flapjacky

en-adj

flapjacky (comparative more flapjacky, superlative most flapjacky)

more flapjacky (comparative)
most flapjacky (superlative)

The only downside was the lack of vegan puds, they did have an apricotty flapjacky thing but a 'real' cake would have ensured top marks!!

2003 April 22, artichoke, “review of guesthouses/restaurants in UK”, in alt.food.vegan (Usenet), archived from the original on 2023-11-12:

At least they gave us the choice of having sarnies that expired that day for half price, or fresher ones at full price. We each had a half price butty, a can of elderflower fizzy stuff and Pa had a flapjacky thing.

2004 September 8, Fenny, “I'd be dangerous if I had a brian^([sic])”, in uk.rec.sheds (Usenet), archived from the original on 2023-11-12:

There’s a limited selection of designer healthfood in a chiller cabinet, mainly pre-packaged salads (greek, niçoise, spinach) and sandwiches (tuna, mangetout, beansprouts and soy sauce on rather heavy rye bread), plus fruit and a few flapjacky cakes.

2005, Cheap Eats in London, London: Time Out Guides Ltd, →ISBN, page 33:

You know the one... one girl reckons that the biscuits she's advertising are made in a magic box. The other one says "It's called an oven!" / "Oats, Michelle! That's why they're so flapjacky and satisfyin'. Oats! Not magic!"

2006 July 24, Enzo Matrix, “Sarah's Mum”, in alt.funnytown (Usenet), archived from the original on 2023-11-12:

It's a woefully belated elevenses - tea and biscuits and a Falconful of Old Gowrie. […] It's very nice tobacco, though. All sweet, flapjacky goodness. I'm all the fonder of it because, yesterday, I tried some Grousemoor.

2007 March 6, Burbage, “Tuesday AM SMoke”, in alt.smokers.pipes (Usenet), archived from the original on 2023-11-12:

If I get my act together I'll do a few seedy nutty flapjacky traybakey type things to bring

2007 September 3, Josie Stewart, “food at Burnlaw”, in MADD (Google Groups), archived from the original on 2023-11-12:

I think it's the national dish of Australia - a type of biscuity/flapjacky thing with a topping

2007 November 23, murie...@yahoo.co.uk, “Australian dumplings”, in uk.food+drink.misc (Usenet), archived from the original on 2023-11-12:

I grabbed a handful of grapes and some flapjacky things with nuts and raisins, plus a couple of cans of Coke, and whizzed them up to my bedroom.

2009, Jean Ure, Boys Will Be Boys (Girlfriends), London: Orchard Books, Hachette Children’s Books, →ISBN, pages 23–24:

As much as I make, and honour, traditional crumbles, every now and then it’s nice to give people something unexpected – something that makes them sit up, ask questions and get excited about the fact that a delicious flapjacky base has found its way into their favourite dessert.

2011, Jamie Oliver, “[Puddings] Flapjack Crumble”, in Jamie’s Great Britain: Over 130 Reasons to Love Our Food, London: Michael Joseph, Penguin Books, →ISBN, page 364:

Bake for 20 minutes or until the top is slightly browned at the edges – a good flapjacky smell will probably alert you to this moment.

2013, Jojo Tulloh, “[Baked] Honey Flapjacks”, in The Modern Peasant: Adventures in City Food, London: Chatto & Windus, →ISBN, page 63:

These little flapjacky morsels are great for a teatime treat.

2015, Louise Blair, “[tempting tray bakes and biscuits] apricot almond crunch biscuits”, in Great Gluten-Free Baking: Over 80 Delicious Cakes and Bakes, London: Hamlyn, →ISBN, page 88:

Admittedly, the flapjack at Ostborough Academy is legendary – gooey and floppy and at least fifty per cent golden syrup. My slice has already soaked through the paper plate, leaving a sticky residue on my fingers. / ‘Napkins in there,’ Tanvi says, nodding down at the breast pocket of her blazer. ‘Now, budge up.’ / With little choice in the matter, I scoot along the bench and give in to the flapjacky goodness.

2019, Lisa Williamson, “[Autumn] 10”, in Paper Avalanche, Oxford, Oxon: David Fickling Books, →ISBN:

These natural flapjacky snack bars should come with a warning – they're killer moreish.

2019 January 29, Kieran Alger, “7 best all-natural energy foods – from shakes to bars”, in The Independent, London: Independent News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2019-02-15:

‘Go on then, love. Go and get me one of those flapjacky things.’

2020, Daisy Waugh, chapter 13, in In the Crypt with a Candlestick, London: Piatkus, Little, Brown Book Group, →ISBN:

fudgy flapjacky fudge […] I always buy one of those flapjacks with a layer of yoghurt on top. But even with the topping, they are just never sweet enough for me. I also love fudge but that can be toe-curlingly sweet. So, in my search for a middle ground, I decided to combine the two.

2020, Nadiya Hussain, Nadiya Bakes, London: Penguin Books, →ISBN:

Using golden syrup gives you a flapjacky flavour kiss and, if you want to go the extra mile, the hibiscus syrup adds a delicious curiosity into proceedings, especially when drizzled hot over good ice cream.

2021, Jamie Oliver, “Apple & Bramble Crumble Tart”, in Together: Memorable Meals Made Easy, London: Michael Joseph, Penguin Books, →ISBN:

(British) Resembling or characteristic of a flapjack (oat bar).


wolf's head

“Bonny times,” he said, “I have lived to see, when a lad of Earl Oslac’s blood is sent out of the land, a beggar and a wolf’s head, for playing a boy’s trick or two, and upsetting a shaveling priest.”.

1866, Charles Kingsley, Hereward the Wake, London: Nelson, page 48:

(UK, obsolete, law) In mediaeval times, an outlaw; one who may be slain without judicial enquiry.


NIESR

w:National Institute of Economic and Social Research

(UK) Initialism of National Institute of Economic and Social Research.


seed-bird

So called because it may be seen at seedtime.


deleerit

deleerit (comparative more deleerit, superlative most deleerit)

more deleerit (comparative)
most deleerit (superlative)

(UK, regional, obsolete) Delirious, mad, out of one's senses


bulge the onion bag

en-verb

bulge the onion bag (third-person singular simple present bulges the onion bag, present participle bulging the onion bag, simple past and past participle bulged the onion bag)

bulges the onion bag (present singular third-person)
bulging the onion bag (participle present)
bulged the onion bag (participle past)
bulged the onion bag (past)

[…] such as Provan or McAvennie scoring at Hampden or Larsson bulging the onion bag twice in Seville.

2012, Paul Larkin, Poles 'N' Goals and Hesselink, page 139:

[…] bulged the onion bag for the Blades, and Downes and Prendergast replied for the Owls.


monergy

Get more for your monergy.

(British, historical) Money spent on energy resources, the subject of a 1986 British government campaign.


have form

have form (third-person singular simple present has form, present participle having form, simple past and past participle had form)

has form (present singular third-person)
having form (participle present)
had form (participle past)
had form (past)

(UK) To be familiar with something, particularly through one's experience.


Jenry

“I think all these Jenry fan edits and all that stuff is just fabulous, and I'm very grateful to have them supporting what is our first relationship.”

2023 December 27, Harry Rutter, Sarah Tulloch, quoting Jordan Sangha, “ITV Big Brother couple Jordan and Henry shiver when they recall infamous word from show”, in Mirror:

(UK, slang) Jordan Sangha and Henry Southan, contestants and romantic partners from the Big Brother reality show in 2023.


corrupt practice

en-noun

corrupt practice (plural corrupt practices)

(criminal law, UK, Commonwealth, Hong Kong) a group of serious electoral offences (as opposed to illegal practices), which generally includes bribery, treating and undue influence towards voters.


Jade Goody effect

(UK, informal) The upsurge in women requesting cervical cancer screenings after the much-publicized death from that disease of English reality TV contestant Jade Goody (1981–2009).


hybrid cycle track

hybrid cycle track (plural hybrid cycle tracks)

(UK) A designated track for cyclists that runs alongside the footway and the carriageway and is intermediate in height between them.


PCLS

PCLS (countable and uncountable, plural PCLSs)

pension commencement lump sum
w:personal pension scheme

(UK, pensions) Initialism of pension commencement lump sum.


Special Air Service

(British, Australia, New Zealand, military) An elite unit of the British army. Similar units operate in the Australian and New Zealand armies.


on the spin

(British, informal) Successively, one after the other.


Monster Mansion

So called because of the large number of high-profile, high-risk inmates.


flog-bottomist

(UK, school slang, obsolete) A teacher or tutor with a propensity for caning students.


tosspottery

(UK, Ireland, slang) Behavior characteristic of a tosspot.


slidebar

The slidebars are of the three-bar type with underhung crosshead.

1951 March, “British Railways Standard "Britannia" Class 4-6-2 Locomotives”, in Railway Magazine, page 186:

mechanical engineering
mechanical engineering

(mechanical engineering, UK) A crosshead guide.


tossery

(UK, Ireland, slang, rare) The obnoxious behavior of a tosser.


grey fox

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-grey fox.wav

UK and Commonwealth standard spelling of gray fox.


ionising radiation

ionising radiation (countable and uncountable, plural ionising radiations)

ionizing radiation
ionizing radiation#English

(British) Alternative spelling of ionizing radiation.


yedder

[…] you shall set your stakes at the brim of the water, each a yard apart, and so yedder them with your yedders, and so stake them with your strut stowers, that they may stand three tides without removing by the force thereof.

1855, Francis Kildale Robinson, A Glossary of Yorkshire Words and Phrases: Collected in Whitby and the Neighbourhood. With Examples of Their Colloquial Use, and Allusions to Local Customs and Trditions, page 129:

they whack wi' their yedders

Hence the request that they should repair to the wood on Ascension Eve to prepare their stakes, their stowers, and their yedders, and bring them on their backs to the place fixed upon for their planting by "nine in the morning." Of course, Ascension Day is determined by Easter, which is regulated by the moon, and the moon regulates the tides[…]

1897, Horne's Guide to Whitby, Profusely Illustrated: Giving a Detailed Description of Places of Interest, Streets, Roads and Footpaths in and Around Whitby, page 28:

"But 'e's biddable as a yedder, an' never [has] a fixed idea of 'is own. I dun't rightly think 'e's ever called owt else.” She realised my confusion. “A yedder's weaved through a stake to make a fence or bind an 'edge, you see. It bends this way an' that[…]"

2016 November 1, Allison Littlewood, The Hidden People, Jo Fletcher Books, →ISBN:

(UK dialectal) Alternative form of edder (“flexible wood used in binding hedge stakes”).


yedder

en-verb

yedder (third-person singular simple present yedders, present participle yeddering, simple past and past participle yeddered)

yedders (present singular third-person)
yeddering (participle present)
yeddered (participle past)
yeddered (past)

(UK dialectal) Alternative form of edder.


Flying Banana

From flying (“capable of speed”) + banana (in reference to its yellow colour).

com

(UK, rail transport, humorous) The New Measurement Train; the high-speed track testing train used on the British railway network.


cloth nappy

Golden Babe Disposable Napkins—unlike the old cloth nappies—are are specially shaped to give the baby freedom to kick and stretch.

1962, Nursing Mirror and Midwives Journal, volume 114, IPC Specialist and Professional Press, page XVIII:

Sterilizing powder for soaking nannies; and about two dozen cloth nappy liners or several packets of disposable liners (to throw away after bowel movements or wash when wet only).

1986, Carol Howland, The First-time Parent's Survival Guide, Thorsons Publishing Group, →ISBN, page 82:

Fitted cloth nappies resemble disposable nappies in shape and are designed with extra thickness at the position of urination.

2007, Penny Tassoni, Kate Beith, Kath Bulman, Harriet Eldridge, CACHE Level 3 in Child Care and Education Student Book, Pearson Education, →ISBN, page 207:

(UK, Commonwealth) Synonym of cloth diaper.


pocket nappy

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-pocket nappy.wav

I tried out lots of types and my hands-down favourite is fuzzi bunz. It's a stuffable pocket nappy and it comes out of the washing machine practically dry, needs a couple of hours on a clothes horse, then it's good to go.

2005 June 26, Mogget, “Nappies”, in misc.kids.pregnancy (Usenet):

'Here we have a pocket nappy with bamboo boosters. And this one here is an all-in-one' - she took stock of my and Joe's dismayed faces - 'yes, I think the all-in-one would be the simplest for you two.'

2023 June 10, Kat Ailes, The Expectant Detectives: The Hilarious Cosy Crime Mystery where Pregnant Women Turn Detective, Bonnier Publishing Fiction, →ISBN, unnumbered page:

Pocket nappies are made up of a waterproof outer shell and a soft inner lining, with an open pocket in the front or back, into which you stuff absorbent inserts, which sit between the outer shell and the inner lining.

2023 June 27, Zoe Pickburn, “Best reusable and eco-friendly nappies that are better for the planet”, in Evening Standard:

(UK, Commonwealth) Synonym of pocket diaper.


all-in-one nappy

en-noun

all-in-one nappy (plural all-in-one nappies)

We have sufficient Cosifit supplies for Katherine for the next two months, but I thought I would write to you now to ask for a more suitable all-in-one nappy for her in future.

1994, Pat Fitton, Listen to Me: Communicating the Needs of People with Profound Intellectual and Multiple Disabilities, J[essica] Kingsley Pub[lishers], →ISBN, page 20:

[a listing of supplies] A plastic or rubber wrap, or overpants unless you choose an all-in-one nappy

2011, Ann Peters, Babycare: Everything You Need to Know, Dorling Kindersley Limited, →ISBN, page 18:

all-in-one diaper
all-in-one diaper#English

(UK, Commonwealth) Synonym of all-in-one diaper.


all-in-two nappy

all-in-two nappy (plural all-in-two nappies)

Brand new to Kingdom of Fluff: Tickle Tots! We are delighted to be stocking a selection of prints in the Tickle Tots 2's (onesize all-in-two nappy), plus matching wet bags too!

Cheeky monkey 🐵😍 Edi in the new All-in-two nappy from babybeehinds 💖 My nappies in the new solid range are dried and ready for use so I can’t wait to see Edi in them! 👀

My 4 month old is struggling with nappy rash, so we are considering moving across to cloth nappies. I think I would prefer the All-in-Two nappies, where you have the waterproof outer shell and inserts attached by poppers.

2023 May 27, u/IAmPeachy_Gurl, “Reusable nappies”, in r/beyondthebump, Reddit:

all-in-two diaper
all-in-two diaper#English

(UK, Commonwealth) Synonym of all-in-two diaper.


hybrid nappy

There are also many firms now specializing in laundering cloth nappies. Or you can get the best of both worlds, perhaps, with a hybrid nappy - a cloth cover which uses a flushable lining.

2013 April 25, Ali Monaghan, “Nappy Dilemmas”, in Happy, Healthy Pregnancy, Quercus, →ISBN, page 1 [of chapter]:

Starting out, the company first developed a hybrid nappy, which was part reusable and part compostable, providing more flexibility than traditional cloth nappies. While this has been successful, there was always a sense of limitation being seen as a premium product, which is both more expensive than disposable nappies and also not quite as convenient.

2023 March 20, Allen Alexander, Fiona Charnley, Stefano Pascucci, editors, Handbook of the Circular Economy: Transitions and Transformation, De Gruyter, →ISBN, gDiapers, page 1 [of section]:

(UK, Commonwealth) Synonym of hybrid diaper.


nappy insert

Development work is in progress on carpets, upholstery fabrics, candlewick, simulated fur and pile fabrics, nappies and nappy inserts and protective clothing and overalls.

1963 October 31, “New man-made fibre for blankets”, in The Guardian, page 13:

The disposable nappy pads referred to by Roz are sometimes known as nappy inserts, and they're mainly sold to increase the absorbency of nappies for overnight wear.

1998, Heather Welford, NCT Book of Potty Training: Simple Steps to Make Life Easier, Thorsons, →ISBN, page 45:

Fuzzibuns […] Nappies made from custom-milled microfleece with a pocket to hold the nappy insert and a waterproof outer layer. £££

2007 April 10, Wiz Wharton, How to Have a Baby on EBay: Your One-Stop Shopping Guide to Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond, Harriman House Publishing, →ISBN, page 154:

(UK, Commonwealth) Synonym of diaper insert.


nappy bag

"If either of them dames had a bag like that I'd have remembered. Couldn't forget it. Reminds me of a nappy bag." "It's too bad, Miss Martelli," murmured Bony.

1950, Arthur William Upfield, The Bachelors of Broken Hill, The Crime Club, page 73:

Fold up the collapsible wheels and put them in the boot, and stash the bags - my handbag, the nappy bag (with a drink of fruit juice just in case), and the shopping basket - into the car.

1986, Carol Howland, The First-time Parent's Survival Guide, Thorsons, →ISBN, page 102:

[a bulleted list] A nappy bag (small plastic bag) to put the soiled nappy in (for the rubbish bin if disposable or, if it's a cloth nappy and you're out and about, for storing the nappy until you can take it home and put it in the laundry tub, ready for cleaning - by you)

2023, Justin Coulson, Being a Great Dad for Dummies, Wiley, →ISBN, page 122:

(UK, Commonwealth) Synonym of diaper bag.


nappy wrap

I am in New Zealand, and there seems to be very little in the way of nappy wraps available. I have got used to using a really simple fleece wrap with velcro, but the leg gussets are made with a waterproof polyester that doesn't seem to stand up to the rigours of urine!

2003 August 2, Cathy, “ot - nappy/diaper fabric”, in misc.kids.breastfeeding, Google Groups:

So try to secure his nappy so it can't be loosened or removed. This may require using nappy pins to fasten terry nappies (rather than using a nappy wrap with Velcro closings), pinning the nappy to your toddler's vest with nappy pins, or using snug, pull-on plastic pants over the nappy (which might increase the risk of nappy rash, so make sure you change nappies frequently).

2009, Heidi Murkoff, “What You May Be Wondering About”, in What to Expect: The Toddler Years, 2 edition, Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, unnumbered page:

Changing a non-disposable fabric nappy. Follow the instructions as above, plus: […] Make sure the nappy is folded correctly before you begin. (If you're using a waterproof nappy wrap, insert the nappy into it first.)

2018, David Care, The Irish Dad's Survival Guide to Pregnancy [& Beyond], The O'Brien Press, →ISBN, unnumbered page:

(UK, Commonwealth) Synonym of plastic pants.


nappy cover

Baby undergarment that has received a South African patent soon to be exploited in the U.S. and elsewhere, said the staff member of a Pretoria crèche. "No other nappy cover keeps a wet baby warm and comfortable and free from diaper rashes".

1966, New England Shepherd, volume 11, A. A. Lund Associates, page 4:

One of the hassles with a newborn is their constant need for nappies in huge quantities. We used toweling nappies on Jane with a plastic nappy cover. These were available in the U.K. as were the disposable type. However, our funds were limited and we didn't think it would be such a hardship, at the time, to wash a few nappies. Little did we know.

1990, Michael L. Frankel, Gently with the Tides: The Best of Living Aboard, Center for Marine Conservation, →ISBN, page 150:

Except that naturally, in this pop icon reimagining, the mother wears a handful of vintage rings and mandala tattoos with her designer nursing bra, while the baby matches in a logoed nappy cover.

2023 August 9, Caroline Leaper, “How Rihanna made it sexy (not frumpy) to dress like a mum”, in The Daily Telegraph:


chibby

(UK, colloquial, rare) A chestnut (nut of the chestnut tree).


thruff

Reflecting a dialectal pronunciation where the sound of (/x/) in English thurgh altered to /f/, as in standard English rough, tough, etc.

Nobbut a bit on it's left, an' I meän'd to 'a stubb'd it at fall,
 Done it ta-year I meän'd, an' runn'd plow thruff it an' all, […]

1864, Alfred Tennyson, “Northern Farmer”, in Enoch Arden, &c., London: Edward Moxon & Co., […], →OCLC, page 133:

[…] voices o' deed folks, an' hands wi'outen airms, that came i' tha darklins, moanin' an' cryin an' beckonin' all night thruff; […]

1891 June, “Legends of the Cars”, in Folk-lore: A Quarterly Review, volume II, number II, London: David Nutt, page 150:

He pointed to a stone at our feet which had been laid down as a slab, on which the seat was rested, close to the edge of the cliff. "Read the lies on that thruff-stean," he said.

1897, Bram Stoker, “Mina Murray’s Journal”, in Dracula, New York, N.Y.: Modern Library, →OCLC, chapter VI, pages 73–74:

Pronunciation spelling
pronunciation spelling

(UK, dialectal, dated) Pronunciation spelling of through.


double shuffle

(UK, slang, obsolete) A noisy shuffling dance, once common among costermongers.


cellar flap

So called because it might be danced on the cellar flap of a public house by somebody with no money, who could not enter.

(UK, slang, obsolete) Synonym of double shuffle.


night hunter

(UK, regional) Synonym of poacher (“one who trespasses to take game illegally”).


padding-ken

(obsolete, UK, slang) A lodging house for tramps.


gooser

From goose + -er. Compare cook someone's goose.

(UK, slang, obsolete) A decisive blow; a finisher or settler.


tip the double

en-verb

tip the double (third-person singular simple present tips the double, present participle tipping the double, simple past and past participle tipped the double)

tips the double (present singular third-person)
tipping the double (participle present)
tipped the double (participle past)
tipped the double (past)

(UK, slang, obsolete) To bolt; to run away without paying.


grey belt

By analogy with green belt, in reference to such land generally being greyfield or brownfield land (as opposed to countryside).

(UK, chiefly attributive) Land designated as part of the green belt (which protects against development), despite being of low environmental, aesthetic and recreational value.


jackey

Mrs. Jenkins and Sukey […] were anxious to have a privy conference over a glass of jackey, about the singular absence of Ezekiel.

1811, William Mudford, The Life and Adventures of Paul Plaintive, Esq., page 31:

[A] glass of Jackey restored him to his senses.


flask wagon

The main line fleet consists of 40 FNA-D flask wagons, 27 PFA two-axle container flats, six huge KXA-C eight-axle 'Flatrol' wagons designed to carry 110-tonne international flasks to and from Barrow Docks, and two 150-tonne-capacity French-built KUA wagons with distinctive silver sliding hoods for MoD traffic, also carried on four bogies to spread the weight.

2023 December 27, Ben Jones, “Inside Sellafield... by rail”, in RAIL, number 999, page 21:

(rail transport, British) A special open wagon for the transport of nuclear flasks.


'ooman

"He seems to set a deal of store by her, though. There's some young 'ooman at home, where she lives, I'd take my dying dick."

1875, Mrs. George Croft Huddleston, Bluebell:


washable nappy

en-noun

washable nappy (plural washable nappies)

Due to cloth nappies being reusable after washing; hence, being washable, which disposable nappies are not.

Terry towelling squares. These are still the most popular washable nappies in Britain and have a lot to be said for them.

1975, David Harvey, The Baby Book, Marshall Cavendish, →ISBN, page 101:

Wherever possible, use mild soaps and laundry detergent – the detergent is significant if you are using washable nappies.

2020, Yehudi Gordon, Birth And Beyond, Ebury Publishing, →ISBN, page 532:

(UK, Commonwealth) Synonym of cloth nappy.


on the stocks

(British, idiomatic) in progress, underway


scaghead

scagheads (plural)
skaghead (alternative)

The Breeding Ground website message board has been a-buzz with accusations, counter-accusations & general slanging after the previous live encounter. Hooper are scagheads & Pocket Venus are crap tradesmen. For the internet lurker its been an entertaining read & great publicity for the bands.

2002 May 11, “FUDGED NOVELLO NUTONIC – Breeding Ground, Rhyl”, in link2wales and Liverpool – Crud Gig Review – Crud Fanzines PLC present …:

she is young and i'm sure when she was at school there was a lot of education on drugs (my daughters been having it in yr 7!!) They use scare mongering tactics of showing young pretty girls turning into toothless scagheads!

2008 January 26, sammyg, “Amy Winehouse - Loser or Legend??”, in BritishExpats.com, archived from the original on 2024-01-07:

Newspaper readers will weep over the death of a pop idol through drugs; a politician will be praised for his ‘brave struggle’ against alcohol. In popular culture – films, books and television – we have come to expect our flawed heroes often to have an addiction problem as one of their flaws, a lonewolf cop bucking the rules and knocking back malt whisky while meditating on a case, a singer in rehab, a public figure making public penance.
Less favourably are seen the ‘scagheads’, the ‘junkies’, the street addicts, the working class addicts. Although victims all their lives of unequal and unjust social conditions, turning to drugs or drink or gambling to escape if only for a moment, it is they who are most harshly blamed and despised for their lack of responsibility – while those with a lifetime of advantages are treated with adulation and sympathy.

2017 October 16, Zero52, “Addiction and Personal Responsibility”, in The Machine Zone [“two volunteers, both with experience of extreme addiction”]:

Imagine having London dungeons but, Manchester edition! Scagheads popping out on you in the dark, the lot!

2023 January 17, A-undecisiveOpinion, “Seems legit”, in r/manchester:

It's to stop skagheads and prostitution. As well as cutting cost on paying for maintenance and cleaning

2024 June 1, AdministrativeShip2, “Local councils remove public toilets so they can fine drunk people for public urination and make money”, in r/LowStakesConspiracies:


communal bin

(UK) A dumpster shared by the residents of a flatblock or similar.


pension book

(UK) A small book of vouchers supplied by the government to pensioners in order to issue weekly payments.


book trough

(UK, archaic) A long, narrow, wooden container or receptacle for holding books.


bread and honey

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-bread and honey.wav


bread unit

(UK, historical) A standard unit of quantity equivalent to seven ounces of bread, used in rationing.


moulding of cockle bread

moulding of cocklety bread (alternative)

(UK, slang, historical, dated) A dance that involved revealing the buttocks and simulating sexual activity.


cocket-bread

(UK, obsolete) A type of bread in England, resembling hard sea biscuit.


advice of delivery

advice of delivery (plural advices of delivery)

delivery receipt
delivery receipt#English


a yard of pump water

a yard of pump water (plural yards of pump water)

A stream of water falling approximately three feet from a water pump into a bucket is both straight and thin.

as/so thin as a yard of pump water; as skinny as a yard of pump-water; as straight as a yard of pump-water; like a yard of pump water

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a yard of pump water.

(US, UK, dialectal) Something which is very straight and very thin.


above grass

From above + grass, in reference to grass only growing on the surface.

(UK, mining, obsolete) Above ground; on the surface.


cat's love

From its effect on cats, similar to catnip.

Along the river Neb, at Ballig, the common valerian (Valeriana officinalis) is blooming thickly; tall, slender, pale pink, beautifully scented, moving in the wind. Also called ‘all-heal’, ‘cut-finger’ and ‘cat's love’.

[1986, Richard Adams, A Nature Diary, Penguin Group, →ISBN, page 82:


deaf adder

deaf adders (plural)
deaf-adder (alternative)


distribution park

distribution park (plural distribution parks)

This is a result of a switch from High Street to online retailing, requiring consumer goods to be delivered to the door from large-scale distribution parks that have sufficient traffic to justify a rail terminal.

2024 January 10, 'Industry Insider', “Success built on liberalisation and market freedom”, in RAIL, number 1000, page 69:

(UK) A commercial site which receives manufactured goods and distributes them to various purchasers.


cliff railway

A branch of rail transport that seems to been rather neglected by historians is that concerned with cliff railways, of which a fair number exist in Great Britain. This is probably because these lines are overshadowed by the more spectacular funicular railways in Switzerland and other mountainous regions; perhaps, too, because of the general habit of referring to them as "cliff lifts," which tends to associate them with the vertical indoor type.

1951 August, P. W. Gentry, “Cliff Railways”, in Railway Magazine, page 514:

(transport, rail transport, UK) Synonym of cliff lift (Sense 1).


with a hook

[…] nor did the cruel sarcasm of "Oh, yes, with a hook!" — which some courtier would throw in — divert her at all from her humble purpose.

1864, Gilbert Abbott à Beckett, John Leech, The Comic History of England (page 255)

Mr. Bartley thinks himself a capital speech-maker. — (Yes — with a hook.)

1838, Actors by Daylight, volume 1, page 176:

(UK, slang, obsolete) Appended to a statement to indicate that one does not believe it.


Cheesemongers

So called after a relaxation of the social qualifications for recruitment, which meant that tradesmen (as opposed to gentlemen) could sign up.

(UK, slang, obsolete) The Life Guards (British army regiment).


Swell Street

But the life that I love is in Swell-street to shine, / With a Mounseer-fak'd calp, and my strummel all fine, […]

1846, George William MacArthur Reynolds, The Mysteries of London, volume 2, page 140:

"My beauty, it's no fault of yourn ^([sic]) that you're fit to mate with a lord; but it ain't in me to eat of his bread, and live respectable to order, in Swell Street."

1888, Henry King, Savage London, page 349:

[…] the never-failing curling lotion, invented and manufactured by Fop and Co., of Swell-street, London.

Henry Pitman, The Popular Lecturer [afterw.] Pitman's Popular Lecturer (page 140)

(UK, slang, obsolete) The West End of London.


Ch Supt

The inquest into how 96 Liverpool supporters died at that 1989 match was told that in Ch Supt Brian Mole's F division, four officers had to resign and seven were disciplined after the prank, which occured^([sic]) in October 1988, came to light.

2014 July 7, David Conn, “Hillsborough inquest hears of police commander's transfer before match”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

chief superintendent
w:chief superintendent

(UK, law enforcement) Abbreviation of chief superintendent.


chief super

(UK, law enforcement, colloquial) Clipping of chief superintendent.


candy-arse

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, sometimes vulgar, often humorous, somewhat endearing, slang) Alternative spelling of candy-ass.


docky time

(slang, UK, Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk) A midmorning break.


cockshut time

(UK, dated) Evening twilight; nightfall.


chucking-out time

(UK, slang) The time of closing at a public house.


husbands' boat

So called because many passengers were married men travelling to join their families for the holidays.

(UK, historical, archaic, slang) The Saturday-afternoon packet boat from London to Margate during the summer season.


cat in the pan

When George in pudding-time came o'er, / And moderate men looked big, sir, / I turned a cat-in-the-pan once more, / And so became a Whig, sir; […]

1927, Songs of the Immortals, volume 1, page 33:

(figurative) A falsehood that is spread and attributed to another person.


foot-scamp

"They" were the nickers and running rumblers and cock-a-brasses and blue-pigeon-flyers and foot-scamps and sharps and flash boys of London.

1951, Odell Shepard, Willard Shepard, Jenkins Ear, page 428:

(UK, slang, obsolete) A common thief who escapes on foot.


half-arse

en-adj

half-arse (comparative more half-arse, superlative most half-arse)

more half-arse (comparative)
most half-arse (superlative)

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang, sometimes considered, vulgar) Alternative spelling of half-ass.


chatsome

chatsome (comparative more chatsome, superlative most chatsome)

more chatsome (comparative)
most chatsome (superlative)


in there like swimwear

(UK, slang) A sure thing or that a goal is guaranteed in a sports match.


chemist's shop

In British, Australian, and New Zealand English chemist is a synonym for pharmacist.

(British, Australia, New Zealand) Synonym of pharmacy, especially when run as a small standalone general store.


social season

By virtue of their position, they were in palaces and situation rooms and oval offices instead of ballrooms and yachts on the Adriatic, involved in national security negotiations, and key members of internationally significant investigations instead of social seasons and fashion weeks.

2022 November 17, Emily Jane Fox, “Inside Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner’s Gilded Florida Paradise—Far From Donald Trump or 2024”, in Radhika Jones, editor, Vanity Fair, New York, N.Y.: Condé Nast, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-11-03:

(chiefly UK) A traditional annual period in the spring and summer when it is customary for members of the social elite to hold balls, dinner parties and charity events.


lighting-up time

en-noun

lighting-up time (countable and uncountable, plural lighting-up times)

(UK, law, automotive) A time period during which all motor vehicles on unlit public roads must have their headlights switched on.


magnificent seven

the magnificent seven (canonical plural)
Magnificent Seven (alternative)

After the 1960 Western film The Magnificent Seven, itself based on Seven Samurai (1954).

(colloquial, UK) Seven large private cemeteries established in London in the 19th century.


fitted nappy

The traditional terry nappies could also be considered a two-part system. They are not shaped and require folding prior to use. The main advantages over a shaped and fitted nappy are cost and speed of drying.

2003, Annabel Karmel, Complete First Year Planner, Random House, →ISBN, page 77:

Now there are plenty of fitted nappy designs to choose from and I would try shaped terries, even though I admit to enjoying the ritual of using terry squares (you've got to take your fun where you can get it!).

2010, Lynoa Cattanach, “Nappies”, in Be a Greener Parent, Hachette, →ISBN, page 1 (of chapter):

The wraps come in four sizes, in a wide range of designs or plain colours. The fitted nappies (the inner part) are made from bamboo viscose, which makes them super-absorbent for overnight use.

2023 June 27, Zoe Pickburn, “Best reusable and eco-friendly nappies that are better for the planet”, in Evening Standard:

(UK, Commonwealth) Synonym of fitted diaper.


pill bottle

(British, medicine) a small bottle that pills are kept in


as clever as a cartload of monkeys

(UK, idiomatic) Very clever, cunning or mischievous.


take in hand

en-verb

take in hand (third-person singular simple present takes in hand, present participle taking in hand, simple past took in hand, past participle taken in hand)

takes in hand (present singular third-person)
taking in hand (participle present)
took in hand (past)
taken in hand (participle past)

Possibly by analogy with a rider or stablehand taking the reins of a horse.

But thinke not thou that takest in hand to striue against God, that thou shalt escape vnpunished.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, 2 Maccabees 7:19:

Unruly boys who will not grow up / Must be taken in hand / Unruly girls who will not settle down / They must be taken in hand

1985, “Barbarism Begins At Home”, in Meat Is Murder, performed by The Smiths:

(UK) To take charge, especially for purposes of discipline or improvement.


swag-shop

(UK, slang, obsolete) A warehouse where various cheap trinkets were sold.


hanging out of one's arse

en-adj

hanging out of one's arse (not comparable)

I’m hanging out of my arse. I’m trying to drink to play well but it’s having the wrong effect. I’m just getting pissed again!

2010 August 17, John Skibeat, “TLOBF Interview // Malefice”, in The Line of Best Fit:

‘Mate, I’m hanging out of my arse. But I’ve got to score some runs, because I’ve had a bet with Vaughany and he knows I was pissed last night. […]

2018, Andrew Flintoff, Do You Know What?: Life According to Freddie Flintoff, London: Blink Publishing:

[…] its effects are similar to a combination of alcohol and MDMA, but without the comedown. If you've ever spent a full weekend hanging out your arse, you'll likely be thinking, "Sounds great, please administer this immediately."

2019 December 3, Emma Garland, “The Rise and Rise of GHB, the Most Dangerous Club Drug in the World”, in Vice:

(British, vulgar, slang) Suffering from a severe hangover.


TOTSO

Coined by the Society for All British and Irish Road Enthusiasts.

coinage

(UK, informal) Initialism of turn off to stay on.


good man

(UK, Ireland) Used as a positive response of affirmation towards a male subordinate.


I beg your pudding

(UK, colloquial, humorous) I beg your pardon.


MWA

(UK, historical) Initialism of Mandatory Work Activity (“a workfare programme”).


have a thin time of it

en-verb

have a thin time of it (third-person singular simple present has a thin time of it, present participle having a thin time of it, simple past and past participle had a thin time of it)

has a thin time of it (present singular third-person)
having a thin time of it (participle present)
had a thin time of it (participle past)
had a thin time of it (past)

(UK, idiomatic) To be in a difficult or precarious situation due to one not having enough money.


barrow crossing

en-noun

barrow crossing (plural barrow crossings)

As the ends of the up and down platforms are not opposite each other, it is not possible to provide the ordinary type of barrow crossing, and the full churns were too heavy to be man-handled up and down the stairs of the footbridge.

1951 October, “The Why and the Wherefore: Milk Platform at Beccles”, in Railway Magazine, page 717:

(rail transport, UK) A type of crossing found mainly in railway stations which allows passengers the opportunity to cross between platforms.


Ginger Line

In reference to its orange colour on maps (resembling ginger hair); named as though it were one of the London Underground lines.

[…] take the Ginger Line overground from Canada Water to Penge West. So you'll be getting off the Tube, and taking the train. I know you're American, but can you remember that?

2015, Orren Merton, The Dawning of Firebird Alex:

(UK, humorous, slang) The London Overground railway network.


sloop-of-war

(UK, military, historical) A warship with a single gundeck that carried up to eighteen guns.


registration number

registration number (plural registration numbers)

(UK) Series of letters and numbers on shown on the front and back of a motor vehicle.


dimmock

Well, first, to all the dimmocks out there, I have only one thing to say. Please take your felt tips AWAY from the TV screen. Right, now throw them away, you won't be needing them. You see, Pictionary comes complete with a nifty art package, needing only the addition of your fingers and a keyboard to originate the most splendiferous of graphic designs.

1990 January, "Pictionary" (video game review) in Your Sinclair issue 48, page 38

"No he wasn't! My dad said he was in Wham."
"What, your dad was?"
"No, Geogre Michael, you spoff. And he wore a little white glove."
"That was Prince, you dimmock!"

2015, Chris Martin, Inky Stevens, For Whom the School-Bell Tolls, page 73:


MGO

MGO (countable and uncountable, plural MGOs)

Master-General of the Ordnance
w:Master-General of the Ordnance

(UK, military, historical, countable) Initialism of Master-General of the Ordnance.


deavely

en-adj

deavely (comparative more deavely, superlative most deavely)

more deavely (comparative)
most deavely (superlative)

(UK, obsolete, regional) Lonely, unfrequented.


spenny

spenny (comparative more spenny, superlative most spenny)

more spenny (comparative)
most spenny (superlative)

"Rather a spenny little bundle, I'm afraid," he thought, "but strictly expense account stuff. […]"

1994, Humphrey Drummond, chapter 7, in Nazi Gold: the Search for the Party Treasure, London: The Historical Press Ltd, →ISBN, page 79:

My mate Nick's got a Wild Country Voyager that was pretty spenny and obviously high performance but small (having said that he only paid 80 quid for it from outside cos it'd been a demo at a show).

1999 May 25, Matt Schofield, “liberate the gear freak...”, in uk.rec.climbing (Usenet):

Ibanez will probably be too spenny unless you find one secondhand with an owner who doesn't appreciate its real value.

2000 July 5, tom8...@my-deja.com, “mid-budget archtop jazz choice ?”, in uk.music.guitar (Usenet):

Why bother with spenny cans of aspartame/sugar filled muck, when a bottle of water and a few caffeine tabs will do the job instead, hmmmmmm? Just my pen'north.

2003 May 30, Flora, “Mike's topical tip No 2”, in uk.food+drink.misc (Usenet):

Darling Ray, ¶ Having narrowly escaped being consumed by flesh-eating maggots (spawned by the world of television, rather than the dead-body-munching kind), I’ve fled to Majorca (spa was too spenny). I’m here working as a wedding planner. Please stop laughing!!!

2009, Samantha Scott-Jeffries, “Heels on Wheels” (chapter 6), in I Do, I Do, I Do, London: Little Black Dress, →ISBN, page 98:

Davey would buy these spenny glass jars of food for the baby, but Aidan was lucky if he got chips and scraps.

2017, Tony Williams, chapter 4, in Nutcase, London: Salt Publishing Limited, →ISBN, page 15:

A good 'going out top' will see you through many seasons to come. It is arguably the most important half of the classic 'jeans and a nice top' outfit combo. But finding these miracle tops is easier said than done. They can often be quite spenny or, depending on the neckline, impossible to find a bra to wear underneath.

2023 March 6, Natasha Harding, “I've found the perfect 'going out' top, and it's from H&M”, in Cosmopolitan UK, London: Hearst Magazines UK, →ISSN, archived from the original on 2023-07-04:


cream bun

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-cream bun.wav

(UK, Australia) A bun with a cream filling.


pull someone's plonker

en-verb

pull someone's plonker (third-person singular simple present pulls someone's plonker, present participle pulling someone's plonker, simple past and past participle pulled someone's plonker)

pulls someone's plonker (present singular third-person)
pulling someone's plonker (participle present)
pulled someone's plonker (participle past)
pulled someone's plonker (past)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-pull someone's plonker.wav

[…] I said, ‘Given that you’ve denied in print that you’re a screaming woofter, how d’you account for the little Filipino back-door boy you’ve had in your trendy mews flat all night?’ And he says ‘Are you pulling my plonker! I don’t know what you’re on about.’

1985, Doug Lucie, “Progress”, in Progress & Hard Feelings, London: Methuen Publishing, →ISBN, act I, scene iv, page 22:

pull someone's leg
pull someone's leg#English

Synonym of pull someone's leg (“to tease or goad someone by jokingly lying to them”).


John Radcliffe

Named for John Radcliffe, an 18th century physician and graduate from Oxford University.

(UK, healthcare) The John Radcliffe Hospital; a large hospital in Oxford in the United Kingdom.

John Radcliffe (physician)
Oxford University


scale armour

(UK, Australia) Alternative spelling of scale armor.


wet and warm

Over by the piers a black sea of heads silhouette in the bright rectangle canopied by the upslung front of the tea stall. Cups of wet and warm at fourpence.

1964, quoted in 2014, Ian J. Finch, D. F. Bratchell, E. F. Candlin, General Studies: A First Handbook for Technical Students (page 148)

At least in a short while he'd be back in his warm office with a hot cup of tea. Or at least somebody else's office with a cup of wet and warm.

2015, Geraldine Evans, Asking For It (Rafferty & Llewellyn British Mysteries; 16), unnumbered page:


sling one up

sling one up (third-person singular simple present slings one up, present participle slinging one up, simple past and past participle slung one up)

slings one up (present singular third-person)
slinging one up (participle present)
slung one up (participle past)
slung one up (past)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-sling one up.wav

Bayleaf’s eyes met George’s. George, with increasing alarm, said: ‘You ain’t slung one up it, have you?”

1992, John Burke, London's Burning, London: Simon & Schuster, page 131:

That one has fucked everyone. I've slung one up her a few times myself.

2008 May 22, Damon Beesley, Iain Morris, “Caravan Club”, in The Inbetweeners, season 1, episode 5 (television production), spoken by Jay Cartwright (James Buckley), E4:

‘Accident now, was it? I heard different, Jock. I heard that Eddie was slinging one up Bowen’s missus. So Bowen gave him a bullet for his troubles. […]

2016, Chris Ryan, Deathlist, London: Coronet Books, page 30:

(British, vulgar, slang) To have penetrative sex with (a woman).


batshite

en-adj

batshite (comparative more batshite, superlative most batshite)

more batshite (comparative)
most batshite (superlative)

[…] going totally batshite after these mean killer bikers who sort of nonchalantly kill his family, and then he chases them all across the Australian outback with a big black car […]

2011, Sean Beaudoin, You Killed Wesley Payne:

(UK, Ireland) Alternative form of batshit.


tinkerman

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-tinkerman.wav

(UK, obsolete) A person who illegally fished with a net in the Thames.


Five Power Defence Arrangements

en-proper noun

the Five Power Defence Arrangements pl (plural only)

the Five Power Defence Arrangements (canonical plural)
FPDA (alternative)

(British, UK, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, politics, military) the British-backed multilateral joint armed force between the British commonwealth countries in Southeast Asia and Oceania (mainly Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the United Kingdom).


FPDA

Five Power Defence Arrangements
Five Power Defence Arrangements#English

(British, UK, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, politics, military) Initialism of Five Power Defence Arrangements (“British-backed multilateral joint armed force between British commonwealth countries in Southeast Asia and Oceania”).


SFHEA

Higher Education Academy
w:Higher Education Academy

(UK, education, professional title) Initialism of Senior Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy.


yard of satin

'Go on,' Bertie encouraged, holding the box closer. 'It'll make you feel spiffing. It's better than a yard of satin.' Her expression reflected intimate familiarity with a glass of gin.

2014, Richard Gordon, The Private Life Of Jack The Ripper, page 99:


meow meow

(UK, slang) Alternative form of meow (“the drug mephedrone”).


swarry

A select company of the Bath footmen presents their compliments to Mr. Weller, and requests the pleasure of his company this evening, to a friendly swarry, consisting of a boiled leg of mutton with the usual trimmings.

1836, Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers:

His grimaces on eating hice at a swarry, and the way in which he olds his umbrelli, and vipes his nose, defy all criticism.

1869, Henry Crabb Robinson, Thomas Sadler, Diary, Reminiscences, and Correspondence of Henry Crabb Robinson, page 470:

(UK, archaic) Pronunciation spelling of soiree.


shallow fellow

(UK, thieves' cant, obsolete) Synonym of shallow cove.


shallow cove

(UK, thieves' cant, obsolete) A beggar who goes around almost naked.


constructive malice

(UK, law, historical) The doctrine that malice aforethought could be attributed to the defendant if death was caused during the commission of another felony (such as robbery or burglary) — abolished in most cases by the Homicide Act 1957.


get a sad on

en-verb

get a sad on (third-person singular simple present gets a sad on, present participle getting a sad on, simple past and past participle got a sad on)

gets a sad on (present singular third-person)
getting a sad on (participle present)
got a sad on (participle past)
got a sad on (past)


cank

en-noun

cank (countable and uncountable, plural canks)

From Middle English *cank (compare Middle English cang (“foolish"; also "fool”, adj and noun) > obsolete English cank (“dumb, stupid”)), from Old English canc, ġecanc (“scorn, jeering”), from Proto-West Germanic *kank, from Proto-Germanic *kanką (“laughter”), from Proto-Indo-European *geng-, *genǵ- (“to mock, insult”).


cank

en-verb

cank (third-person singular simple present canks, present participle canking, simple past and past participle canked)

canks (present singular third-person)
canking (participle present)
canked (participle past)
canked (past)

He said that what he had told me wasn't meant to be repeated again, and I ought not to have gone canking it about, especially to the Rymers theirselves^([sic]); […]

1880, Ellen Wood, Johnny Ludlow, volume 1, page 67:

(UK, dialectal) To gossip, prate, chatter.

(UK, dialectal) To talk rapidly; gabble.


workplace parking levy

en-noun

workplace parking levy (plural workplace parking levies)

Invariably, the principal object is to improve air quality. But those constraints beg the question: why has no city followed Nottingham's example of a workplace parking levy, which has generated about £10 million a year to finance the city's tram system?

2024 March 6, Steve Edwards discusses with Anthony Lambert, “The bedrock of urban renewal”, in RAIL, number 1004, page 35:

(UK) A charge that can be made by local authorities on parking provided by employers for employees, for the purposes of reducing road congestion, improving air quality and encouraging use of public transport.


plait fog

en-verb

plait fog (third-person singular simple present plaits fog, present participle plaiting fog, simple past and past participle plaited fog)

plaits fog (present singular third-person)
plaiting fog (participle present)
plaited fog (participle past)
plaited fog (past)

From the fact that fog is too insubstantial to be plaited.

The result for the supervisee is an experience like 'plaiting fog', that is, trying to hold together the different strands in a unified whole — and holding the tension between the needs of client, counsellor and organization.

1999, Michael Carroll, Elizabeth Holloway, Counselling Supervision in Context, page 189:

He believed that the project was largely "plaiting fog” and making too much of what it had achieved.

2003, Cathy Davis, Housing associations - rehousing women leaving domestic violence, page 57:

Like my life is one long session of plaiting fog.

'Currently, I'm plaiting fog,' Henry admitted.

(UK, figurative) To perform an action in which the result falls apart immediately or to work on organizing something that cannot be organized.

Just as you can't plait fog, you can hardly have an informed debate about something that means quite different things to different people.

2010, Cath Irvine, Graham Firth, Ruth Berry, Understanding Intensive Interaction, page 19:

I though H had more chance of plaiting fog than coming back with an affirmative to his request.

2011, Philip Serrell, Sold to the Man With the Tin Leg:

"This is like trying to plait fog,” said Robson, now showing his frustration. “You can't have it both ways.”

2015, J.R Stephenson, Barclays - Bankers or Bandits, page 152:

Trying to pin down the meaning of the words themselves— 'spiritual', 'spirituality', 'religious experience'— is like trying to plait fog, but the endeavour is necessary, not least because interviewees will hear and use all these terms in different ways.

2016, David Nixon, Stories from the Street: A Theology of Homelessness:

Never going to 'appen, love. I'll plait fog if it does.

(UK) Used as a metaphor for accomplishing an impossible task.


knit fog

knit fog (third-person singular simple present knits fog, present participle knitting fog, simple past and past participle knit fog or knitted fog)

knits fog (present singular third-person)
knitting fog (participle present)
knit fog (participle past)
knit fog (past)
knitted fog (participle past)
knitted fog (past)

Identifying where it comes from or who is responsible is almost like trying to knit fog.

2001, Elaine Douglas, Bullying in the Workplace: An Organizational Toolkit, page 43:

Trying to get to the bottom of this feeling is like trying to knit fog.

2012, Gillian Ogilvie, Living without Lucy, page 208:

The first of the metaphors used to describe the working environment at HMP Hull demonstrates the belief that all the elements one might require are present, if only they could be brought together and coordinated in an effective manner—in other words: 'working here is like trying to knit fog!'

2013, Frank A. Stowell, Ray L. Ison, Rosalind Armson, Systems for Sustainability, page 450:

This is like trying to knit fog - it's an impossible dream.

2015, Elizabeth J Tucker, A Matter of Self-confidence - Part I:

James would tell you that all that debate about what you actually know or don't know is a bit like trying to knit fog. And about as useful.

2017, Marcus Weeks, What Would Nietzsche Do?:


plait sawdust

plait sawdust (third-person singular simple present plaits sawdust, present participle plaiting sawdust, simple past and past participle plaited sawdust)

plaits sawdust (present singular third-person)
plaiting sawdust (participle present)
plaited sawdust (participle past)
plaited sawdust (past)

One person has described trying to get a group of toddlers to sit on a mat to listen to a story as 'like trying to plait sawdust.'

2003, Laurie Makin, Marian R Whitehead, How to Develop Children's Early Literacy, page 39:

The urinating gentleman in question was a main-scale teacher whose attempts to go therough the performance threshold appeared about as straightforward as trying to plait sawdust.

2007, Brian Carline, How to be a Successful Head of Year: A Practical Guide, page xi:

I can no more read an MRI scanner than “plait sawdust”.

2008, Phillip Taylor, Going Full Circle: My Fight Against Guillain Barre Syndrome, page 56:

If that was a penalty, I'll plait sawdust.

2010, Phil Shaw, Tell Him He's Pelé:, page 46:

Bob Smith who was office manager at Nelson and Colne College once said in a meeting 'We've plaited sawdust for that long all the pigeons have come home to roost'.

2010, Stanley Graham, Naive Occasional Papers. Volume Two, page 220:


gangbo

(UK, informal) A legal injunction against a person because of their gang-related activities.


scatland

en-noun

scatland (countable and uncountable, plural scatlands)

scatlands (plural)
scattland (alternative)
skattland (alternative)

(UK) Land on which scat (Shetland Islands land tax) is paid.


flat nappy

They can be safely bleached, soaked, washed and dried for years. They need to be folded and pinned in place correctly to get the best fit and avoid leaks, and then are best covered with pilchers (soft overpants) or waterproof pants to protect outer clothing. Although this takes a bit of practice to get right, flat nappies can work well, and can be particularly useful at night for older babies.

2008, Daniel Allen, Cheryl Benn, Sue Pullon, Margot Schwass, The New Zealand Pregnancy Book, Bridget Williams Books, →ISBN, page 174:

Some flat nappies come with Y-shaped fasteners as well. Terry squares are old-school nappies that are basically cotton towels that are folded around your baby's bottom and fastened with a large safety pin or plastic grip.

2015, Zion Lights, The Ultimate Guide to Green Parenting, New Internationalist, →ISBN, unnumbered page:

There are also separate nappy and cover systems including flats (a traditional style of nappy), prefolds (a flat nappy with an absorbent panel in the center) and fitted (where the folding has been done for you). Adding a cover to each of these options makes them waterproof.

2021 April 29, Freya Lucas, “Guidance for services wanting to explore environmentally friendly nappies”, in The Sector:

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, uncommon) Synonym of flat diaper (“a makeshift cloth diaper folded from a large piece of square or rectangular absorbent fabric, such as terry (coarse cotton), which is held in place by a diaper pin or other fastener”).


creeping freehold

creeping freehold (plural creeping freeholds)

(law, UK) The freehold of property, such as a basement or cellar, that is located underneath a different freehold; the converse of flying freehold.


NNR

(UK) Initialism of national nature reserve.


NNR

(UK, parenting, rare) Initialism of not nappy related (used in forums dedicated to nappies (diapers) to signify that the succeeding post is not related to nappies; i.e. it is off-topic).


WAHM

(parenting, Internet slang, chiefly UK) A diaper made (sewn) by a work-at-home mother, especially a reusable cloth diaper.


pig off

en-verb

pig off (third-person singular simple present pigs off, present participle pigging off, simple past and past participle pigged off)

pigs off (present singular third-person)
pigging off (participle present)
pigged off (participle past)
pigged off (past)


arse up

arse up (third-person singular simple present arses up, present participle arsing up, simple past and past participle arsed up)

arses up (present singular third-person)
arsing up (participle present)
arsed up (participle past)
arsed up (past)

Take aim. Throw. If he arsed it up and made the creature angry – ha, well. He didn't look scared though.

2011, Carol Birch, Jamrach's Menagerie, page 110:

(UK, slang, transitive) To mess up; to botch.


muntered

Related to munter (“person often impaired by alcohol”)

'Got a pic of you muntered you feel you need to share with the world? Text it to us from a picture messaging phone.' Online, Mixmag directs you to the Gurner's Gallery, where hundreds of photos of huge pupils[…]

2004, Nick Barham, Dis/connected: Why Our Kids are Turning Their Backs on Everything We Thought We Knew, Vintage:

[…] Today, you can be muntered, mullered,[…]

2009 October 22, Susie Dent, What Made The Crocodile Cry?: 101 questions about the English language, OUP Oxford, →ISBN, page 3:

It was sad but as Troy said to me once while muntered, at least she went out with a bang.

2015 May 19, Abigail Tarttelin, Flick: A Novel, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 77:


miaow miaow

(UK, slang) Alternative form of meow (“the drug mephedrone”).


Andrew Millar

(chiefly UK, naval slang) Alternative form of Andrew Miller (“the navy”).


Blimpery

(British, derogatory) Pompous political conservatism.


green-welly

This was green welly country. Lots of people kept horses, goats, chickens and dogs. The Royal Welsh Showground was an easy drive from here.

Marcus is a man of the Right, a besuited man of business during his lucrative banker years, and, since 'retirement', a green-welly country gent as his landowner father had been.

2022, Richard Woolley, Detachment Theory:

(UK, colloquial) Of or relating to the green welly brigade.


drop into

drop into (third-person singular simple present drops into, present participle dropping into, simple past and past participle dropped into)

drops into (present singular third-person)
dropping into (participle present)
dropped into (participle past)
dropped into (past)


county crop

So called because inmates of the county prisons were given such haircuts.

(UK, slang, obsolete) A very short haircut, shaved almost bald.


wool-hole

Poor Sam's attenuated form, quite lean, and gone to grass, / Through neglecting his work-house, to the wool-hole came at last, […]

1876, Printers' Circular, volume 11, page 34:


Saino's

Throw on an oversized denim jacket for those chillier evenings and you’re good to go for that summer bev on Osborne Road, followed by a cheeky trip to Saino’s for a £5 bottle of Echo Falls.

2021 April 2, Jessamie Rattray, “What your go-to Jesmond girl summer look says about you”, in The Tab:

(UK, slang) Sainsbury's (British supermarket chain).


Tizer

(UK, slang, obsolete) The Morning Advertiser newspaper.


tibby

If he comes up here, I'll be one upon his tibby.

1861, Henry Mayhew, London Labour and the London Poor, volume 3, page 58:


not for

He is not for resuscitation.

After discussion with her family, she was deemed not for ICU admission.

(medicine, UK, Australia, New Zealand) Not to be subjected to (a procedure); indicates that the patient, or relevant carers or next of kin, have specifically requested that the procedure not be carried out.


Everyone has to start somewhere bro, they wouldn't of intimidated you when they first started. Just makes them class A 🛎🔚's

If you're one of the people out there starting to panic buy items like toilet roll again, you my friend are a 🛎🔚

James Daly, minister for massive foreheads and stupid comments.. 🛎🔚 ⤵

(British, Ireland, Internet slang, vulgar, euphemistic) Alternative form of bell-end (“a stupid or contemptible person.”).


wet-un

The sick animals are divided into three classes — "choppers, rough-uns, and wet-uns."

1849, The Farmer's Magazine, volume 19, page 142:

(UK, slang, obsolete) A diseased cow, unfit for human food, but nevertheless sold to make into sausages etc.


spicehead

From spice (“synthetic cannibinoid”) + -head.

(UK, slang, derogatory) A person who is under the influence of, or addicted to a synthetic cannibinoid.


so help my tater

(UK, slang, obsolete, euphemistic) Synonym of so help me God.


fusball

(UK, dialect, obsolete) A puffball (type of fungus).


M.R.C.Psych.

w:Member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists

(UK, psychiatry, postnominal qualification) Initialism of Member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists.


NFCC

National Fire Chiefs Council
w:National Fire Chiefs Council

(UK) Initialism of National Fire Chiefs Council.


six-pack of rolls

en-noun

six-pack of rolls (plural six packs of rolls)

Likely by analogy with six pack of abs, the abs exchanged for rolls (“visible folds in the belly caused by obesity”).

(British, idiomatic, colloquial, humorous) A fat belly, as opposed to one with a six-pack. See definitions 1 and 2 of six-pack. Seldom used in the plural.


latte levy

Starbucks is the first UK coffee chain to introduce a national “latte levy” - a 5p charge on single-use paper coffee cups - in a bid to reduce the overuse and waste of 2.5bn disposable cups every year.

2018 July 10, Rebecca Smithers, “Starbucks introduces 'latte levy' of 5p on single-use paper cups”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 2024-04-29:

The so-called latte levy aims to incentivise the use of recycled and reusable alternatives to single-use disposable packaging.

2022 July 22, “Disposable cup levy to be introduced in Ireland”, in BBC, archived from the original on 2024-04-29:

Research commissioned by the Irish Paper Packaging Circularity Alliance (IPPCA) calculates that the 20 cent tax, dubbed the latte levy, could cause 4,244 job losses in coffee shops as customers respond by cutting consumption.

2023 July 17, Barry O'Halloran, “Latte levy will hit thousands of jobs and may close businesses, industry says”, in The Irish Times, archived from the original on 2023-07-17:

(Ireland, UK) A proposed tax on disposable coffee cups or paper cups in general, with the purpose of reducing waste.


GWPF

Abbott delivered the annual lecture to the London-based Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF), a climate sceptic thinktank on Monday evening. […] He told the GWPF Australia needed “evidence-based policy rather than policy-based evidence” and took aim at a 2013 study that showed that 97% of scientists agree humans are driving climate change, “as if scientific truth is determined by votes rather than facts”.

2017 October 9, Karl Mathiesen, “Tony Abbott says climate change is 'probably doing good'”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

Global Warming Policy Foundation
w:The Global Warming Policy Foundation

(UK, climate change) Initialism of Global Warming Policy Foundation.


clew up

en-verb

clew up (third-person singular simple present clews up, present participle clewing up, simple past and past participle clewed up)

clews up (present singular third-person)
clewing up (participle present)
clewed up (participle past)
clewed up (past)

(UK, informal) To finish up or to tidy up, as in the tie up a sail on a sailing boat, the clew being a part of the structure holding the sail. Comes from the nautical term "clew".


loo room

(chiefly in the plural) A public toilet.


join issue

join issue (third-person singular simple present joins issue, present participle joining issue, simple past and past participle joined issue)

joins issue (present singular third-person)
joining issue (participle present)
joined issue (participle past)
joined issue (past)

(UK, idiomatic) Of two people, to argue with one another.

[W]ith Rejoinders and Replies, / Long Bills, and Anſvvers, ſtuft vvith Lies, / Demurr, Imparlance, and Eſſoign, / The Parties ne'er could Iſſue join: / For Sixteen Years the Cauſe vvas ſpun, / And then ſtood vvhere it firſt begun.

1726, [Jonathan Swift], Cadenus and Vanessa. A Poem, London: […] J. Roberts […], →OCLC, page 9:

In one sense, the Court’s decision to pass over this complication may be understandable. After all, none of the parties before us questioned the application of a discovery rule in proceedings below, but joined issue only over how it should work.

2021, Warner Chappell Music, Inc. v. Nealy (U.S. Supreme Court No. 19-292), Justice Gorsuch dissenting

(UK, law) Of two parties to a legal proceeding, to agree to argue about a particular legal claim.


cost base

(finance, accounting, UK, Australia, New Zealand) The fixed costs, and sometimes all other costs as well, involved in running a company or producing a product.


mobie

(British, informal) Alternative form of moby (“a mobile phone”).


price of admiralty

(UK, military, historical) The cost of maintaining supreme command of the seas.


corridor care

(UK, healthcare) The treatment of patients in spaces not intended for clinical purposes, such as corridors and waiting-rooms, as a result of overcrowding.


KCSIE

(UK, education) Initialism of keeping children safe in education.


blue Smarties

From the British chocolate sweet Smarties. The blue-colored Smartie was temporarily withdrawn by the manufacturer until a natural blue dye was found – this led to a popular belief that the blue Smartie was withdrawn for causing hyperactivity, although brilliant blue FCF is not one of the food colourings associated with hyperactivity.

.Shearer has an untouchable romance with Tyneside and his appointment seemed to inject the Geordie fans with an overdose of blue Smarties.

(Can we date this quote?), Football Friends Media, Two Left Feet, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 53:

I shot a photographic session based on the beginning part of his act where he dances to the Bee Gees 'Disco Inferno' (a great seventies disco classic by the way) in a style which can best be described as an eight year old overdosed on blue Smarties.

1998, Martin Evening, Adobe Photoshop 5.0 for Photographers: An Illustrated Guide to Image Editing and Manipulation in Photoshop:

'And one for all!' Belle rallied, with a swashbuckling flourish as they stepped out from behind the bush, nearly crashing into Nick and Lettie, who were hurrying past on their way to the Redgrave.
'Whoa! You two been at the blue Smarties again?' Nick joked.

2010 April 29, Isabella Cass, Superstar High: Star Friends, Random House, →ISBN, page 167:

'Have you been eating the blue smarties again, Splinter?' Danny joked.
'I'm telling you, lads, it was mental. I thought my ears were going to explode. I could hear noises getting louder and louder.'

2012 November 15, Joe O'Brien, Tiger Boots, The O'Brien Press, →ISBN:

Compared to something like IDW's Infiltration issue #1 from the supposedly ADD 21st century and it seems like everyone at Marvel was off their heads on blue Smarties where this was being put together.

2015 July 25, Stuart Webb, Transformation: A Personal Journey Through the British Transformers Comic Volume 1: 1984-1987, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 11:

(UK, slang) Something that causes great excitement or hyperactivity.


direct grant grammar school

en-noun

direct grant grammar school (plural direct grant grammar schools)

(UK, education, historical) A kind of selective secondary school in the United Kingdom that existed between 1945 and 1976, having one quarter of the places directly funded by central government, while the remainder attracted fees, some paid by a Local Education Authority and some by the pupils' parents or guardians.


chog

(UK, dialect, obsolete) The core of an apple.


permissive working

(UK, railways) A system allowing more than one train at a time to be on the same line in a block section, a signal section, or a dead-end platform line.


poor relief

(UK, historical) Governmental and ecclesiastical action to relieve poverty.


jigger gun

Officials of Chicago't Cook County Jail watch Ed Stanley, inmate, pick sample locks with a professional "jigger gun."

1935, Science News Letter - Volumes 27-28, page 164:

The jigger gun and nippers would be out of sight down the shaft, and the face of the plate hides the thread.

1936, Clyde B. Clason, The Fifth Tumbler, page 245:

[…] of attack that open practically any padlock — the use of keys, picking of the lock with hand picks or jigger guns, […]

1938, Chain Store Age - Volume 14, page 147:


prosser

[…] swore that he had a vast income of his own and only borrowed money for the pleasure he got out of the process. A man unfleeced was a day lost in the life of Fatty. Seasoned bookies like Charlie Head or Dick Dunn, as shrewd a moneylender as Sam Lewis, or even other prossers, […]

1958, Guy Deghy, Paradise in the Strand: The Story of Romano's, page 164:

(UK, slang, obsolete) One who prosses; a sponger or scrounger.


botty bandit

(UK, Ireland, slang, derogatory) Synonym of arse bandit (“a gay man”).


counterie

He's now in that bright blissful counterie

1838, Thomas Eagles, Brendallah, A Poem, Whittaker & Co., section LIX, page 115:

Now, I can say no more ; to the Law-board I must go, / There to take the last farewell of my friends and counterie ;

1888, “The Lamentation of Hugh Reynolds”, in Henry Halliday Sparling, editor, Irish Minstrelsy: Being a Selection of Irish Songs, Lyrics, and Ballads, Walter Scott, page 381:

She's the fairest young maiden that e’er I did see, / She exceeds all the maids in the north counterie.

1932, “Molly of the North Country”, in The Musical Quarterly, volume 18, G. Schirmer, Inc., page 110:

You shall dry up your milk as a virgin so free, / And pass for a maid in some strange counterie.

2011 [1965], Frank Purslow, “Home, Dearest Home”, in Marrow Bones: English Folk Songs From The Hammond And Gardiner Mss., Read Books Limited, page 91:

(obsolete, UK dialectal) Alternative spelling of country.


tactical contact

tactical contact (countable and uncountable, plural tactical contacts)

(uncountable) The use of a police vehicle to deliberately ram another vehicle, in an attempt to bring a pursuit to an end.

(countable) An instance of such ramming.

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see tactical, contact.


people's warden

people's warden (countable and uncountable, plural people's wardens)

(UK, Christianity) A type of churchwarden elected annually by the congregation as a whole.


sling up

en-verb

sling up (third-person singular simple present slings up, present participle slinging up, simple past and past participle slung up)

slings up (present singular third-person)
slinging up (participle present)
slung up (participle past)
slung up (past)


Turkey teeth

From Turkey (country) + teeth, in reference to the fact that Turkey is a popular destination for low-price private dental surgery.

A tall, spindly man gaily swept into the room, his gleaming white Turkey teeth lighting the way ahead of him, a beacon in the mood lighting of the boutique.

2023, Gina Kirkham, Murders at the Rookery Grange Retreat: A brand new unmissable humorous cozy crime mystery, Open Road Media, →ISBN:

Veneers like that cost a fortune. They are understated, no Turkey teeth for him, but the upper canine left is missing, not extracted by somebody with a dental degree.

2024, Caro Ramsay, Out of the Dark, Severn House Publishers Ltd, →ISBN:

He flashed his warrant card at a receptionist with "Turkey teeth" - they were all over the bloody place; had folk stopped looking in mirrors? - and false eyelashes.

2024, O. J. Mullen, The Wrong Woman, Boldwood Books Ltd, →ISBN:

(UK, slang) Unnaturally white, straightened teeth, especially from an overseas dentist.


start on at

start on at (third-person singular simple present starts on at, present participle starting on at, simple past and past participle started on at)

starts on at (present singular third-person)
starting on at (participle present)
started on at (participle past)
started on at (past)

(informal, UK) Synonym of start on (To criticize).


harden up

harden up (third-person singular simple present hardens up, present participle hardening up, simple past and past participle hardened up)

hardens up (present singular third-person)
hardening up (participle present)
hardened up (participle past)
hardened up (past)

(nautical, UK) To tighten up a sailboat's sheets in order to prevent luffing.


sling out

sling out (third-person singular simple present slings out, present participle slinging out, simple past and past participle slung out)

slings out (present singular third-person)
slinging out (participle present)
slung out (participle past)
slung out (past)

(slang, transitive, UK) To kick out, eject or throw out (something)..


sling for

sling for (third-person singular simple present slings for, present participle slinging for, simple past and past participle slung for)

slings for (present singular third-person)
slinging for (participle present)
slung for (participle past)
slung for (past)

(dated, colloquial, transitive, UK) To pay for (something); to spring for (something).


sling in

sling in (third-person singular simple present slings for, present participle slinging for, simple past and past participle slung for)

(dated, colloquial, transitive, UK) To arrive (somewhere).


be on

be on (third-person singular simple present is on, present participle being on, simple past was on, past participle been on)

is on (present singular third-person)
being on (participle present)
was on (past)
been on (participle past)

The Tories are on twenty-five percent in that constituency.

(UK, transitive, literally) To be ranked at (something), based on polling.


land with

land with (third-person singular simple present lands with, present participle landing with, simple past and past participle landed with)

lands with (present singular third-person)
landing with (participle present)
landed with (participle past)
landed with (past)

My boss landed me with dozens of assignments.

(transitive, UK) To assign extra work or burdensome work to (someone).


push along

push along (third-person singular simple present pushes along, present participle pushing along, simple past and past participle pushed along)

pushes along (present singular third-person)
pushing along (participle present)
pushed along (participle past)
pushed along (past)


close with

close with (third-person singular simple present closes with, present participle closing with, simple past and past participle closed with)

closes with (present singular third-person)
closing with (participle present)
closed with (participle past)
closed with (past)

(UK) To fight in a battle with (someone).


kenspecked

Yynge Heraudyn al bie the grene Wode sate, / Hereynge the swote Chelandrie ande the Oue, / Seeinge the kenspecked amaylde flourettes nete, / Envyngynge to the Birds hys Love songe true.

1803, Thomas Chatterton, “Heraudyn”, in The Works of Thomas Chatterton […], volume II, London: Biggs and Cottle, page 135:

A piece of money is sworn to after a robbery,—it has a hole in it;—a sheep upon a similar circumstance is identified,—it is peculiarly coloured;—and probably the thief himself, from a peculiar physiognomy, is pointed out,—as kenspecked.

1841, Richard Winter Hamilton, “On the Yorkshire Dialect”, in Nugæ Literariæ: Prose and Verse, London, Leeds: Hamilton, Adams & Co.; Smith, Elder & Co.; Jackson & Walford; J. Y. Knights; John Cross, page 336:

Ewes can be souted (diseased), sheep can be kessen (on their backs and unable to rise), and various animals kenspecked (branded, marked).

1979, Peter Wright, Cumbrian Dialect, Dalesman Books, page 11:

(UK, dialect, Northern England, obsolete) Marked and easily recognized; kenspeck.


kirkmaster

From Middle English kirkmaster, kyrkmaster, equivalent to kirk + master.

(obsolete, Christianity, Northern UK) Alternative spelling of kyrkmaster.


lilly-low

lilly-lows (plural)
lilly low (alternative)
lillylow (alternative)

Likely from Scots lilly (“lovely”) + low (“flame”). The first term might also directly come from liefly.

Should any pretend to quibble at the little eſcapes of ſuch men, the bulk of the world would know no more of it than of the Anatomiſts interſcapularia, and the reſt would conſider it as a north-country Lilly-Low, that is, a mere ſtraw-fire.

1782, Robert Robinson, “The Preface”, in Arcana: in VIII. Letters to a Friend, London: […] W. Lepard and J. Buckland, page xv:

Then she arranged the logs in a more scientific manner, blew one long, well-directed breath, causing what Yorkshire folk call "a lilly-low," then nodded her head significantly, with another broad smile.

1868, J. Reynard, “The Victoria Mission: From the Journal of the Rev. J. Reynard, 1866-67”, in Ninth Annual Report of the Columbia Mission for the Year 1867, London: Rivingtons, page 21:

For lily-lows is nought to it for burning.

1890 January 10, Walter Adams Wallace, Only a Sister?: A Tale of To-day^(Quote https://www.google.com.sv/books/edition/The_English_Catalogue_of_Books/ZZBIAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22W.+A.+Wallace%22+%22only+a+sister%22&pg=PA1031&printsec=frontcover https://www.google.com.sv/books/edition/The_Speaker/545NAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22only+a+sister%22&pg=PA324&printsec=frontcover), London: Roper & Drowley, page 360:

Lilly-low, lilly-low, set up on end,
See little baby go out at town end.

1906, Lina Eckenstein, “Riddle-rhymes” (chapter X), in Comparative Studies in Nursery Rhymes, London: Duckworth & Co., page 113:

Winter, disputing every inch of ground, at last retreated beaten. The sun burst through the sullen clouds, and flung his lusty beams about the house. The dust-motes caught their radiance, and danced in shimmering lilly-lows, which played about the kitchen.

1912, Louis Pergaud, “Margot”, in Douglas English, transl., Tales of the Untamed: Dramas of the Animal World, New York: Outing Publishing Company, pages 192-193:

Occasionally at evenglome one of the Gillie Girls would come and sit on a Rock offshore and sing to me by the light of the lilly-lows, accompanying herself on her long golden hair, which should not have sorted very well with her scaly green skin but somehow did.

1975 January 10, Evelyn E. Smith, Unpopular Planet, Dell Publishing, page 331:

(obsolete, UK, Scotland, dialect) A flame, especially a bright, small or lovely one.


toss it in

toss it in (third-person singular simple present tosses it in, present participle tossing it in, simple past and past participle tossed it in)

tosses it in (present singular third-person)
tossing it in (participle present)
tossed it in (participle past)
tossed it in (past)

I've been at this long enough, so I'm ready to toss it in.

(slang, Australia, UK, intransitive) To quit doing something.


throw wobblies

throw wobblies (third-person singular simple present throws wobblies, present participle throwing wobblies, simple past threw wobblies, past participle thrown wobblies)

throws wobblies (present singular third-person)
throwing wobblies (participle present)
threw wobblies (past)
thrown wobblies (participle past)

(UK, idiomatic, colloquial) To throw tantrums (habitually have temper tantrums).


route-one

en-adj

route-one (comparative more route-one, superlative most route-one)

more route-one (comparative)
most route-one (superlative)

From route one football, a very direct association football strategy.

They were blindingly primitive, powered by Clark's anti-jazz drums, relentless two-note saxophone and Mike Smith's raw bellowed vocals. Unlike the early-sixties Spurs team that Clark watched from the terraces, this was route-one stuff.

2013 September 13, Bob Stanley, Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop, Faber & Faber, →ISBN, page 9:

It was a calculated route-one strategy, but would it work? If they dragged these unsuspecting punters in with the music, the album's content would certainly make them think.

2019 March 14, Sara Hawys Roberts, Leon Noakes, Withdrawn Traces: Searching for the Truth about Richey Manic, Foreword by Rachel Edwards, Random House, →ISBN:

You are less likely to drop dead, because lack of exercise is the second-biggest killer of middle-aged men after smoking. It's all really simple, route-one stuff.

2020 September 10, Matt Rudd, Man Down: Why Men Are Unhappy and What We Can Do About It, Hachette UK, →ISBN:

(UK, slang) Direct, basic, unsubtle, brute force.


spank out

en-verb

spank out (third-person singular simple present spanks out, present participle spanking out, simple past and past participle spanked out)

spanks out (present singular third-person)
spanking out (participle present)
spanked out (participle past)
spanked out (past)

He spanked out of town.

(intransitive, dated, UK, New Zealand) To depart.


thrutch up

thrutch up (third-person singular simple present thrutches up, present participle thrutching up, simple past and past participle thrutched up)

thrutches up (present singular third-person)
thrutching up (participle present)
thrutched up (participle past)
thrutched up (past)

(intransitive, UK, dialectal) To scoot over to make room in a crowded space; to press or push together to make room.


reverse the charges

reverse the charges (third-person singular simple present reverses the charges, present participle reversing the charges, simple past and past participle reversed the charges)

reverses the charges (present singular third-person)
reversing the charges (participle present)
reversed the charges (participle past)
reversed the charges (past)
reverse the charge (alternative)

(intransitive, British) To make a telephone call for which the party who is called agrees to pay.


churchmaster

From Middle English chirche maister, equivalent to church + master. Piecewise doublet of kyrkmaster.

(obsolete, UK dialectal) A churchwarden.


Acacia Avenue

acacia (“A flowering shrub often grown ornamentally”) + avenue (“a broad tree-lined street”). Streets named after trees are common on planned housing estates.

To Paul Hubbard of 11 Acacia Avenue, Anytown, Anyshire I give the residue of my estate.

2011 February 14, Julian Knight, Wills, Probate, and Inheritance Tax For Dummies, John Wiley & Sons, →ISBN, page 284:

(UK) A placeholder name for a residential street.

In company lines intricate fences have sprung up around fantastic gardens. The officers' lines have begun to acquire an “Acacia Avenue” aspect.

1948, Alon Kadish, quoting Lt. Whidborne, The British Army in Palestine and the 1948 War: Containment, Withdrawal and Evacuation, Routledge, →ISBN:

Nor, however, is the 'bourgeois' the Acacia Avenue accountant with two children in boarding-school education.

2004 January 1, David A. Reisman, Schumpeter's Market: Enterprise and Evolution, Edward Elgar Publishing, →ISBN, page 107:

A woman worked a garden behind a neat whitewashed fence, a real Acacia Avenue kind of scene.

2013 June 20, Stephen Baxter, Terry Pratchett, The Long War: (Long Earth 2), Random House, →ISBN, page 117:

(UK) An archetypal middle-class suburban residential street.


melonious

en-adj

melonious (comparative more melonious, superlative most melonious)

more melonious (comparative)
most melonious (superlative)

From melon + -ious, likely as a pun on melodious.

Only occasionally, jacketless in her customary brown or gray silk blouse and ramrod straight in her typing chair, did she reveal superb melonious breasts cantilevered over a trim waist.

1987, Thomas B. Morgan, Snyder’s Walk, page 59:

“But what about all those women? That awful woman with a bottom you said was melonious?”

1987, Henrietta Garnett, Family Skeletons, page 26:

She is clearly taking in my visible panty line, lack of melonious chest and bottom like a bagful of walnuts. I knew I would hate this bloody place the minute I arrived.

2004, Carole Matthews, The Sweetest Taboo, page 80:

Or do you reconsider at, say, 65? Then you weigh up having melonious gazongas that seem to belong to a much younger lady against, I’m guessing, sad, empty bags of skin. (Or by then will you have had your face done to match your boobs?)

2012 January 7, Janice Turner, “Like the financial bubble, implants will burst”, in The Times, number 70463, London, page 25:

(euphemistic, by extension, chiefly UK) Curvaceous.

(of body parts, especially breasts) Very large.

I have had several letters of complaint from the Haringey Women’s Lesbian Kalashnikov Training and Mouth Painting Centre saying that this column has been prejudiced in favour of girls with enormous breasts to the detriment of their less melonious sisters.

1991, Ed Knox, “World of Nookie”, in Men Only, volume 56, number 6, Paul Raymond, page 34:

(of a woman) Very buxom; having large breasts.

Curvaceous.
Very buxom; having large breasts.


waterfunk

waterfunks (plural)
water-funk (alternative)
water funk (alternative)

Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *wed-
Proto-Indo-European *-r̥
Proto-Indo-European *wódr̥
Proto-Germanic *watōr
Proto-West Germanic *watar
Old English wæter
Middle English water
English water
English funk
English waterfunk
Compound of water + funk (“a coward”).

etymon

We remember in ancient times, when William IV. was king, on a magnificent sheet of brownish water, gracefully named Duck Puddle, a select little coterie of waterfunks (the title sufficiently explains itself—Etonicè frousts) would be unjustifiably but carefully placed on two old punts, or on a punt and an unhinged door, massive as that of Gaza, and on those treacherous rafts committed like Danae to the mercy of the waves.

1861 September 7, “Tale of the Tub”, in The Living Age, volume XIV (third series), number 901, Boston, M.A.: Littell, Son, & Co., →OCLC, page 613, column 1:

"'Twasn't fair—remindin' one of bein' a water-funk. My first term, too. Heaps of chaps are—when they can't swim."

1898 December, Rudyard Kipling, “Stalky”, in The Windsor Magazine: An Illustrated Monthly for Men and Women, volume IX, London: Ward, Lock & Co., Limited […], →OCLC, page 190, column 2:

'Very well. I'm no waterfunk,' and as though she feared that her courage might ooze away, she rose and drew the curtain that divided the hut from the door to the back. 'Who wants to bathe?'

1933 December, R[alph] H[ale] Mottram, “A Trip to the Seaside. III. The Beach”, in The Cornhill Magazine, volume 148, number 888, London: John Murray, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 647:

Normally, I am a grade A waterfunk and the initial process of getting wet is agony but this was sheer bliss.

1999, Henry Blofeld, It's Just Not Cricket! Henry Blofeld's Cricket Year, London: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 196:

(British, colloquial, dated) Someone who is afraid to go into water; a hydrophobe.


dunnarf

A reduction of do not half or does not half. See not half.

I dunnarf feel ill.

1971, Ian Curteis, Long Voyage Out of War: A Trilogy of Television Plays, published 1971, page 175:

I knock it every time we kneel for prayers, it dunnarf hurt.

2013, Phillipa Bowers, The Secrets Of The Cave, published 2013, page 41:

FRANKIE presents her hands. BRIDIE holds them – checking the feel of them. You lot dun'narf get the pretty ones duncha? Don't know how you brood of ugly bastards do it.

2013, Rikki Beadle-Blair, Gutted, published 2013:

(British, colloquial) do/does to a great extent.


fucking oath

(Commonwealth, UK, Ireland, colloquial, vulgar) Alternative form of bloody oath.


swift half

Near-synonym: swiftie

(chiefly UK, Ireland, informal) An alcoholic drink, usually half the usual amount (e.g. a half-pint of beer), that is intended to be consumed quickly.


grey club-rush

en-noun

grey club-rush (countable and uncountable, plural grey club-rushes)

The only other identifiable plant macrofossil present was a nutlet of club-rush that was morphologically most similar to grey club-rush (Schoenoplectus cf tabernaemontani). This form of club-rush is most often found near the sea, although it also grows in marshes and dune-slacks.

2017 January 9, Dan Garner, Hillforts of the Cheshire Ridge, Archaeopress Publishing Ltd, →ISBN, page 253:

(chiefly UK, Ireland) Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani, a species of bulrush.


CLC

CLC (countable and uncountable, plural CLCs)

(countable, UK) Initialism of city learning centre.


originating summons

originating summons (plural originating summonses)

(UK, Hong Kong) A legal document that starts a civil action, typically used when there is significant legal dispute instead of factual dispute.


dimmit

dimmit (countable and uncountable, plural dimmits)

“ My Billy is out with his boat in the bay.
To snare the bright herring for me,
And I, with my arms, in the dimmit of day,
Will snare the bold son of the sea.”

1858, Edward Capern, “Kitty Lile; or, Mazed Kate of Clovelly”, in Ballads and Songs, London: W. Kent & Co., page 132:

The following account of the same custom, as practised at Bideford, North Devon, has been communicated to me by J. G. Cooper, Esq., of that town “ The custom appears to have been immediately at the end of the day when the reapers had completed their cutting, usually in the twilight of the autumn evening (‘ in the dimmit ’ : Devonice), for the whole party to gather in a circle, […]

1867 August 10, L. Gidley, “A Harvest Custom in Devonshire”, in The Gentleman's Magazine, volume IV, number 186, page 215:

If you choose to carry the girl about in your cart, to Polworthy an' back, 'tis no account o' mine ; nor if you're a mind to waste your time in the dimmit (twilight), hangin' round Gridge's cottage, as I do hear ; but you won't drag me into it, and that's final.

1888, G. B. Stuart, “Poppy”, in Charles W. Wood, editor, The Argosy, Summer edition, volume XLV, London, page 81:

‘Punch 'll mind the door, and bark if any one comes nigh. Then in the dimmits’ (twilight) ‘you can go.’

1893, Sabine Baring-Gould, “In the Smoke” (chapter VIII), in Mrs. Curgenven of Curgenven, volume III, Methuen & Co., page 93:

When she left the Hall she went by the lower path across the park, not by the church and the sea. It was the gloaming of a November afternoon—the " dimmits," as we call it in Cornwall—and "gloaming," as you know, at that time means almost the dark.

1894, W. J. Knox Little, chapter VI, in The Waif from the Waves, London: Chapman & Hall, page 53:

'Twas getting on vor the dimmits, and I hitched up the mare and went vore tii the back entrance. As I passed the kitchen winder I seed Albertina sitting there all alone, because 'er master and missus was well-to-do, and sat in the parlour evenings ; and I zim tü go all of a treemor like.

1896 June 10, Mary Hartier, “An Evening with Hodge”, in The English Illustrated Magazine, number 153, page 259:

And now, as the evenings were so light, she would have time to walk, perhaps, even so far as Quarry Point, and still get back before the dusk—the ‘dimmits’ as Sarah called it—came.

1950 February 10, Doreen Idle, chapter 11, in The Last Knot, London: Hodder & Stoughton, page 137:

(UK dialectal, Devon, Cornwall, West Country) Alternative form of dimmet (Twilight; dusk; crepusculum)


TOLATA

w:Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996

(UK, law) Acronym of Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996.


bell up

en-verb

bell up (third-person singular simple present bells up, present participle belling up, simple past and past participle belled up)

bells up (present singular third-person)
belling up (participle present)
belled up (participle past)
belled up (past)

He belled me up last week.


bird off

bird off (third-person singular simple present birds off, present participle birding off, simple past and past participle birded off)

birds off (present singular third-person)
birding off (participle present)
birded off (participle past)
birded off (past)

(slang, transitive, UK) To sentence (someone) to prison.


fabric conditioner

en-noun

fabric conditioner (countable and uncountable, plural fabric conditioners)

fabric conditioners (plural)
fabcon (alternative Philippines clipping)

(British, Philippines) Synonym of fabric softener.


blast up

en-verb

blast up (third-person singular simple present blasts up, present participle blasting up, simple past and past participle blasted up)

blasts up (present singular third-person)
blasting up (participle present)
blasted up (participle past)
blasted up (past)

(transitive, slang, UK) To beat up (someone).


bull up

bull up (third-person singular simple present bulls up, present participle bulling up, simple past and past participle bulled up)

bulls up (present singular third-person)
bulling up (participle present)
bulled up (participle past)
bulled up (past)

(UK, slang, military) To polish (boots) thoroughly; by extension, to prepare other military kit, e.g. firearms or uniforms; to clean or organize more generally.


bung out

bung out (third-person singular simple present bungs out, present participle bunging out, simple past and past participle bunged out)

bungs out (present singular third-person)
bunging out (participle present)
bunged out (participle past)
bunged out (past)

Just bung it out in the trash can.

(UK, Australia, literally) To throw away (something); to dispose of or get rid of.


kak on

kak on (third-person singular simple present kaks on, present participle kakking on, simple past and past participle kakked on)

kaks on (present singular third-person)
kakking on (participle present)
kakked on (participle past)
kakked on (past)

(slang, UK, South Africa) To shit on; to disparage or harshly criticize.


cack on

cack on (third-person singular simple present cacks on, present participle cacking on, simple past and past participle cacked on)

cacks on (present singular third-person)
cacking on (participle present)
cacked on (participle past)
cacked on (past)

(slang, UK, childish) To shit on; to disparage or harshly criticize.


run about with

run about with (third-person singular simple present runs about with, present participle running about with, simple past ran about with, past participle run about with)

runs about with (present singular third-person)
running about with (participle present)
ran about with (past)
run about with (participle past)


base wallah

(UK, slang, derogatory) A person employed at a military base, or with a job far behind the front lines.


big beast

But business has become less keen both on Europe and on him, while the erstwhile Tory big beasts, such as Ken Clarke, Michael Heseltine, Douglas Hurd and Chris Patten, have been strident critics of his Iraq policy.

Despite the reluctance of New Labour big beasts such as Charles Clarke, Stephen Byers, or Alan Milburn, and the hesitations of David Miliband and Alan Johnson, Gordon Brown was elected unopposed.

2010 February 12, Florence Faucher-King, Patrick Le Galés, The New Labour Experiment: Change and Reform Under Blair and Brown, Stanford University Press, →ISBN, page 153:

If his purpose was to re-ignite Tory passions, he was successful, ending up with the Tory 'big beasts' fighting among themselves.

2021 August 19, Christopher Booker, Richard North, The Great Deception: The True Story of Britain and the European Union, Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN, page 336:

Michael Portillo’s election defeat in 1997, unseated on a swing of 17.4 percentage points shortly after 3am on 2 May that year, has become synonymous with the shock moment that a major political big beast loses their seat.

2024 July 5, Alexandra Topping, “The 2024 election’s ‘Portillo moments’: which ‘Big Beasts’ have lost their seats?”, in The Guardian:

(UK, politics) A prominent and influential politician, especially one seen as a leader or major player within a party or faction.


gentry cove's ken

en-noun

gentry cove's ken (plural gentry cove's kens)

(obsolete, UK, thieves' cant) A gentleman's house.


bend one off

en-verb

bend one off (third-person singular simple present bends one off, present participle bending one off, simple past and past participle bent one off)

bends one off (present singular third-person)
bending one off (participle present)
bent one off (participle past)
bent one off (past)

(UK, Australia, colloquial, vulgar) To defecate.


go forth and multiply

Alteration of the biblical phrase 'be fruitful and multiply', a commandment to have many offspring.

(UK, euphemistic or humorous, idiomatic) go fuck oneself; fuck off.


shove up

shove up (third-person singular simple present shoves up, present participle shoving up, simple past and past participle shoved up)

shoves up (present singular third-person)
shoving up (participle present)
shoved up (participle past)
shoved up (past)

Shove up, so I can fit in next to you.

(informal, UK) To move over so as to make room for another.


jib out

jib out (third-person singular simple present jibs out, present participle jibbing out, simple past and past participle jibbed out)

jibs out (present singular third-person)
jibbing out (participle present)
jibbed out (participle past)
jibbed out (past)

She jibbed me out of the money.

(slang, UK) To swindle, cheat or con (something) from someone.


turn in on oneself

turn in on oneself (third-person singular simple present turns in on oneself, present participle turning in on oneself, simple past and past participle turned in on oneself)

turns in on oneself (present singular third-person)
turning in on oneself (participle present)
turned in on oneself (participle past)
turned in on oneself (past)

(UK) To become inwardly focused, withdrawn and preoccupied.


sten do

(UK) A party where the bride and groom decide to celebrate their final night of being single together.