British Slang Flashcards by Paul McGinnis

being a loud mouth or offensive, loudly opinionated, prickish

gobby

“Bill Maher can be kind of gobby.”

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a rear end

arse

“Chris Brown is a total arse.”

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testicles or something useless or of poor quality, nonsense

bollocks

“Ben Affleck as the new Batman is a load of bollocks.”

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exhausted, worn out

knackered

“I was knackered after a weekend at Coachella.”

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upset or offended, irked

miffed

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to fall head over heels

fall arse over tit

“I’ll never forget when Jennifer Lawrence fell arse over tit at the Oscars.”

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an upset stomach or feeling of acute nervousness, butterflies in the stomach

collywobbles

How To Use It: “Before I met Harry Styles I got a serious case of the collywobbles.”

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to be wealthy

minted

How to use it: “Bieber can buy whatever car he wants. He’s minted.”

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tobacco

Baccy

shortened word for “tobacco;” also, “wacky backy” means marijuana.

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term children might use to describe feces; also, an erection

biggie

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various things

Bits ‘n Bobs

“My mother has a lot of Bits ‘n Bobs around the house.”

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There you go! You’ve got it!

Bob’s your uncle!

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to have a chat with someone, brief conversation.

chin wag

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a piece of snot or booger

crusty dragon

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to be dressed nicely or look dapper

dog’s dinner

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vagina

fanny

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amazed or awed by something, stunned/utterly blown away.

gobsmacked

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completely clueless, like Alicia Silverstone in the 90s film

gormless

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To discuss private matters in public

air one’s dirty linen/laundry

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An argument or confrontation

argy-bargy

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Girl, woman

bird

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Policeman (2)

blue, bobby

After Robert Peel (Home Secretary in 1828

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without money (2)

stoney broke, stoney

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Bare skin, naked (2)

buff, starkers

1. Bare skin, naked as in ‘in the buff’.[66] 2. Having a lean, muscular physique (usually referring to a young man

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The head or the nose. To strike the head or nose

conk

The face. 2. To spot, notice. 3. To hit as in "*** round the earhole"

clock

fat

tubby

Statement of incredulity, like “you’ve got to be kidding”, and such.

“Are you having a laugh?”: “You think I’ll hire your brother after he gets out of prison for armed robbery? Are you having a laugh?”

Aggressive/in someone’s face.

Aggro

An ambling walk

Bimble

toilet paper

bog roll

To sit with one’s mouth hanging open

catch flies

A mistake, to make a mistake (2)

clanger, to drop a clanger

To laugh heartily (so one’s face creases up)

creased up

Suspicious, dubious

dodgy | “I ate a dodgy curry last night and now my stomach’s off.”

The person who takes care of most tasks, especially menial ones

dogsbody

Exceedingly, horribly boring or plain

dull as dishwater

A severe reprimand

ear-bashing | “He got a right ear-bashing after crashing his dad’s car into that buffalo.”

Injured, lame, or painful

gammy | “My gran’s had a gammy leg ever since she fell off a horse.”

An overly excitable person

giddy kipper

A red-haired person

ginger

Unpleasant/disgusting (2)

grotty, manky | “The chicken you left on the counter for a week has gone manky.”

devastated

Gutted: “She was gutted after her boyfriend left her for her nephew.”

A meal that consists mostly of alcohol, rather than food

liquid lunch

Lost one’s mind/gone senile

Lost the plot: “My great-uncle thinks he’s an admiral with the United Federation of Planets, but of course, he lost the plot years ago.”

The flu, or other illness that makes you feel horrible

lurgy

cat

moggy

slightly hungry

peckish

petulant and sullen

peevish

pathetic person

sad arse

a restless, fidgety person

shufflebutt

creepy, sleazy

smarmy

to make out/fool around

snog

defeated/thwarted

snookered

"I give up.”

“Sod it.” | Used in a sentence: “I’ll never understand this math problem. Sod it, let’s go down to the pub.”

overly dainty, delicate, cute, or quaint.

Twee | “Her bunny-themed tea set is so utterly twee.”

unstable

Wonky | “The table leg’s a bit wonky; you might want to slide a book under it.”

to suddenly fail when everybody expects them to succeed or simply crumble at the very last minute when they were almost winning

do a Devon Loch

to leave a place in a hurry in order to avoid paying for something (like in a restaurant) or flee a difficult situation to escape punishment

do a runner

a surplus of anything

enough to cobble dogs with

this is the British humorous way of saying you acquired something that was probably stolen, or you are trying to sell something that’s stolen or illegitimate.

fall off the back of a lorry

this disparaging phrase was originally used by the British upper-crust to refer to someone who is ill-bred, dangerous or untrustworthy (2)

hairy at the heels, chav | "I can’t say I like Bob. I’ve once or twice had a row with him. He’s a bit hairy at the heels."

panties

knickers

pants

trousers, Presently, britches reflects a common pronunciation often used in casual speech to mean trousers or pants in many English speaking parts of the world. Breeks is a Scots or northern English spelling and pronunciation.

to become very upset about something, usually something that is not important

knickers in a twist: "Now, before you get your knickers in a twist, let me explain the situation."

the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, used to refer to the US or the UK depending on the speaker's location.

across the pond

talks or boasts a lot but doesn't deliver (3)

all mouth and trousers, all mouth and no trousers, all talk and no trousers

what happens in a person's home or private life is their business and should not be subject to outside interference

an Englishman's home is his castle

you refuse to accept a decision and argue about it

argue the toss

used to highlight a sexual reference, deliberate or accidental

as the actress said to the bishop

you have spare time but don't know what to do with it, bored

at a loose end

you are at the limit of your patience or endurance

at the end of your tether

you are at a disadvantage and forced to be defensive of your position

on your back foot

something that is an embarrassment or causes problems

banana skin

a person who gives opinions on things they are not qualified to speak about

barrack-room lawyer

someone who has been hurt or looks as if they have been in a struggle

someone who has been in the wars

life is not all about self-indulgence and pleasure

life is not all beer and Skittles

something that happens very quickly.

something that happens "before you can say knife"

someone who is very cautious and takes no risks

someone who wears belts and braces

suspenders

braces

instant replay

action replay

airplane

aeroplane

advice columnist

agony aunt

counterclockwise

anticlockwise

tractor-trailer

articulated lorry

uneven bars

asymmetric bars

eggplant

aubergine

cookie sheet

baking tray

legal holiday

bank holiday

beet(s)

beetroot

check

bill

sponge bath

blanket bath

(window) shade

blind

apartment building

block of flats

coveralls

boiler suit

tube top

boob top

tow truck

breakdown van

cinder block

breeze block

bridge loan

bridging loan

fanny pack

bum back

cotton candy

candy floss

parking lot

car park

emergency room

casualty

slingshot

catapult

median strip

central reservation

drugstore

chemist

french fries

chips

movie theater, the movies

cinema

plastic wrap

cling film

durable goods

consumer durables

cornstarch

cornflour

Romaine lettuce

cos (lettuce)

crib

cot

crib death

cot death

cotton swab

cotton bud

housing project

council estate

zucchini

courgette

face card

court card

guardrail

crash barrier

chips, potato chips

crisps

alligator clip

crocodile clip

bias-ply

cross-ply

quarter note

crotchet (music)

checking account

current account

hazard pay

danger money

British Slang Flashcards

(125 cards)