each direction (US: occasionally used; also

freeway

,

expressway

,

superhighway

)

MOT,

MOT test

(pronounced M-O-T) mandatory annual safety and roadworthiness test for motor

vehicles (from "Ministry of Transport", now renamed "

Department for Transport

")

[e-mail]

69

move house, move flat, etc.

to move out of one's

house

or other residence into a new residence

mullered

(slang, Southern England) to be comprehensively beaten up ("He got mullered by

the school bully"), to be beaten in competition (widely in use since the 50's), to be

drunk and incapable ("Went to the pub; three hours later we were totally mullered

on

Tanglefoot

"). Also mullared or mullahed. Derivation unknown, possibly from

German

Müller

, or (less likely) Persian

mullah

munted

(slang, Southern England) to be so intoxicated that one can hardly function. Also,

less frequently, an object or situation that is wrecked beyond repair.

[e-mail]

70

N

naff

(slang) lame, tacky, cheap, low quality (origin uncertain – numerous suggestions

include

backslang

for fan, an old term for a vagina), also gay slang for a straight man

(said to mean "Not Available For Fucking")

naff off

(dated slang) shove it, get lost, go away – a much less offensive alternative to "fuck

off" (originally obscure

Polari

slang, made popular by prison sitcom

Porridge

and

famously used by

Princess Anne

)

nark *

1. (v.) (informal) irritate

2. (n.) (slang) police informer (US: narc, derived from narcotics agent, but often used

in a general sense)

nappy

absorbent garment for babies (US:

diaper

)

ned

(Scotland) (slang) a working class person with a certain cheap and tasteless style (see

chav). Also "schemie" (greater emphasis on anti-social behaviour).

neeps

(Scotland)

Rutabaga

, "Tatties and Neeps" traditionally served with the Scottish

national dish of

Haggis

as the main course of the

Burns supper

. Derived from turnips.

Note however, that the OED gives neep as earlier than turnip, (derived from the

Latin napus.)

nesh

(central England, north-west,

Yorkshire

, also once western England, gently

derogative) of a person, sensitive to the cold, delicate (typical usage, of someone

who wears a coat on a mildly cold day: "He's nesh", meaning "He's a bit soft").

Hence "to nesh out", to evade or cancel a responsibility or commitment through

feebleness, lack of nerve or desire to avoid discomfort.

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71

newsagent

strictly a shop owner or shop that sells

newspapers

, usu. refers to a small shop, e.g.

corner shop

,

convenience store

,

newsstand

, or similar (US: newsdealer)

newsreader

someone who reads the news on TV or radio. See

news presenter

for a description

of the different roles of a newscaster, a British newsreader and an American news

anchor.

nicker

(colloquial) 1 pound, maintains singular form when used in a plural context ("it cost

me 2 nicker"), rarely used in the singular

nob

see knob

nonce

1. (slang)

paedophile

, pimp, child molester, idiot

2. the present time or occasion – now usually encountered only in the compound

nonce word

, meaning an ad hoc word coinage, and the somewhat old-fashioned

phrase for the nonce, meaning "for now". See also the

Wiktionary definition

.

nosh

1. food, meal; also "nosh up", a big satisfying meal ("I could do with a good nosh

up") Cf US usage, where nosh means "snack," as in the original Yiddish.

2. (slang)

oral sex

nosy parker

a busybody (similar to US: butt-in, buttinski)

nous

Good sense; shrewdness: “Hillela had the nous to take up with the General when he

was on the up-and-up again” (Nadine Gordimer). Rhymes with "mouse".

nowt

(Northern English) nothing. From Standard English "nought". Pronunciation rhymes

with "out" in most areas but in some with "note".

[e-mail]

72

number plate

vehicle registration plate

(sometimes used in the US; also license plate or license tag)

numpty

(possibly originally Scottish, now widespread) a stupid person

nutter

(informal) a crazy or insane person, often violent; also used as a more light-hearted

term of reproach ("Oi nutter!") (occasionally used in the US) (US and UK also: nut,

nutcase)

[e-mail]

73

O

OAP

Old Age Pensioner (qv) (US: Senior Citizen)

off-licence

shop licensed to sell

alcoholic beverages

for consumption off the premises,

informally abbreviated to offy; also known as an Outdoor (West Midlands) (US

equivalent: liquor store)

off-the-peg

of clothes etc, ready-made rather than made to order (US: off-the-rack)

oi

coarse exclamation to gain attention, roughly equivalent to "hey" ("Oi, you!" = "Hey

you!")

the Old Bill

(slang) The police

old iron

a junky or dated vehicle(US: old beater)

one-off

something that happens only once; limited to one occasion (as an adjective, a

shared synonym is one-shot; as a noun, it has no exact US equivalent, perhaps "one

shot deal")

on the piss

(vulgar) drinking heavily; going out for the purpose of drinking heavily; at a slight

angle, said of an object that should be vertical

orientate

less common alternative to orient, deprecated by some as an unnecessary

back-

formation

from orientation

[e-mail]

74

Other Ranks

members of the military who are not commissioned, warrant or non-commissioned

officers (US:junior enlisted personnel)

outwith

(Scotland) opposite of within and a local alternative to one meaning of without. For

example, "Advanced Quantum Mechanics is outwith the scope of an introductory

physics textbook".

overleaf

on the other side of the page

owt

(Northern English) anything. From Standard English "ought". Pronunciation rhymes

with "out" in most areas but in some with "oat".

oxter

(Scotland and Northern Ireland) armpit

oy

See "oi".

[e-mail]

75

P

package holiday

a holiday whose transport, accommodation, itinerary etc. is organised by a travel

company (US and UK less frequently: package tour). Cf holiday [DM]

paki

(offensive) Pakistani; loosely applied to anyone from

South Asia

, or of perceived

South Asian origin

panda car

(informal) police car. Small police car used for transport, as opposed to a patrol or

area car (analogous to US: black-and-white) Derives from a period in the 1970s when

UK police cars resembled those of their US counterparts, only with blue replacing

black.

paper round

(the job of making) a regular series of

newspaper

deliveries (US: paper route)

paracetamol

a common and widely available drug for the treatment of headaches, fever and

other minor aches and pains (US: acetaminophen, Tylenol)

parkie

(informal) park-keeper

parky

(informal) cold, usually used in reference to the weather

(Cornish) pasty

hard pastry case filled with meat and vegetables served as a main course,

particularly in Cornwall and in the north of England

pear-shaped

usually in the phrase "to go pear-shaped", meaning to go drastically or dramatically

wrong (possibly from the idea of a ball deflating). cf tits-up

[e-mail]

76

Peelers

The

Police

. Named after

Sir Robert Peel

, who founded the service. The slang is only

regularly still in use in

Northern Ireland

.

pelicon crossing

pedestrian crossing

with traffic lights operated by pedestrians (from Pedestrian

Light-Controlled; the direct spelling is pelicon, but the variant pelican has become so

widespread that even the

Highway Code

has picked it up.)

people mover or people carrier

a

minivan

or other passenger

van

pernickety

fastidious, precise or over-precise (US: persnickety)

petrol

refined mixture of hydrocarbons, used esp. to fuel motor vehicles (short for

petroleum spirit, or from French essence de pétrole) (US:

gasoline

, gas). Also

variously known as motor spirit (old-fashioned), motor gasoline, mogas, aviation

gasoline and avgas (the last two being a slightly heavier type designed for light

aircraft)

petrol-head, petrolhead

someone with a strong interest in cars (especially high performance cars) and motor

racing (US: gearhead or motorhead).

pikey

a pejorative slang term, used originally to refer to Irish travellers. Now refers to

anyone whose lifestyle is characterised by itinerancy, egregious theft, illicit land

occupancy with destruction of amenities, and complete disregard for authority,

without reference to ethnic or national origin.

pillar box

box in the street for receiving outgoing

mail

, in Britain traditionally in the form of a

free-standing red pillar; also called

postbox

or, less commonly,

letter box

(US:

mailbox)

See also

Pillar box (film)

: an aspect ratio named for a supposed resemblance to the

dimensions of the slot found on a pillar box.

[e-mail]

77

pillar-box red

the traditional bright-red colour of a British

pillar box

pillock

(slang, very mildly derogatory) foolish person, used esp. in northern England but also

common elsewhere. Derived from the Northern English term pillicock, a dialect term

for penis, although the connection is rarely made in general use.

pish

(vulgar) Scottish variant of piss.

pisshead

(vulgar) someone who regularly gets heavily drunk (cf. BrE meaning of

pissed

).

pissing it down [with rain]

(slang, mildly vulgar) raining very hard (sometimes "pissing down" is used in the US,

as in "It's pissing down out there.") Also "pissing it down the drain" or "pissing it

away" meaning to waste something.

plait

braid, as in hair

plaster

bandage (US: Band-Aid)

pleb

(derogatory) person of lower class, from

plebeian

; similar to

townie

. Also commonly

used to mean idiot.

pleck

also: guitar-pleck; plectrum (US: guitar pick)

plimsoll

a type of shoe with a canvas upper and rubber sole, formerly the typical gym shoe

used in schools (US: sneaker or Tennis shoe)

plod

police - from PC Plod in

Enid Blyton

's

Noddy

books.

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78

plonk

a disparaging term for cheap wine, especially cheap red wine, is now widely known

in the UK and also to a lesser extent in the USA. Derives from French vin blanc and

came into English use on the western front in

World War I

.

plonker

(very mildly derogatory)

fool

. Used esp. in the south-east of England, although not

unknown elsewhere. Derived from a slang term for penis, and sometimes used in

this fashion, e.g. "Are you pulling my plonker?" (to express disbelief)

ponce

(n.) (slang) someone with overly affected airs and graces; an effeminate posturing

man; a pimp. Originates from Maltese slang.

(v.) (slang) to act like a pimp; to cadge, to borrow with little or no intention of

returning, often openly so ("Can I ponce a ciggie off you, mate?")

ponce about/around

(v.) (slang) to act like a fop, to wander about aimlessly without achieving anything

ponce off

(v.) (slang) to mooch, to hit up, to leave in a pompous manner

poof, poofter

(derogatory) a male homosexual (US equivalent: fag, faggot)

poof, poove

A small drum-shaped soft furnishing used as a foot rest.

porky(ies)

slang for a lie or lying, from rhyming slang "pork pies" = "lies"

postage and packing, P&P

charge for said services (US: shipping and handling, S&H; the word postage is,

however, used in both dialects)

postal order

a money order designed to be sent through the post, issued by the UK

Post Office

(US: money order, or postal money order if the context is ambiguous)

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79

postbox

, post box

box in the street for receiving outgoing mail (US:

mailbox

; drop box); see also

letter

box

,

pillar box

postcode

alphanumeric code used to identify an address, part of a UK-wide scheme (US

equivalent:

ZIP Code

)

poste restante

service whereby mail is retained at a post office for collection by the recipient (from

the French) (US: general delivery)

postie

(informal)

postman

poxy

(slang) something that is unsatisfactory or in generally bad condition.

pram, perambulator

wheeled conveyance for babies (US:

baby-carriage

) Similarly, a "pram-face"

sometimes refers to a very young or young-looking mum.

prat

(slang) an incompetent or ineffectual person, a fool, an idiot

present

to host a television show or entertainment event (US: host)

press-up/push-up

a conditioning exercise in which one lies prone and then pushes oneself up by the

arms

provisional licence, provisional driving licence

a licence for a learner driver, who has not yet passed a driving test (US: learner's

permit)

pud

(informal) short for "

pudding

", which may mean dessert or occasionally a savoury

item such as

Yorkshire pudding

or

black pudding

; a fool (informal term usually used

good-naturedly between family members). pulling his pud, means male

masturbation

.

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80

pukka

(informal) legitimate, the real thing, of good quality (usually Southeastern England

term, recently more widely popularised by

Jamie Oliver

, but dating back to the 19th

century). From Hindi.

punch-up

a fistfight

punkah-wallah

a usually South Asian servant whose role is to operate a manual fan. From Urdu

pankhaa, fan, and -wallah, -man

punnet

basket for fruit, usually strawberries

pushbike

(informal) bicycle (pre-dates modern safety bicycle q.v.

velocipede

)

pushchair

forward-facing baby carriage (US: stroller)

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81

Q

quango

Quasi-Autonomous Non-Governmental Organisation. A semi-public (e.g. non-

governmental) advisory or administrative body funded by the government and

having most of its members appointed by the government.

quaver

a musical note with the duration of one count in a time signature of 2/8 (US: eighth

note). Also compound nouns semiquaver (US: sixteenth note), demisemiquaver (US:

thirty-second note), hemidemisemiquaver (US: sixty-fourth note); see

Note value

).

quid

(informal) the

pound sterling

monetary unit; remains quid in plural form ("Can I

borrow ten quid?") (similar to US buck, meaning dollar)

quids in

(informal) a financially positive end to a transaction or venture "After all that, we'll

be quids in!" (US: money ahead)

quieten

used in the phrase "quieten down" (US: quiet down)

quiff

forelock

(initially

Hiberno-English

); a hairstyle (from the 1950s onward).

quim

(vulgar slang) female genitalia, the vagina

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82

R

randy

(informal) having sexual desire, lustful, horny (now more common in the US because

of the

Austin Powers

franchise)

ranker

an enlisted soldier or airman or (more rarely) a commissioned officer who has been

promoted from enlisted status ("the ranks")

rashers *

cuts of bacon

rat-arsed

(slang) extremely drunk

recce

(informal) reconnoître, reconnaissance (pronounced recky) (US: recon)

Register Office, Registry Office

official office where

births

,

marriages

and

deaths

are recorded; usu. refers to local

Register Office (in each town or locality).

General Register Office

is the relevant

government department. In England and Wales until 2001, almost all civil (non-

church) marriages took place in the local Register Office; different laws apply in

Scotland and N. Ireland.

revise

re-read written material in preparation for an examination. (noun: revision)

road-works

upgrade or repairs of roads (US: construction; roadwork [singular])

ropey

(informal) chancy; of poor quality; uncertain (see dodgy). Can also mean unwell

when used in the form to feel ropey

reverse charge call

a telephone call for which the recipient pays (US and UK also: collect call); also v. to

reverse [the] charge[s] *, to make such a call (dated in US, used in the 1934

American film

It Happened One Night

– US usually: to call collect)

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83

rota

a roll call or roster of names, or round or rotation of duties

(the) rozzers

(rare slang) Police ("Quick, the rozzers!") – possibly from

Robert Peel

, who also gave

his name to two other slang terms for the police: peelers (archaic) and bobbies

(becoming old-fashioned).

rucksack *

a backpack.

rumpy pumpy

(informal)

Sexual intercourse

, used slightly jokingly.

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84

S

salad-dodger

(informal) an overweight person

sarky

(informal) sarcastic (abbrev.) "why are you being so sarky?"

sarnie, sarny

(informal) sandwich (abbrev.)

scheme

plan, as in "government scheme to provide assistance"

schemie

(Scot) (derog. slang) working class person with traits of anti-social/criminal

behaviour. From 'council housing scheme'. Compare

ned

/

chav

.

scrubber

a lower class, (usually young) woman of low morals

scrumpy

cloudy cider, often high in alcoholic content

scrumping

action of stealing apples from an orchard; also v. to scrump

self-raising flour

self-rising flour

secateurs

gardening tool for pruning plants (US:pruners of clippers)

secondment

(/sɪˈkɒndmənt/) the assignment of a person from his or her regular organisation to

temporary assignment elsewhere. From v.

second

(/sɪˈkɒnd/)

Sellotape

from Cellophane, transparent adhesive tape (

genericised trademark

) (US: Scotch

tape)

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85

semibreve

a musical note with the duration of four counts in a time signature of 4/4 (US: whole

note; see

Note value

)

serviette

(from French) table napkin [DM]. Regarded as a

non-U

word, but widely used by

non-U people.

shandy

lager or beer mixed close to equal parts with 'lemonade' (any sparkling lemon soda).

shite

(vulgar) variant of shit, often seen as more jocular. rhymes with 'kite'.

sixes and sevens

crazy, muddled (usually in the phrase "at sixes and sevens"). From the

London

Livery

Company

order of precedence, in which position 6 is claimed by both the

Worshipful

Company of Merchant Taylors

and the

Worshipful Company of Skinners

.

skew-whiff / skew-whift

skewed, uneven, not straight

skint

(informal) out of money

skive [off]

(informal) to sneak off, avoid work; to play truant (U.S.-"Play Hookey")

slag *

similar to 'slut', a woman of loose morals and low standards; sometimes implying

the woman is of an undesirable age or has become aged by her lifestyle.

Occasionally used to refer to a male, though does not then have sexual

connotations. (US:

industrial waste

slag off

to badmouth; speak badly of someone, usually behind their back

slaphead

(informal) bald man (pronounced slapp-ed)

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86

slapper

(vulgar) similar to slut but milder. Implies drunken, flirtatious behaviour as opposed

to frequent sexual conquests

sleeping partner

a partner in business, often an investor, who is not visibly involved in running the

enterprise (US: silent partner)

sleeping policeman

mound built into a road to slow down vehicles (UK also: hump [DM]; US & UK also:

speed bump)

slippy

(slang) to be smooth, wet, no friction or traction to grip something (US: slippery)

slowcoach

(slang) a slow person (US: slowpoke)

slummy

(slang) loose change

smalls

underclothing, underwear, particularly underpants

smart dress

formal attire

smeghead

(slang) idiot; a general term of abuse (for discussion of origin, see

smeg (vulgarism)

).

Popularised by its use in the sitcom

Red Dwarf

.

snog

(slang) a 'french kiss' or to kiss with tongues

soap dodger

one who is thought to lack personal hygiene

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87

sod off

(vulgar, moderately offensive) go away; get lost

spacker, spacky, spazmo

(vulgar, offensive to many) idiot, general term of abuse: from "Spastic", referring in

England almost exclusively (when not used as an insult) to a person suffering from

cerebral palsy. (variant forms spaz/spastic, are used in American English) See also

Joey.

Spanish archer

give someone the "elbow", which means to sack or fire them

spawny

lucky

spiffing

(informal) very good (old-fashioned, or consciously used as old-fashioned,

associated stereotypically with upper-class people)

spiv

an unemployed person who lives by their wits; someone who shirks work or

responsibility; a slacker, a dealer in black market goods (during

World War II

). The

term wide boy is also often used in the same sense

spliff *

(slang) a hand-rolled cigarette containing a mixture of marijuana and

tobacco

(Also

used in US, j or blunt more widely used)

spod

someone who spends too much time in internet chat rooms and discussion forums.

Also verb: to spod.

sport

recreational athletics (usually singular) (US: sports (usually plural))

spot on

exactly (US: right on)

squaddie

(informal) a non-commissioned soldier (US: grunt)

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88

squidgy

(informal) soft and soggy

squiffy

(informal) intoxicated (popularly but probably erroneously said to be from British

Prime Minister (Herbert)

Asquith

, a noted imbiber). The word can also be

synonymous with skew-whiff.

squintie, squint

crooked; cf on the skunt

squiz

(rare) look, most often used in the form to have a squiz at...

starter

appetiser (most common); also from French "entrée" or "hors d'œuvre", used less

often

sticky-backed plastic

large sheet of thin, soft, coloured plastic that is sticky on one side; see

Blue Peter

(US similar: contact paper)

stockist

a seller (as a retailer) that stocks merchandise of a particular type, usually a specified

brand or model

stone

14 pounds in weight, usually used to describe body weight ("He lost two stone!")

straightaway

immediately (sometimes used in the US; also right away)

strop

(informal) bad mood or temper

stroppy, to have a strop on

(informal) recalcitrant, in a bad mood or temper

suck it and see

to undertake a course of action without knowing its full consequences (US: take your

chances)

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89

suss [out]

(informal) to figure out (from suspicion)

suspender belt

a ladies undergarment to hold up stockings (US: garter belt)

swot

1. v. to study for an exam (US cram)

2. n. (derogatory) aloof and unpopular schoolchild or student who studies to excess

sweet FA

(slang) nothing (from "

Sweet Fanny Adams

", alternative: "Sweet Fuck All"), "I know

sweet FA about cars!" (US: jack shit)

swimming costume

swimsuit or bathing suit; also cozzy for short.

swither

(Scottish) to hesitate, be undecided, dither

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90

T

ta

(informal) thank you; TA also standing for "thanks awfully"

takeaway

food outlet where you can order food to go (or be delivered) (not usually applied to

fast food chains). Usage: "we had a takeaway for dinner", "we went to the local

takeaway". [DM]; (US: takeout)

take the piss (vulgar) / take the mickey

(slang) to make fun of somebody; to act in a non-serious manner about something

important (also: take the pee). Can also mean to transgress beyond what are

perceived as acceptable bounds, or to treat with perceived contempt - "the

increases in car tax are taking the piss", "the new boss is really taking the piss with

this mandatory car-sharing scheme".

takings

receipts of money

tannoy

loudspeaker

(

a proprietary brand name

), PA system

tarn

small mountain lake. Used especially in the

Lake District

tatties

(Scotland)

Potato

, "Tatties and Neeps" traditionally served with the Scottish national

dish of

Haggis

as the main course of the

Burns supper

.

telly

(informal)

television

tenner

ten pounds

Territorial

a member of the

Territorial Army

(US: Army Reserve)

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Tiger nuts

(vulgar slang) small remnants of toilet paper that cling to body hair after bowel

movement clean-up (originates from small chocolate covered caramel candy of the

same name). (Commonly "tigers").

tingy

(from

Ireland

) cf wotsit

tinned

canned as in "tinned soup" or "a tin of tuna"

Tipp-Ex

white tape or liquid used to make corrections of ink on paper (US:

Wite-Out

)

throw a wobbly

(informal) to lose one's temper, throw a tantrum

thruppennies

(

Cockney rhyming slang

) breasts/tits (from thruppeny bits, obsolete British coin)

titfer

(

Cockney rhyming slang

) hat (from tit-for-tat)

[go] tits up

(mildly vulgar) to suddenly go wrong (literally, to fall over). cf pear-shaped (appears

in the US mainly as military jargon, sometimes sanitized to "tango uniform")

toad-in-the-hole

batter-baked sausages, sausages baked in

Yorkshire Pudding

toff

(slang) member of the upper classes

toffee apple

a sugar-glazed apple on a stick eaten esp. on

Bonfire Night

and

Hallowe'en

(US:

caramel apple or candy apple)

toffee nosed

anti-social in a pretentious way, stuck up

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tonk

(informal) to hit hard, sometimes used in cricket to describe a substantial boundary

shot: "he tonked it for six". In Southern England can also mean muscular. (US: ripped

or buff).

tonker

penis.

tony

expensive or luxurious.

tosser

(slang) a no-good waster (US: jerk). Largely equivalent to "wanker" but less

offensive; has the same literal meaning, ie. one who masturbates ("tosses off").

tosspot

(colloquial, archaic) a drunkard; also used in the sense of "tosser".

totty

(informal, offensive to some) sexually alluring woman or women (more recently,

also applied to males). Originally a term for a prostitute in the late 1800s.

training shoes, trainers

athletic shoes. (US: sneakers).

training suit

clothes worn while practicing for an athletic event (US: track suit or sweat suit)

tuppence

two pence, also infantile euphemism for

vagina

. cf twopenn'orth

tuppenny-ha'penny

cheap, substandard

turf accountant

bookmaker for horse races

turn-indicator

direction-indicator light on a vehicle (US: turn signal)

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turn-ups

an arrangement at the bottom of trouser-legs whereby a deep hem is made, and the

material is doubled-back to provide a trough around the external portion of the

bottom of the leg. (US: cuffs)

twee

excessively cute, quaint, or 'precious'

twonk

idiot. Probably a

portmanteau

construction of

twat

and

plonker

twopenn'orth, tuppenn'orth, tup'en'oth

one's opinion (tuppenn'orth is literally "two pennies worth" or "two pence worth",

depending on usage); (US equivalent: two cents' worth, two cents). cf tuppence

[e-mail]

94

U

uni

short for university, used much like US college

up himself

(informal) someone who is stand-offish, stuck-up, snobby. "He's a bit up himself."

Euphemistic variation of up his own arse.

up sticks

(US: pull up stakes)

V

verger

someone who carries the verge or other emblem of authority before a scholastic,

legal, or religious dignitary in a procession; someone who takes care of the interior

of a church and acts as an attendant during ceremonies.

verruca

a wart which occurs on one's foot. Called a

plantar wart

in USA

vegetable marrow

a gourd-like fruit (treated as a vegetable) (US:

squash

)

[e-mail]

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W

WAG

wives and girlfriends, common in headlines referring to the spouse of a male athlete

wage packet

weekly employee payment (usually in cash) (US: paycheck)

wally

(informal) buffoon, fool; milder form of idiot. Now considered an old-fashioned

word. See muppet.

wanker

(offensive) general insult or term of abuse

WC

toilet (short for Water Closet). (US: bathroom [DM], US old-fashioned, Canada

washroom). See also

loo

.

washing up liquid

dish washing, "the dishes": "it's your turn to do the washing up"; hence washing up

liquid: dish washing detergent (US: dish soap, dishwashing liquid)

way out

exit. Used primarily on signs

Wellington boots

, wellies

waterproof rubber boots, named after the

Duke of Wellington

. (more common in

the US now)

welly

(informal) effort (e.g.: "Give it some welly" to mean "put a bit of effort into an

attempt to do something"); also the singular of "wellies", for

Wellington boots

welly

(slang) condom; stems from "Wellington boots" which are also known as "rubbers"

whilst *

while (US and UK), (archaic in US)

[e-mail]

96

whinge

(informal) complain, whine, especially repeated complaining about minor things

(e.g. "Stop whingeing" meaning "stop complaining"); a different word from whine,

originated in Scottish and Northern English in the 12th century. Hence whinger

(derogatory), someone who complains a lot. As in "My wife Kerry is always

whingeing about the state we leave the house in".

white pudding

oat and fat sausage often eaten at

breakfast

, common in

Ireland

and

Scotland

witter

(informal) to continue to talk trivially about a subject long after the audience's

interest has gone. "He wittered on."

wibble

(informal) to talk at length aimlessly

wide boy

see spiv, above

wing mirrors

the external mirrors on a vehicle – though no longer normally attached to the

'wings' (US: fenders) but to the doors (US: sideview mirrors, side mirrors)

winkle *

(slang) another childish term for a penis (US: winkie)

wobbler, wobbly (to have or to throw)

(informal) tantrum

wonky *

(informal) wrong, awry, not straight or stable; shaky, feeble (usually applied to

furniture)

[e-mail]

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Y

Y-fronts

men's

briefs

with an inverted-Y-shaped frontal flap; originally a trademark (US:

jockey shorts/briefs; US slang: tighty whities)

yob

lout, young troublemaker (thought to be from boy spelt backwards)

yomp

to move on foot across rough terrain carrying heavy amounts of equipment and

supplies without mechanised support (army slang popularised by the Falklands war).

Also used informally for any walk across rough ground.

Z

zed

last letter of the alphabet, usually called "

zee

" in

United States

Zimmer frame

walker

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