British Phrases That Baffle The Rest Of The World

This is summed up by the one and only 'cheeky Nando's'

When an American gets confused by what a cheeky Nando's is, it is a British person's responsibility to explain it using as much British slang as humanly possible and thus leaving the American even more confused.
 
I can imagine Americans, or pretty much anyone on the planet, trying to decipher the lingo on a programme like Love Island...

Melt
Muggy
Pied
Grafting
Sort
Shade
Extra
Stick It On

All not what you think they mean! :lol:
 
I can imagine Americans, or pretty much anyone on the planet, trying to decipher the lingo on a programme like Love Island...

Melt
Muggy
Pied
Grafting
Sort
Shade
Extra
Stick It On

All not what you think they mean! :lol:
Don't forget regional words haha. Try giving an American, Yorkshire, Scottish, Geordi or Scouse words to try.

Also

Minging
Rank
Quid
Corker
Gaffer
Miffed
Nob
Numpty
Old Bill
Baccy
The British meaning of pissed.
The British meaning of fag or fags.
Gabber
Her Majesty’s Pleasure
Legless (not sure if US people use that)
Minted
Off One’s Trolley
Shirty
Tosser
 
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British English has slang? :eek:

Rhyming slang too.

Wipe that look off your boat, check your kettle, sit on your Aris and learn all about it. Plenty of people rabbit on like this.

Don't be shocked by it and get too Brahms.
 
Rhyming slang too.

Wipe that look off your boat, check your kettle, sit on your Aris and learn all about it. Plenty of people rabbit on like this.

Don't be shocked by it and get too Brahms.
I swear down, that's proper canny like.
 

Please help me understand this one; Tosser. A friend here on GTP called me that once, she is from the UK and I'm dying to know what that translates to, roughly.

'Don't be a tosser.' she said. I was like whaaa---hmmm.....???? :lol:

Jerome
 
Please help me understand this one; Tosser. A friend here on GTP called me that once, she is from the UK and I'm dying to know what that translates to, roughly.

'Don't be a tosser.' she said. I was like whaaa---hmmm.....???? :lol:

Jerome
It's the same as calling someone a wanker.

I didnt want to put the w word... the wan*** word..:)

Rule here is if it's spelled correct and it isn't censored, and you are not directly insulting someone then it's fine I believe.



More.

Chaps.
Me old mucker (northern)
lads
Archbishop of Banterbury :P
And on that note, banter
 
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Heard this on Poirot. You know Hercule Poirot; Agatha Christie:

Fancy a breather?

Not really difficult to understand and probably not even slang but I found it a strange way to ask if one wanted a few minutes of rest to catch their breath.
 
One that I had never heard of before last year of uni actually.

Peak, as a word for well that's crap.
 
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"Bob's your uncle" is British? I did not know that.

Supposedly it's because Arthur Balfour, Prime Minister 1902-1905, was, despite his experience and talent, given that post due to the influence of his uncle Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, a three time former Prime Minister himself and Marquess of Salisbury.

So things happen at the end (because) Bob's your uncle.

---

I have an interesting time enough with my Irish friends; since moving to Slovakia most of my friends have been Irish, funnily enough. As well as learning that words such as banshee, boycott, brogue, hooligan and slogan are of Irish origin, they also have unique syntax and vocabulary talking about "your one" or "your man", putting so at the end of a sentence, talking about getting messages to put in the press and a few idioms like "Get the boat!"
 
I’ve learnt a lot of South African slang from a mate at work, not solid Afrikaans mind, just a mild dosage of standard English mixed with some Saffa slang. Guys are oaks, traffic lights are robots and everyone is “your boy...” at the beginning of the sentence whether I know them or not.

Typical sentence might be, “Your boy Dave ran the robots. That oak is insane.”
 
Sometime one gets a shout from a friend to say “I’m shaking a leg back to me drum for a ruby and a few Nelsons” and one feel inclined to join.
 
'you okay duck?'

Here you'd swap 'duck' with 'cock'. Only ever hear the older generations with ties to the Black Country use that one. Even fewer folks tend to use 'cocker' but usually with more of a "Ludlow" accent. Closer to your typical West Country farmer speak.

One of my cousins has always had a standard West Midlands accent. Having lived in the south of Shropshire and Worcestershire in recent years he's adopted the local dialect but without the accompanying accent. What's odd is that he incorporates it into his texts, always with the word "Are" rather than "Our" as a prefix when discussing myself, a friend or family member (Are nan = Grandmother).

putting so at the end of a sentence

I know it's not because of my Irish blood but I find myself dropping a 'so' and the end of a sentence more often than I'd like.
 
This is summed up by the one and only 'cheeky Nando's'

When an American gets confused by what a cheeky Nando's is, it is a British person's responsibility to explain it using as much British slang as humanly possible and thus leaving the American even more confused.

Relevant:

IMG_1280.JPG
 
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