go to earth

go to earth (third-person singular simple present goes to earth, present participle going to earth, simple past went to earth, past participle gone to earth)

goes to earth (present singular third-person)
going to earth (participle present)
went to earth (past)
gone to earth (participle past)

(UK) Of a hunted animal, to hide underground.

(UK, figurative, by extension) Of a person, to hide from someone or something, to escape.


kip out

en-verb

kip out (third-person singular simple present kips out, present participle kipping out, simple past and past participle kipped out)

kips out (present singular third-person)
kipping out (participle present)
kipped out (participle past)
kipped out (past)

(slang, UK) To sleep outside; to camp; to sleep rough.


kip in

kip in (third-person singular simple present kips in, present participle kipping in, simple past and past participle kipped in)

kips in (present singular third-person)
kipping in (participle present)
kipped in (participle past)
kipped in (past)

Kip in and get to sleep!

(slang, UK) To quiet down, such as to get ready for bed; to go to bed.


puffhead

Johnny Archibald was a pisshead, a puffhead, and one of life’s losers. In fact, he was the ideal person to help Billy return to his old ways.

2009, Kimberley Chambers, Born Evil, London: HarperCollins Publishers, published 2017, →ISBN, pages 171–172:

(slang, derogatory, chiefly UK) A person who smokes cannabis regularly.


Boy's Own

Isn't the sense of selflessness a bit Boy's Own?

2001 April 23, Simon Hattenstone, “In love and war”, in The Guardian:

Once upon a time Robert Falcon Scott was the epitome of a Boy's Own hero.

2008 January 4, Finlo Rohrer, “What makes a modern hero?”, in BBC:

As a lifelong Spurs supporter and a regular MOTD viewer, this is Boy’s Own stuff, and it’s a struggle to retain my journalistic cool.

2011 February 7, Theo Hooper, “Gary Lineker: "Players are role models whether they like it or not"”, in Big Issue:

However, a lot of women who agree with Class War's aims and principles, think the organisation is too Boy's Own to become involved with.

1997, Alice Nutter, “Make Your Own Tea: Women’s Realm and Other Recipes and Patterns”, in Class War, number 73:

Look at the Boy’s Own shit of Prince Harry as a hero in an imperialist war. We still live in Victorian times. [spoken by Pat Mills]

2013 January 20, Steve Earles, “Veterans Of The Trenches: A Look Back At Battle Comic”, in The Quietus:

(UK, derogatory) chauvinistic; out of date.


in a real state

en-adj

in a real state (comparative more in a real state, superlative most in a real state)

more in a real state (comparative)
most in a real state (superlative)

in a right state
in a right state#English

(British, idiomatic) Synonym of in a right state.


examining justice

en-noun

examining justice (plural examining justices)

(British, Wales, law) A judge deciding whether there is enough evidence for a case to be brought before the Crown Court.


LTD.

limited liability company
limited liability company#English

(British, Canada, Ireland) Abbreviation of limited liability company.


inquest of office

inquest of office (plural inquests of office)

(UK, law, historical) An inquest undertaken on occasions when the Crown claimed the right of possession to land or property.


deady

From Deady, the last name of David Deady and his brother James Deady, distillers in London in the early 1800s.

Nor took a punch nor given a swing, / But just soaked deady round the ring / Until their brains and bloods were foul / Enough to make their throttles howl, […]

1911, John Masefield, The Everlasting Mercy, London: Sidgwick & Jackson, Ltd., page 7:

(British, slang, obsolete) (A nickname for) gin, or a particular kind of gin.


Money-Mae

(UK, slang, derogatory) The British reality television personality Molly-Mae Hague (born 1999).


junior doctor

I was attended to by a junior doctor.

(UK) A qualified, practicing doctor who has completed graduate medical education and is undergoing postgraduate training.

British Medical Association
junior doctor


note-bash

en-verb

note-bash (third-person singular simple present note-bashes, present participle note-bashing, simple past and past participle note-bashed)

note-bashes (present singular third-person)
note-bashing (participle present)
note-bashed (participle past)
note-bashed (past)
note bash (alternative)

From note + bash, as an allusion to bashing the keys of a piano in an unmusical fashion when first learning a piece.

I hate note-bashing - we've been doing it all afternoon!

(chiefly intransitive, UK, music, informal) To learn the most basic aspects of a piece of music (such as the notes and rhythm) via rote repetition, without regard for tempo, dynamics, style or musicality; typically done when first learning a new piece, as a way to understand it and build muscle memory.


sixth form college

en-noun

sixth form college (countable and uncountable, plural sixth form colleges)

(UK) An educational establishment consisting solely of a sixth form.


lower sixth

(UK except Scotland) Year 12, the first year of sixth form for 16 to 17 year olds, in which some students sit AS-levels.


upper sixth

(UK except Scotland) Year 13, the second year of sixth form for 17 to 18 year olds, in which students sit A-levels.


murderise

en-verb

murderise (third-person singular simple present murderises, present participle murderising, simple past and past participle murderised)

murderises (present singular third-person)
murderising (participle present)
murderised (participle past)
murderised (past)

(rare, UK) Alternative form of murderize.


get rounds

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

gets rounds (present singular third-person)
getting rounds (participle present)
got rounds (participle past)
got rounds (past)

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

I'm proving them wrong when I'm making these songs. I'm gunna get rounds. Ima blow g.

2022 March 15, JJ Denny, If i had a verse on Lil Tjay- “In My Head”:

(slang, British, chiefly MLE) To succeed; to cook.


shitcock

He's losing support because even the shitcocks who were worshipping his prune nuts earlier in the race are now waking up and seeing the skewed reality of this wretched brown-eye's shtick. Then again, there are still some shitcocks doing a jig for this tyrannosaurus dick.

2014, Rob Rimes, Scalping Jackals, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 59:

"You stuck-up, self-centered shitcock! You think all I'm good for's fucking things up? You want me to beat people down on your schedule? Is it okay when you order me to?"

2015 December 15, Owen B. Greenwald, Too Much Action #5 (Big Bet), ABDO, →ISBN, page 94:

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang, derogatory, vulgar) Term of abuse.


arse lift

arse lifts (plural)
arse-lift (alternative)
arselift (alternative)

“I’m still thinking about having my bottom done. But it hasn’t been a good time to not sit on it for 2 weeks” - Chloe on her arse lift (TOWIE [The Only Way Is Essex])

2012 February 13, Jim Shelley, “Loving the Prisoners' Wives is not a crime”, in Mirror:

(informal, vulgar, chiefly UK) Synonym of butt lift.


lay system

They farmed this whole valley on the lay system back then, and the lord kept the horses and ploughmen busy.

(agriculture, archaic, especially British) A certain system of fallow farming with a certain crop rotation and rotation of arable and pasturage.


to be going on with

It's not much but it'll do to be going on with.

I can't take on this job right now. I've already got plenty to be going on with.

[…] while not a super-goof like some of the female goofs I'd met, she was quite goofy enough to be going on with.

1960, P. G. Wodehouse, Jeeves in the Offing, chapter III:

(UK) For now; provisionally; to begin with.


godmum

(UK, Ireland, Canada, New England, South Africa, India, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, informal) Godmother.


benz

Clipping of benners, an alteration of tenners, plural of tenner (“a £10 banknote”).

What's that smell in the chеst of drawers? / Young boy sellin' them benz and scores / Gotta get rich in desperate cause / Talk about drill, gotta mention moi

2024 September 5, Central Cee, Einer Bankz, Raye, “Moi”, performed by Central Cee and Raye, Columbia Records:

(slang, UK) Clipping of benners (“a bag of cannabis worth £10”).


benners

Probably an alteration of tenners, plural of tenner (“a £10 banknote”).

I'll give your gran a benners for a blowjob / Another ten for her clothes off / She's stiff like a robot / But there ain't nothing I won't want

2007 June 8, Ghetts, “Menace” (track 5), in Ghetto Gospel, performed by Ghetts:

"On the phone you said you want a scores, you think I would come all the way here for a benners you prick!!!"

You sold a benners now you think your^([sic]) the best weed man on road 😂

I live a hood life but make it look nice / Come a long way from linking benners on my pushbike

2016 November 20, Trizzy Trapz, Kojo Funds, “Say My Grace”, performed by Trizzy Trapz ft. Kojo Funds:

(slang, UK) A bag of cannabis worth £10.


godmummy

godmummies (plural)
godmommy (alternative)

(UK, Ireland, Canada, New England, South Africa, India, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, colloquial, usually childish, less common) Godmother.


tonker

"It's all just hot air and posing isn't it? The political equivalent of 'my tonker is bigger than your tonker'," said CMOTdibbler, adding, "I'm all for free social care – but it needs to be high quality, consistent care, not patched together by private companies who are all trying to make money out of it."

2009 November 18, Helen Pidd, “Queen's Speech gets the Mumsnet treatment”, in The Guardian:

The blackbirds and robins and and^([sic]) tits and finches shout at each other, chups and warbles and chirrups that, loosely translated, mean “Fancy a shag?”, “Get OFF my land” or “I’ve got a great big tonker.”

2015 April 16, Richard P. Grant, “Sex and the successful fundraiser”, in The Guardian:


Polski sklep

From Polish polski sklep (“Polish shop”). Polski is usually capitalised in English as all national demonyms are, although in Polish it would be written in lower case.

Charity shops, pound shops and discount stores fill a large number of the units, with at least six Polski skleps among them.

2016 December 6, Rebecca Woods, “Brexit six months on: How do Birmingham's Polish expats feel now?”, in BBC News:

On the high street, he spots a Polski sklep next to a Tesco Express - a new addition judging by the fresh paint job.

2017 October 5, Sophie Hannah, Deadlier: 100 of the Best Crime Stories Written by Women, Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN:

Jess was pushing her way into the Polski Sklep on the corner to top up her depleted alcohol supplies.

2022 July 7, Rosie Mullender, The Time of My Life, Hachette UK, →ISBN:

The flora and fauna of that trip have now invaded my memories, my guts and my skin just as - for nearly half a century French cheeses, Italian cappuccini, Danish flooring, Swedish furniture, Spanish banks, Polski skleps, German domestic goods, have invaded and changed our country for good.

2022 March 17, Hardeep Matharu, Wokelore: Boris Johnson's Culture War and Other Stories, Unbound Publishing, →ISBN:

(UK) A shop selling Polish and Eastern European groceries; typically a small high street corner shop that also sells everyday products.


side return

(UK) An outdoor passage alongside a house or other building, forming part of the property and typically leading to the back garden.


Chelsea chop

So called because it coincides with the period of the Chelsea Flower Show.

(UK, horticulture, informal) The practice of pruning herbaceous plants around the end of May.


mylonisation

UK standard spelling of mylonization (“mylonitization”).


private ambulance

en-noun

private ambulance (plural private ambulances)

From private + ambulance, due to such vehicles being privately-owned, rather than under the ownership of the UK's National Health Service.

(loosely) Any vehicle which is not a hearse that is used to transport dead bodies for legitimate reasons.


searchroom

(British) A room where the public can access archives.


Chocolate Factory

Coined by the UK technological newspaper The Register.

The Chocolate Factory has appealed the Epic verdict and also plans to challenge the DoJ's victory.

2024 August 15, Thomas Claburn, “Google is a monopoly. The fix isn't obvious”, in The Register:


Bedlam beggar

(obsolete, UK, thieves' cant) Synonym of Abraham man.


Tom of Bedlam's man

Tom of Bedlam's man (usually uncountable, plural Tom of Bedlam's men)

(UK, thieves' cant, obsolete) Synonym of Abraham man.


Cos lettuce

From the supposed origin of cos lettuce with reference to the Greek island of Kos.

(chiefly UK) Alternative letter-case form of cos lettuce, romaine lettuce.


meet me at McDonald's

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-meet me at McDonald's.wav

A secondary school in Norfolk has banned pupils from donning a popular haircut known as the "Meet me at McDonald's". The trendy, 80s-inspired hairstyle typically features short sides with a floppy, tousled mop of hair on top.

2018 February 22, Olivia Petter, “'Meet me at McDonald's' haircut banned in Norfolk school”, in The Independent:

In 2018, "Meet me at McDonald's" isn't an invitation; bizarrely, it's the name some young people have given a fashionable haircut that involves a closely shaven back and sides with an unruly mop on top.

[2019 August 13, Gyles Brandreth, Have You Eaten Grandma?: Or, the Life-Saving Importance of Correct Punctuation, Grammar, and Good English, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 6:

(UK, Ireland, humorous) The broccoli haircut.


meet me at McDonald's haircut

meet me at McDonald's haircut (plural meet me at McDonald's haircuts)

@joe_weller_ the meet me at McDonald's haircut.
..lethal..

Barry Smith, head teacher of Great Yarmouth Charter Academy, has risked the wrath of parents in the past by banning the tousle-topped 'meet me at McDonald's' haircut and telling pupils when to go to bed and get up.

2018 October 19, Joel Adams, “Strict school that banned ’’’’Meet Me At McDonald’s’ haircuts’’’ and ordered pupils to go to bed at 9.30pm angers parents again by bringing in experts to measure girls’ skirts”, in Daily Mail, London: DMG Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2024-09-25:

In the five-minute interval, a boy came in with a Meet Me At McDonald's haircut, otherwise known as a short back and sides with a perm sat on top, like a Heston Blumenthal attempt at a taxidermy soufflé. He was about six foot,[…]

2021 February 28, Samuel Elliott, ASBO Teacher: An irreverent guide to surviving in challenging classrooms, Crown House Publishing, →ISBN:

meet me at McDonald's
meet me at McDonald's#English

(UK, humorous) Synonym of meet me at McDonald's.


BSAC

British Sub-Aqua Club
w:British Sub-Aqua Club

(underwater diving, UK) Initialism of British Sub-Aqua Club.


mud sticks

(UK, informal) It is very difficult to modify a negative or unfavorable impression or opinion that a person holds about someone, even if it is later disproved.


piece of shite

(chiefly UK, Ireland, vulgar, very uncommon) Alternative form of piece of shit


shiteface

(chiefly UK, Ireland, vulgar, very uncommon) Alternative form of shitface


NPCC

(UK) Initialism of National Police Chiefs' Council.


and I claim my five pounds

After newspaper competitions, such as Lobby Lud, where readers were offered money for spotting a certain figure in public and accosting him with a passphrase, such as "you are Lobby Lud, and I claim my five pounds". (However, the Lobby Lud competition did not involve this phrase.)

"You are John Rigor Mortis Doe and I claim my five pounds!"

2008 June 15, Al Ewing, I, Zombie, Abaddon Books, →ISBN:

'You are the one... known as the Doctor...' said the vagrant, tottering towards him.
 'And I claim my five pounds,' Felicia heard Percy say bitterly.

2015 February 12, Gareth Roberts, Doctor Who: The English Way of Death: The History Collection, Random House, →ISBN, page 186:

'You are Mr Joscelyne,' they heard her joke, waggling her ring finger under his nose, 'and I claim my five pounds.'

2015 August 11, Elizabeth Cooke, You Belong to Me: A Novel, Open Road Media, →ISBN:

(UK, humourous) Used to intensify a statement of someone's identity, particularly to make a humourous comparision between two unrelated people or entities.


three-legged mare

three-legged mare (plural three-legged mares)

The original three-legged mare was the Tyburn tree, which stood near a major road junction in Middlesex (present-day Greater London); another well-known example was the York Tyburn at Knavesmire, Yorkshire.

They call a thing a three-legged mare, // Where they will fit each neck with a nooze, / Then with our beads to say our last prayer, // After all this to die in our shoes.

c. 1882-98, Unknown author, “The Reading Skirmish”, in Francis James Child, editor, English and Scottish Ballads, Volume IV, Houghton, Mifflin and Company, page 247:

Few, however, quitted the highway^([i.e., the life of the highwayman]) except for the "three-legged mare" at Tyburn, and the one- or two-legged mares of other places; and he held on his way.

1908, Charles George Harper, Half-Hours With the Highwaymen: Volume 2, Outlook Verlag, published 2020, page 147:

"Here, now," someone close to her carriage shouted, "let the bad 'un ride the three-legged mare."

1982, Kathryn Atwood, Renegade Lady, Jove, page 2:

(historical, UK) A type of gallows consisting of a wooden triangle supported by three wooden legs, used for public hangings.


Spursy

en-adj

Spursy (comparative more Spursy, superlative most Spursy)

more Spursy (comparative)
most Spursy (superlative)

From Spurs + -y. Tottenham Hotspur consistently finish near the top of the Premier League but have won no trophies in recent years.

In the 1978-79 season, Chelsea, who had come up the year before, finished dead last in the first division and were relegated again. But no worries, I still had my Robins in the top flight. But then they did something more Spursy than anything the Spurs could ever dream of. They were relegated in successive seasons between 1980 and 1982[…]

2018 May 15, Roger Bennett, Michael Davies, Men in Blazers Present Encyclopedia Blazertannica: A Suboptimal Guide to Soccer, America's "Sport of the Future" Since 1972, Knopf, →ISBN, page 27:

Rice has a solid tournament for England. He is excellent in the quarter-final against France, until it all goes a bit Spursy for Harry Kane who uncharacteristically misses a penalty in the 2-1 defeat.

2024 January 30, Pete May, Massive: The Miracle of Prague, Biteback Publishing, →ISBN:

Then came the hammer blow as Pennant stated: "England are Spursy."

2024 March 26, Joe Brophy, quoting Jermaine Pennant, “Gareth Southgate’s record and ‘Spursy’ England worry me – we may have to play Italy, France and Spain to win Euros”, in talkSPORT:

(UK, soccer, humorous, informal) Having a promising team, but losing in an embarrassing way.

(UK, soccer, humorous, informal) Unpredictable.


Green Cross Code

(UK) A brand created by the National Road Safety Committee to raise awareness of pedestrian road safety.


posh nosh

en-noun

posh nosh (countable and uncountable, plural posh noshes)


candy-arsed

en-adjective

candy-arsed (comparative more candy-arsed, superlative most candy-arsed)

more candy-arsed (comparative)
most candy-arsed (superlative)

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


milk token

(UK) A token given by the state to a pregnant woman or mother of a young infant for the purchase of milk and related supplies.


milk card

(UK) A payment card serving the same purpose as milk tokens.


milk voucher

(UK) A voucher serving the same purpose as a milk token.


beat someone's arse

en-verb

beat someone's arse (third-person singular simple present beats someone's arse, present participle beating someone's arse, simple past beat someone's arse, past participle beaten someone's arse)

beats someone's arse (present singular third-person)
beating someone's arse (participle present)
beat someone's arse (past)
beaten someone's arse (participle past)

beat someone's ass
beat someone's ass#English

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, idiomatic, sometimes considered, vulgar) Alternative form of beat someone's ass


foreyear

(UK dialectal, Scotland) The early part of the year; spring.


Sainsbo's

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


chat shite

chat shite (third-person singular simple present chats shite, present participle chatting shite, simple past and past participle chatted shite)

chats shite (present singular third-person)
chatting shite (participle present)
chatted shite (participle past)
chatted shite (past)

(chiefly UK, Ireland, vulgar, slang, very uncommon) Alternative form of chat shit.


connie-onnie

Then Cathy had made connie-onnie sandwiches from condensed milk for them both before they went to bed.

We used to wrap dried tea leaves in a bit of muslin with a spoon of connie-onnie (condensed milk), tied with a bit of cotton, and then we'd take it down in the caddy to your grandad […]

2018, Crissy Rock, Scouse, Choppers & Space Hoppers, page 223:


plough a lonely furrow

plough a lonely furrow (third-person singular simple present ploughs a lonely furrow, present participle ploughing a lonely furrow, simple past and past participle ploughed a lonely furrow)

ploughs a lonely furrow (present singular third-person)
ploughing a lonely furrow (participle present)
ploughed a lonely furrow (participle past)
ploughed a lonely furrow (past)

(UK, idiomatic) To carry out an action in isolation, or in an original way, without any help or support from others.


deuseaville stampers

(obsolete, British, thieves' cant) Members of a criminal gang who traverse the country roads and often visit country inns in the hope of gathering information about possible robberies.


gonk out

gonk out (third-person singular simple present gonks out, present participle gonking out, simple past and past participle gonked out)

gonks out (present singular third-person)
gonking out (participle present)
gonked out (participle past)
gonked out (past)

He gonked out on the bed.


salt and pepper chips

(UK, especially Liverpool) A British Chinese dish consisting of chipped potatoes mixed with stir-fried onions and peppers.


sticklebag

(British, regional) Synonym of stickleback.


beer-off

He turns on the radio and sends one of the gang up to the beer-off near the crossroads at the top of the lane to have an enamel bucket filled with ale.

2014, Richard Benson, The Valley: A Hundred Years in the Life of a Family:


have a monk on

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

has a monk on (present singular third-person)
having a monk on (participle present)
had a monk on (participle past)
had a monk on (past)

'That's not what bothers me.'
'Really? You've had a monk on ever since you got home last night ... stomping around like a little kid. You're worse than that little deviant.'

2019, H. A. Dawson, Stumbling in a Smoky Haze:

(UK, slang) To be sullen or bad-tempered.


cheap-arse

en-adj

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

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

(UK, Ireland, slang) Alternative form of cheapass.


vlother

Regarded by the English Dialect Dictionary as a dialectal form of flother; see that entry for more.

"What, in the fiend's name, be the meaning of all this vlother? " peevishly exclaimed the miller, though still keeping his voice within the prescribed pitch […]

1839, Windshaw, The Wizard of Windhsaw, a Tale of the Seventeenth Century, page 204:

"'Od's nonsense and vlother! How did he account for 't ? Cows short o' water, I'll be bound. Thic be a likely tale, when we gets short milk, an' poor milk, skimmed to death.[…]"

1912, W. H. Kersey, The Darksome Maids of Bagleere: A Somerset Tale, page 166:

Zecond thing: what 'st think volk 'ud want to bide and hark to such vlother vor! Hear enough o't daylight, I count, 'thouse buttowling about down round there, darkynight, a-gaping at a stage! Thee bissen gwain thee ownzelf, bist, Farmer?" "I gwain!" said Farmer Boggis."

1922, Samuel Robinson Littlewood, Somerset and the Drama, page 89:

[…] all of a vlother; 'e couldn' get no sleep 'count of its hollerings and carryings on.[…]

2016 October 4, Joan Aiken, The Weeping Ash, Sourcebooks, Inc., →ISBN:

(UK, dialectal) Nonsense; incoherent or nonsensical talk.


lobby correspondent

en-noun

lobby correspondent (plural lobby correspondents)

So called from journalists who were given access to the private members' lobby in the House of Commons, later becoming a more generic term for all such journalists in Parliament.

Another paper reported that the GMB's decision to cut back the cash it gives to the Labour Party was all down to Gordon Brown. The evidence for this was that a lobby correspondent saw the GMB boss, Kevin Curran, talking to Douglas Henderson MP, a Brown supporter, on the Commons terrace bar. The hack probably didn’t even realise that Doug was a GMB member.

2004 July 19, Charlie Whelan, New Statesman, Don't believe it: "Blair declares war – on Gordon Brown", page 26:

(UK) A journalist who reports on political and parliamentary affairs, especially through unattributed sources from politicians or other government officials.


droke

Off the main thoroughfare of West Street were a number of small roads and alleys, which were often called 'drokes', although this rather archaic description quite passed me by at the time. […] One of the aforementioned drokes — or call it what you will — still exists today, at Adelaide Place, […]

2015, Michael Stephenson, Fareham Revisited:


arsemuncher

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, humorous, slang, sometimes vulgar) Alternative form of assmuncher


Billy Big Bollocks

Billy-Big-Bollocks (alternative)
Billy Big-Bollocks (alternative)
billy big bollocks (alternative)

I suppose I was acting like Billy Big Bollocks, but if you're doing the business on the park, as I had done for Newcastle in the past two seasons, then you deserve to be rewarded.

2011 December 31, Mick Quinn, Oliver Harvey, Who Ate All The Pies? The Life and Times of Mick Quinn, Random House, →ISBN, page 136:

Among my circle of cocaine users, I stood out, not because I was Billy Big Bollocks and flash, that was something I never was, and not even because I played for Arsenal and England, because I never behaved as if.

2021 September 16, Paul Merson, Hooked: Addiction and the Long Road to Recovery, Hachette UK, →ISBN:

Every now and then MTV would call and I'd have to film, like, a trailer or something or do some bit of promotion for the show, which only added to my overall feeling of being Billy Big Bollocks.

2023 December 5, Ashley Cain, Strong: Life, Loss, and Eternal Love for My Daughter, Mango Media, →ISBN:

throws his weight around
throw one's weight around

(UK, vulgar, slang) A person, usually a man, with an inflated ego who arrogantly throws his weight around.


slack bob

(UK, slang, dated) A schoolboy who does not take part in sports.


jumpers for goalposts

From the idea that children, in the absence of a proper pitch, will mark one using items of clothing (such as jumpers).

There is a strong, and understandable, tendency to romanticise a jumpers-for-goalposts golden age when football pitches looked like the battlefields of Flanders, assorted firms and crews spent their Saturday evenings trashing railway carriages and multi-millionaire players, bloodsucking investors and a globalised Manchester United had yet to ruin our lives.

2011 July 7, Anthony Clavane, Promised Land: A Northern Love Story, Random House, →ISBN, page 130:

In the next section we discuss the notion of 'jumpers for goalposts' in the United Kingdom, and how the modern notion of this, under different constraints, has emerged through activities such as cage football, mixed groups, playing against different ages, and so on.

2021 June 27, James Rudd, Ian Renshaw, Geert Savelsbergh, Jia Yi Chow, Will Roberts, Daniel Newcombe, Keith Davids, Nonlinear Pedagogy and the Athletic Skills Model: The Importance of Play in Supporting Physical Literacy, Routledge, →ISBN, page 45:

Fortunate to have open fields in front of her house , Paula and the boys from the estate would gather for the timeless routine of 'jumpers for goalposts', team selections, and games that only paused when mothers called them in for tea.

2024 September 26, Gail Emms, The Lost Lionesses: The incredible story of England’s forgotten trailblazers, Hachette UK, →ISBN:

association football
association football

(chiefly UK) Informal association football as played by children, especially as a romantic or old-fashioned ideal contrasted against the commercialism and cynicism of modern professional football.


futanarisation

futanarisation (countable and uncountable, plural futanarisations)

British standard spelling of futanarization.


half-a-dollar

(British, slang, historical) Half-crown (in pre-decimalisation currency)


I'm a Dutchman

Likely dates to the 17th century Anglo-Dutch wars, along with other uncomplimentary terms for the Dutch.

(British, humorous) Statement said after describing or hearing something obviously false.


knack-kneed

en-adj

knack-kneed (comparative more knack-kneed, superlative most knack-kneed)

more knack-kneed (comparative)
most knack-kneed (superlative)

Knack-kneed and bent twa fauld; / He had a wife, and by my faith, / She was baith big and bauld.

1891, Andrew Wanless, Sketches and Anecdotes, page viii:

This filly race made the folks round them to flock, / But knack-kneed Mall Trollop came in for the smock.

1891, Allan's Illustrated Edition of Tyneside Songs and Readings, page 137:

Otway was knack-kneed and according to village folk, cute and a dapster farmer, terms that Fane had taken to be scurrilous.

2011, Michael Sellers, An Outside Man, page 9:

(UK, dialect) Alternative form of knock-kneed.


Numberwang

number + wang, from a 2006 That Mitchell and Webb Look comedy sketch about a nonsensical game show in which contestants shout random numbers and the host replies "That's Numberwang!"

Out of the window went the idea that perhaps children are humans with emotions and background and psyche and dream, and instead in rushed labelling and tracking and spreadsheets and monitoring and failure and rapid progress and interventions and scores and you-can-but-you-over-there-can't, and here's a test and here's another one and, oh, here's another one, and all the time in this great big educational Numberwang comes one thing, sneaking in inside the Trojan Horse of accountability: FEAR.

2020 February 24, Greg Bottrill, School and the Magic of Children, SAGE, →ISBN, page 54:

Only English (180) and French (55) players have won more than their 29 titles, with more Brazilian players (16) having won the Premier League than Irish (five), Welsh (four), Scottish (four) and Northern Irish (two) put together. That's numberwang!

2021 April 5, David Broome, Little Fella, eBook Partnership, →ISBN:

But there is a partial antidote to this numberwang, and it's context, which locates numbers in our world, the human world. Quite simply, it's what brings them to life, and once they are alive and less abstract, we can make better sense of them.

2023 August 17, Michael Blastland, Thinking in Pictures: Adventures in Trying to be Smart, Atlantic Books, →ISBN:

When viewed through a severely skeptical monocle it can look like occult numberwang. At that time, gematria appeared to me to be little more than a form of numerology.

2023 November 28, Bethsheba Ashe, Behold!: The Art and Practice of Gematria, Aeon Books, →ISBN:

(UK, slang) A situation involving a bewildering succession of numbers.

Digital Radio Working Group: It must be Numberwang !

2010 September 1, Grant Goddard, DAB Digital Radio: Licensed To Fail, Radio Books, →ISBN, page 4:

So, as you consider the four million must-read insight pieces that come across your desk tomorrow (again perhaps a slight numberwang), consider whether their insights would last as long as Vitruvius or Ehrenberg's advice.

2020 January 4, Karen Nelson-Field, The Attention Economy and How Media Works: Simple Truths for Marketers, Springer Nature, →ISBN, page 26:

At a time when the prison population was at an all-time high of over 85,000, a new operational structure was imposed – with the full endorsement of the biggest union, the Prison Officers' Association (POA) – that divested frontline supervisors of managerial responsibility, made them essentially mobile across prison establishments instead of being tied to a wing and provided a voluntary exit package for experienced staff. That's Numberwang!

2024 April 11, Ian Acheson, Screwed: Britain's Prison Crisis and How to Escape It, Biteback Publishing, →ISBN:

(UK, slang) The manipulation of statistics.


mark one's own homework

en-verb

mark one's own homework (third-person singular simple present marks one's own homework, present participle marking one's own homework, simple past and past participle marked one's own homework)

marks one's own homework (present singular third-person)
marking one's own homework (participle present)
marked one's own homework (participle past)
marked one's own homework (past)

Aware that his organisation was to be found guilty on at least four charges, he had tried to mark his own homework by submitting a 500-page dossier to the EC attempting to rebut its conclusions before they were even published.

2023 November 2, James O'Brien, “Matthew Elliot”, in How They Broke Britain, Ebury Publishing:

(UK) To assume the role of evaluating one's doings when a disinterested party is required.


kerb drill

en-noun

kerb drill (usually uncountable, plural kerb drills)

(UK) A series of instructions telling pedestrians how to cross the road safely, a forerunner of the Green Cross Code.


car breaking

(UK, Commonwealth) The breaking up of cars and other light vehicles for scrap recycling.


car breaker

(UK, Commonwealth) One who works in car breaking.


REUL

(UK, law) Abbreviation of retained EU law, European Union law that are retained by the United Kingdom after Brexit.


relative majority

relative majority (plural relative majorities)

(UK) A plurality (A number of votes which is greater than the number of votes gained by any others, but which is less than a majority.)


primary fire

(UK) A major fire, generally occurring in a building or vehicle and involving rescues or fatalities.


secondary fire

(UK) A minor fire, generally outdoors and not harming people or damaging property.


macaroni pudding

macaroni pudding (countable and uncountable, plural macaroni puddings)

(chiefly British) A traditional rice and custard pudding made with macaroni.


NMW

National Minimum Wage
w:National Minimum Wage

(UK, law, politics, finance) Initialism of National Minimum Wage.


wag-wanton

wag-wanton (countable and uncountable, plural wag-wantons)

Compound of wag + wanton, referring to the shaking of Briza flowers in the breeze.

quaking grass: any of a genus, Briza, of grasses


Yewtree

en-verb

Yewtree (third-person singular simple present Yewtrees, present participle Yewtreeing, simple past and past participle Yewtreed)

Yewtrees (present singular third-person)
Yewtreeing (participle present)
Yewtreed (participle past)
Yewtreed (past)

From Operation Yewtree, an investigation by British police forces into historic sex offences primarily linked to Jimmy Saville. The name Yewtree (from yew tree) was randomly selected from a list of neutral terms.

Having been born in the late 80s, I remember Saturday night TV through a child’s eyes. Unfortunately, most of the people who were on it have now either died, been Yewtreed, or gone nuts.

2013 May 28, Bradley Steptoe, “I Tracked Down Mr Blobby’s Lair”, in VICE:

Anyway, this is the last Yewtreed edition of the show until we get to Christmas, when both end-of-year specials are scuppered by their hosts, which is a bit inconvenient.

2016 January 6, Steve Binnie, Feeling Like a Number One, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 197:

There was a brief return to Dubai after an Operation Yewtreeing that came to nothing, but Jim’s next gig of any note was the 2014 series of Celebrity Big Brother.

2018 November 22, Marina Hyde, “Jim Davidson gets stuck in an eco protest and bags his biggest audience for years”, in The Guardian:

(UK, slang) To investigate historic sexual offences as part of Operation Yewtree, or otherwise reveal or allege someone (especially a celebrity active in the 1970s and 1980s) to be a paedophile or abuser.


Yewtree

en-adj

Yewtree (comparative more Yewtree, superlative most Yewtree)

more Yewtree (comparative)
most Yewtree (superlative)

(UK, slang) A paedophile, specifically one revealed by Operation Yewtree or a similar investigation.


RIRO

rubbish in, rubbish out
rubbish in, rubbish out#English

(UK, computing) Acronym of rubbish in, rubbish out.


top whack

(slang, UK) The highest possible price or payment.


like a plasterer's radio

like a plasterer's radio (not comparable)

The portable radios used by plasterers and other builders while working tend to end up thickly covered in plaster and paint.

A track mark ran down through his remaining chest hair like a napalm strike in a Vietnamese jungle, and the flaking skin of his Latin torso now looked like a plasterer's radio.

2017 March 22, David Ross, The Man Who Loved Islands, Orenda Books, →ISBN:

It was an epic run to Montalcino, with Cadel Evans leading home a field of dancing statues: the rain left the entire peloton looking like a plasterer's radio by the end.

2023 May 25, Carlton Kirby, Sticky Bottle: The Cycling Year According to Carlton Kirby, Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN, page 33:

There was one blagger, another fucking Londoner called Mad Mikey, who'd parked his motor down at Leith Docks and came back to see it covered in seagull shit, looked like a plasterer's radio, and that was it for him.

2024 March 1, Tony Black, Last Orders: An anthology of short stories, McNidder & Grace, →ISBN:

(UK, slang) Thickly covered with some substance.

But, if you have a daughter, does it torture you? The thought of her getting fucked? Some dude getting stuck in? Her face like a plasterer's radio?

2017 March 22, Mark Catley, Scuffer, Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN:

The seemingly never-ending streams of ectoplasm emanating from his musket soon had me coated like a plasterer's radio.

2018 April 8, Becky Clark, Fiction Can Be Murder, Llewellyn Worldwide, →ISBN:

While I brush my teeth, he describes the explicit dream he's just had about his missus. 'She had a face like a plasterer's radio.'

2020 February 6, Chris Atkins, A Bit of a Stretch: The Diaries of a Prisoner, Atlantic Books, →ISBN:

He was our brickie and started every sentence with: " If I was still a young man," followed by such gems of wisdom as: " I'd leave her looking like a plasterer's radio," […]

2024 September 28, Laurence Seidler, Busy Being Born, Book Guild Publishing, →ISBN:

(vulgar, especially) Covered with semen.

Thickly covered with some substance.
Covered with semen.


VCI

(UK) Initialism of Video Collection International.


Hardware Village

(UK, slang, obsolete) The city of Birmingham, England.


rontogramme

(rare, British) Alternative spelling of rontogram.


ronnagramme

(rare, British) Alternative spelling of ronnagram.


quettagramme

(rare, British) Alternative spelling of quettagram.


canerow

Compound of cane + row, reflecting the figurative evocation of rows of sugar cane in a sugar plantation.

(Caribbean, UK, chiefly in the plural) One of a set of rows of tightly braided hair close to the scalp, forming a hairstyle, of African origin.


tomorrow's chip paper

From the use of old newspaper to wrap fish and chips.

There was no Internet in the 1800s and any poor reviews would end up, quite literally, as tomorrow's chip paper, while the more favourable ones would immediately become part of the official press release.

2016 April 22, Amanda van Eck Duymaer van Twist, Minority Religions and Fraud: In Good Faith, Routledge, →ISBN, page 193:

After a pause that may have accommodated a small sigh, Tom replies. 'Sorry, but it's useful for people.' Then his voice becomes exaggeratedly friendly. 'Don't worry, tomorrow's chip paper and all that.'

2021 April 30, Jenny Cutts, The Invisible Body, Stopped Clock Press, →ISBN:

'People will be more interested in that than in anything Denny Hinckley writes. His articles will be tomorrow's chip paper.'

2021 February 4, Hania Allen, The Ice Hotel: a gripping Scandi-noir thriller, Hachette UK, →ISBN:

(UK, colloquial) Unimportant or ephemeral news; a story that will soon be forgotten.


flexi-schooling

(UK, education) An education regime involving both homeschooling and being taught at school.


commonisation

en-noun

commonisation (usually uncountable, plural commonisations)


builder's breakfast

(UK) A large cooked breakfast; a full breakfast.


TV programme

television program
television program#English

(UK) Abbreviation of television program.


television programme

television programme (plural television programmes)

(UK) Alternative spelling of television program.


Keeling schedule

Keeling schedule (plural Keeling schedules)

Named after British Member of Parliament Edward Herbert Keeling.

named-after

Despite its merits, the Keeling schedule has drawbacks. It represents a duplication on the statute book.

1997, Alec Samuels, “Use of the Keeling Schedule”, in Statute Law Review, volume 18, number 3, page 250:

The Keeling schedule is a schedule in the new statute setting out the old statute (or part of it) as it will read after amendment by the new statute.

2013, Ronan Cormacain, “Keeling Schedules and Clarity in Amending Legislation”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name), volume 1, number 15, page 93:

Keeling Schedules are resource intensive to produce, which is perhaps why there are no more recent examples.

2020, Andrew Makower, Liam Laurence Smyth, “Law Reform Bills in the Parliament of the United Kingdom”, in European Journal of Law Reform, volume 22, number 2, page 166:

The UK Government published a set of Keeling Schedules on 10 May 2023 for the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill version 2.

2023 July 7, “New development - Keeling Schedules published for the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill”, in Reynolds Porter Chamberlain:

(UK, law) In a bill or enactment, a schedule that shows how provisions of existing enactments would be amended.


flatful

[S]he pointedly remarked that they had just moved to the city a month previous, that they were dissatisfied, and would return to Hoosierdom in June. I was completely taken in, and departed without making the assessment. However, when whole flatsful began to make similar explanations under similar circumstances, I awoke to the fact that I had been bluffed.

1905 May 21, “Woes of Tax Assessor Many and Laughable. By a Deputy.”, in Worker’s Magazine: For the Man Who Works with Hand or Brain (The Sunday Plain Dealer), Cleveland, Oh., →OCLC, page [4], column 4:


shoot the cat

en-verb

shoot the cat (third-person singular simple present shoots the cat, present participle shooting the cat, simple past and past participle shot the cat)

shoots the cat (present singular third-person)
shooting the cat (participle present)
shot the cat (participle past)
shot the cat (past)

“[…] I am telling you the man is as sick as a— a—”
“A dog,” Roland supplied. “Shot the cat twice after we got him to bed.”

2013, Anita Mills, Miss Gordon's Mistake:


do a power of good

do a power of good (third-person singular simple present does a power of good, present participle doing a power of good, simple past did a power of good, past participle done a power of good)

does a power of good (present singular third-person)
doing a power of good (participle present)
did a power of good (past)
done a power of good (participle past)
do the power of good (alternative)

A spell in the army will do these delinquents a power of good.

I feel much better. The week at the health spa did a power of good.

(UK, transitive, intransitive) To be highly beneficial (to someone).


don hand

(UK, dialect) A skilful person; a dab hand.


death-hunter

(UK, slang, obsolete) A peddler who sold lurid accounts of murderers' dying speeches and confessions.

(UK, slang, obsolete) An undertaker (funeral director).


toffee-nose

(chiefly UK, Ireland, derogatory) A snobbish or condescending individual.


noncing

(UK, Ireland, derogatory, prison slang) The act of having sexual intercourse with someone under the age of sixteen.


for all money

From betting, suggesting that something would be at very short odds and that few would bet against it happening.

Sydney, meanwhile, looked gone for all money against Geelong but a freak Nick Davis goal in the last minute, plucking the ball out of a crowded ruck, got them through to a preliminary final with St Kilda, which Sydney won comfortably.

2010 November 1, Ben Cousins, Ben Cousins: My Life Story, Macmillan Publishers Aus., →ISBN, page 175:

In Adelaide in the second Test, England batted first and reached 551 for six[…] Australia managed 513 in reply – a draw, then, for all money.

2018 July 12, Simon Barnes, Epic: In Search of the Soul of Sport and Why It Matters, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN:

Nicko looked in fine fettle with not one drop of sweat. Thankfully, Stilts was dripping profusely and looked for all money like he was about to faint. At least I'm not alone.

2024 November 28, Peter Dickson, The Embedded Lie, BookLocker.com, Inc., →ISBN:

(Australia, New Zealand, UK, informal) Very probably; almost certainly; in all likelihood.


fiddle face

(obsolete, UK, slang) A mournful or disapproving facial expression.


day nursery

(UK) Alternative form of day care center.


glebe farm

glebe farms (plural)
glebe-farm (alternative)

From glebe (“plot of parish land assigned to a clergy member as part of a benefice”) + farm.

compound

On the glebe farms the country is very populous, and but for the liberality of the few reſident gentry, the poor would have literally ſtarved this diſtreſſing ſeaſon.

1801, Charles Coote, “Barony of Balliboy”, in General View of the Agriculture and Manufactures of the King’s County, with Observations on the Means of Their Improvement, Drawn Up in the Year 1801. […], Dublin: […] Graisberry & Campbell, […], →OCLC, section IV (General Subjects), page 88:

The immediate renters of the glebe farms, instead of being hostile to the incumbents of livings, would hold the same relation to them which other tenants do to landlords.

1812, Joshua Kirby Trimmer, Further Observations on the Present State of Agriculture, and Condition of the Lower Classes of the People, in the Southern Parts of Ireland: […], London: F[rancis] C[harles] & J[ohn] Rivington, […], and J. Harding, […], →OCLC, page 71:

One of the Earls of Eglinton, in 1734, had made an excambion with the minister of Beith, and the glebe farm thus acquired by the minister was said to have been at one time worth £200 per annum, and to be still worth £150, besides the full size of an ordinary glebe.

1835 May 20 (date decided), [David] Boyle, Lord Justice Clerk, “Rev. John Stewart, Pursuer.—D. F. Hope—More. Lord Glenlyon, Defender.—Keay. [No. 243]”, in Patrick Shaw [et al.], reporters, Cases Decided in the Court of Session, from Nov. 12, 1834, to Sept. 30, 1835, volume XIII, Edinburgh: […] [Ballantyne and Co.] for Thomas Clark, […]; and Saunders and Benning, […], published 1835, →OCLC, page 797:

A silver coin of Edward the Confessor was found on the glebe-farm, in digging a well, in 1833.

1848, Samuel Lewis, “FRODINGHAM, NORTH (St. Elgin)”, in A Topographical Dictionary of England, […], 7th edition, volume II, London: S[amuel] Lewis and Co., […], →OCLC, page 268, column 2:

I must not reckon on more than two thousand three hundred at present, and of that nine hundred and fifty is the great tithe, and the rent of the Glebe farm is three hundred and seventy.

1873, Charlotte M[ary] Yonge, “The Old Squire and the New”, in The Pillars of the House; or, Under Wode, under Rode. […], volume IV, London: Macmillan and Co., →OCLC, page 17:

Part of my father's income, as rector of the parish, was derived from a pretty little glebe-farm, on which was a neat old-fashioned farmhouse, surrounded with small but well-arranged buildings. All was let, years before I could remember, to a man named John Ashmeade, one of the most respectable men in the parish, […]

1880, H[enry] C. Barkley, chapter XVI, in My Boyhood: A Story Book for Boys, New York, N.Y.: E[dward] P[ayson] Dutton & Company, →OCLC, page 205:

We cannot easily admit that land has been distributed amongst a few men, like the benefices or glebe-farms in the king's gift, merely that it may yield them a certain income.

1891, Charles Gide, “The Man who Lives on His Income”, in Edward Percy Jacobsen, transl., Principles of Political Economy, Boston, Mass.: D[aniel] C[ollamore] Heath & Co., →OCLC, page 529:

At the turn of the century, the Episcopalian church in the South found itself in even worse straits. […] In 1802, an act of the General Assembly declared that the title of the colonial property of the church belonged to the state at large and directed that even the glebe farms be seized for public benefit. This created a financial collapse of the diocese at a time when very few young men were willing to serve the church.

1989, Nathan O[rr] Hatch, “Storming Heaven by the Back Door”, in The Democratization of American Christianity, New Haven, Conn.; London: Yale University Press, →ISBN, part II (Mass Movements), page 60:

The numerous small manors without servile tenants had no alternative but to hire labour and on many demesnes the supply of labour services was inadequate to the requirements of cultivation. The same usually applied to the thousands of modest glebe farms belonging to rectors.

2016, Bruce M[ortimer] S[tanley] Campbell, “Efflorescence: The Enabling Environment and the Rise of Latin Christendom”, in The Great Transition: Climate, Disease and Society in the Late-Medieval World: The 2013 Ellen McArthur Lectures, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 97:

(chiefly UK, Christianity) A home farm owned by a parish, assigned as part of a benefice to a parish priest, pastor, rector, or vicar to provide them with income.


AMDA

Anglo-Malayan Defence Agreement
w:Anglo-Malayan Defence Agreement

(UK, Malaysia, military, politics, historical) Acronym of Anglo-Malayan Defence Agreement.

Anglo-Malaysian Defence Agreement
w:Anglo-Malayan Defence Agreement

(UK, Malaysia, military, politics, historical) Acronym of Anglo-Malaysian Defence Agreement.


congestion charging

(UK, transport) The imposition of a congestion charge.


crumpet-faced

en-adj

crumpet-faced (comparative more crumpet-faced, superlative most crumpet-faced)

more crumpet-faced (comparative)
most crumpet-faced (superlative)

(UK, slang, archaic) Having a pitted or pockmarked face.


hug-a-hoodie

Originated in reference to a 2006 speech written by Danny Kruger for prime minister David Cameron.

(UK, informal, derogatory, attributive) An empathetic approach to young offenders.


WAHP

(parenting slang, chiefly UK) Initialism of work-at-home parent.


terry nappy

Named after the terry towelling fabric from which these flat nappies were most commonly made.

Special Purchase of Infants; good quality Terry Nappies; in a useful size

1940 November 14, “Blackler's Money-Saving Bargains”, in Liverpool Echo (Advertisement), Babies' Napkins, page 5:

Many people are put off by the idea of using pins. There are excellent ecological alternatives to using a terry nappy with plastic pants. One is a fitted cotton or wool cover which holds the nappy in place without pins.

1989, Karen Christensen, Home Ecology, British edition, HarperCollins Publishers, →ISBN, page 333:

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, chiefly historical) A cloth nappy folded from a large piece of square or rectangular absorbent fabric which is held in place by a nappy pin or other fastener, especially one made from terry (coarse cotton); a flat nappy.


mint cake

(UK) A hard, rectangular block of sugar-based confection flavored with chopped, fresh mint.


Your Lordship

(UK) Used in direct address to certain judges, particularly High Court Judges and above.


Glasgow oyster

(UK, informal) Synonym of Wigan kebab (“pie in a bread roll”).


L&D

labour and delivery
w:labour and delivery

(especially UK) Initialism of labour and delivery: childbirth; a department for childbirth (in a hospital); the suite of rooms for that department.


dog's body

(British naval slang, obsolete) Pease pudding.


deputy chief constable

en-noun

deputy chief constable (plural deputy chief constables)

(UK, law enforcement) The second highest rank in all territorial police forces in the United Kingdom.


assistant chief constable

assistant chief constable (plural assistant chief constables)

(UK, law enforcement) The third highest rank in all British territorial police forces.


ride the three-legged mare

en-verb

ride<,,rode,ridden> the three-legged mare

ride the three-legged mare (third-person singular simple present rides the three-legged mare, present participle riding the three-legged mare, simple past rode the three-legged mare, past participle ridden the three-legged mare)

rides the three-legged mare (present singular third-person)
riding the three-legged mare (participle present)
rode the three-legged mare (past)
ridden the three-legged mare (participle past)

(slang, euphemistic, UK, historical) To be executed by hanging.


two-legged mare

en-noun

two-legged mare (usually uncountable, plural two-legged mares)

(historical, UK) A wooden triangle gallows that was used for executions in York.


York Tyburn

(UK, historical) The site of a gallows administered on behalf of The Crown by York Castle.


en-verb

refer<++> someone to the reply given in Arkell v Pressdram

refer someone to the reply given in Arkell v Pressdram (third-person singular simple present refers someone to the reply given in Arkell v Pressdram, present participle referring someone to the reply given in Arkell v Pressdram, simple past and past participle referred someone to the reply given in Arkell v Pressdram)

Coined in 1971 from an incident in which Pressdram, publisher of Private Eye magazine, received a legal letter from a Mr Arkell. Pressdram's reply stated:
We note that Mr Arkell's attitude to damages will be governed by the nature of our reply and would therefore be grateful if you would inform us what his attitude to damages would be, were he to learn that the nature of our reply is as follows: fuck off.
The phrase is written as a pseudo-legal citation, as if Arkell v Pressdram were a real court case, although the proceedings never actually made it to court.

blockquote

I'd be tempted to refer them to the reply given in Arkell vs Pressdram.

2015 February 3, skipweasel, “Unhelpful councilfolk”, in uk.rec.sheds (Usenet):

Go on then, fatso. May I first refer you to the reply given in Arkell vs Pressdram

2016 October 31, Mike Tomlinson, “My post was "discarded" - why?”, in uk.net.news.moderation (Usenet):

Greg Tillis mentioned that he'd once tried to barter dessert privileges in exchange for her cooperation, and she referred him to the response in Arkell versus Pressdram.

2020 February 28, Elise Noble, Demented: A Paranormal Romantic Suspense Novel, Undercover Publishing Limited, →ISBN:

One can picture Kelly responding in the style of hard-bitten newspaper hacks of old: “see you in court”. Or perhaps even referring the caller to the reply given in Arkell v Pressdram.

2021 November 19, The Chatterer, “Downing Street wants you to know it’s not suing over PM marriage trouble claims…”, in New Statesman:

(UK, humorous, euphemistic) To tell someone to fuck off.


salt and chilli chips

salt and pepper chips
salt and pepper chips#English

(UK, especially Scotland and Northern Ireland) Synonym of salt and pepper chips.


cyberfarting

From cyber- + farting, likely a portmanteau of cyberbullying.

“a UK woman has been convicted for what is now being referred to as ‘CyberFarting.’”

2025 February 4, Times Of India, Times Of India:

(UK) The act of repeatedly sending virtual media to a user via cyberspace with malicious intent.


Dust-Hole

(UK, slang, obsolete) The Queen's Theatre on Tottenham Court Road, London.


on the crook

Martin said at first that he bought the flour of a miller […] He next stated that it was an example, which he would not have pay to for^([sic]), and subsequently he confessed that he got it "on the crook."

1899, The London Corn Circular, volume 56, page 2:

(UK, obsolete, slang) In a crooked or dishonest manner.


floddie

(UK) A kind of potato cake made from grated potato, sometimes with bacon added.


public licence

UK, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Ireland, New Zealand, Malaysia, and Singapore standard spelling of public license.


shepherd spider

en-noun

shepherd spider (plural shepherd spiders)

→ New Latin: ōpiliō (calque)

→ Translingual: Opiliones

Compare the semantics of harvestman, harvest spider and Dutch koewachter (literally “cowherd”).

(UK, dated or dialectal) harvestman, daddy longlegs (spider-like arachnid of the order Opiliones)


toco for yam

See toco (“corporal punishment”); but the construction is uncertain and has been variously explained in slang dictionaries. It may have the sense of one thing given for another in retribution (like tit for tat), or may suggest a beating given instead of food (yam being food in West Indian pidgin).

(UK, slang, obsolete) Retribution; punishment.


wimmick

en-verb

wimmick (third-person singular simple present wimmicks, present participle wimmicking, simple past and past participle wimmicked)

wimmicks (present singular third-person)
wimmicking (participle present)
wimmicked (participle past)
wimmicked (past)
wimick (alternative)

(UK, dialect, obsolete) To cry or whimper.


all of a doodah

She can't find anything ... her glasses, her keys, her handbag ... she's all of a doodah.

(British, informal) In a confused or agitated state.


Old Horse

I was sentenced to three months’ imprisonment in Bridge Street Bridewell, Blackfriars, termed by the thieves the Old Horse.

1851, Henry Mayhew, London Labour and the London Poor, published 1861:

(UK, slang, obsolete, historical) Bridewell Prison in London.


smatter-hauling

At the end of the two years and a half I got into the way of forged Bank-of-England notes. A man I knew in the course of business, said, ‘I would cut that game of ‘smatter-hauling,’ (stealing handkerchiefs), and do a little soft,’ (pass bad notes).

(UK, slang, obsolete) The theft of handkerchiefs.


nobbings

He began with his part of the performance whilst I was dressing up the table. It was covered with black velvet with fringe, and the apparatus ranged on it. After him I began my performance, and he went round for the nobbings.

(UK, slang, obsolete) Money collected by soliciting the audience during a public performance.


cursitory

(UK, law, obsolete) Relating to the cursitor in the Court of Chancery.


super-complaint

(UK) A fast-tracked complaint made by a state-approved watchdog organization on behalf of consumers.


sand mouse

(UK, dialect) A bird, the dunlin or sandpiper.


ride the fair

ride the fair (third-person singular simple present rides the fair, present participle riding the fair, simple past rode the fair, past participle ridden the fair)

rides the fair (present singular third-person)
riding the fair (participle present)
rode the fair (past)
ridden the fair (participle past)

The fair is formally opened and proclaimed by the bailiff of the duke of Northumberland as lord of the manor of Corbridge, who welcomes at the 'Angel' inn at Corbridge the officials and those who intend to accompany him to 'ride the fair.'

1897, Edward Bateson, Allen Banks Hinds, A History of Northumberland (page 210)

(UK, historical) To proclaim a fair (trading event) by marching in a ceremonial parade.


stawsome

en-adj

stawsome (comparative more stawsome, superlative most stawsome)

more stawsome (comparative)
most stawsome (superlative)
stawsum (alternative Scotland)

From Scots stawsum, from staw, sta, staa, stau (“stall”) + -sum. Equivalent to English stall + -some.

(UK, dialectal) Disgusting, repugnant to the taste or appetite; sickening.

(UK, dialectal, figurative) Tiresome, boring, wearisome.


m'learned friends

Humorous interpretation of my learned friend (“term of address for an opposing barrister”).

The negotiations to achieve this were bitterly contested and were characterised by regular recourse to m'learned friends and by brinkmanship on both sides.

2002 October 1, Brian Elliot, Aspects of Barnsley 7: Discovering Local History, Casemate Publishers, →ISBN:

Because divorce is such a drastic step and rarely one that ends in happiness for both parties, before you reach for m'learned friends, ask yourself these six questions.

2013 January 17, Rough Guides, The Rough Guide to Men's Health (2nd edition), Rough Guides UK, →ISBN, page 260:

My review of the so-called Great British Music Festival contained the assurance that one of its stars, Frankie Miller, had been the worse for drink when he wandered onstage at Wembley Arena, and M'Learned Friends were soon in touch.

2014 May 8, Mark Ellen, Rock Stars Stole my Life!: A Big Bad Love Affair with Music, Hachette UK, →ISBN:


besozzlement

One group has reached a quietly maudlin stage of besozzlement.

1934, Theodora Benson, Chip, Chip, My Little Horse: The Story of an Air-holiday, page 34:

Tex Mex II proffers authentically fun Texican fare with an element of theatricality that brightens the face with a smile and the contented glaze of Tequila besozzlement.

2011 February 23, Ben Kendall, “Tex Mex II”, in The Journal, number XLIV, University of Edinburgh, page 20:

This news of his death, though, has shattered me. The memory that replays itself dates from 19 years ago; we’d stumbled into my apartment to crash after an all-night drunken adventure, and in his besozzlement he found himself unable to remove his contact lenses.

2023 May 13, Van Badham, “The culture of mistrust is bleeding into our personal lives. No wonder there’s a sex recession”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(UK, informal, rare) A state of intoxication; drunkenness.


life off

en-verb

life off (third-person singular simple present lifes off, present participle lifing off, simple past and past participle lifed off)

lifes off (present singular third-person)
lifing off (participle present)
lifed off (participle past)
lifed off (past)

(As Mark Twain said, "Most of us can run pretty well all day long on one compliment.") By talking candidly about the problems of adolescence or the vagaries of the parent-child relationship, some high school coaches extend their reach to life off the court.

2012, Bill Bradley, Values of the Game, RosettaBooks, →ISBN:

(slang, UK) To sentence (someone) to life imprisonment.


liver salts

(UK) A preparation of mineral salts used as a remedy for indigestion.


super ASBO

From super + ASBO, considered to be a stronger version of the anti-social behaviour order.

Serious crime prevention orders (SCPOs) were introduced in the Serious Crime Act 2007 (SCA 2007), Pt 1 on 30 October 2007. Dubbed “super ASBOs” by the media, these are civil orders which may be made independently of criminal proceedings against those suspected of involvement in serious crime.

2008, Jill Lorimer, “Super ASBOs”, in New Law Journal, number 7303:

Part 1 of the SCA creates Serious Crime Prevention Orders (dubbed super ASBOs) designed to restrict or disrupt those involved in serious crime.

2019, Michael J. Allen, Ian Edwards, chapter 8, in Criminal Law, Fifteenth edition, Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, Encouraging or assisting offences (section 8.2), page 305:

Ferguson was also given a serious crime prevention order - a so-called Super Asbo - designed to curb criminal behaviour once released from prison.

2023 March 30, “Drugs gang boss nicknamed Titanium Otter jailed”, in BBC:

(UK law, informal) serious crime prevention order; a civil injunction used to prevent certain serious crimes


fittage

(UK, obsolete) The work of a fitter, arranging sales between the owner of a coal pit and the shipper.


foreigneering

(UK, slang, obsolete) Foreign; from another country.


on the cadge

(UK, slang, obsolete) Engaged in begging for money.


bug-hunter

(UK, slang, obsolete) A thief who robs drunks.


cut it fat

cut it fat (third-person singular simple present cuts it fat, present participle cutting it fat, simple past and past participle cut it fat)

cuts it fat (present singular third-person)
cutting it fat (participle present)
cut it fat (participle past)
cut it fat (past)

He had seen, at the theatre, a tar raise a racket, […] Making love in sea terms, and cutting it fat

1870, Tale of the Sea: And Other Poems, John Fraser:

(UK, slang, obsolete) To exaggerate or show off.


lob-sneaking

(UK, slang, obsolete) Theft from a shop's cash till.


Slender

From the character of Abraham Slender in Shakespeare's play The Merry Wives of Windsor.

[…] the fantastic pilgrimages imposed on the "Cousin Slenders" of the world by their more facetious comrades […]

1833, James Anthony Froude, John Tulloch, Fraser's Magazine for Town and Country (volume 7, page 427)

[…] here also, behind the pillars, dark villains like Varney, and assassins like Iago, watched the simple country Slenders and the besotted Master Mathews, themselves grimly observed by honest water-carriers like Ben Jonson's Cob and Shakespeare's Adam.

A walk through the pleasant little town of Cirencester upon a market day will show Slenders and Simples by the dozen.

1877, Fraser's Magazine for Town and Country, volume 15, page 492:

(UK, slang, obsolete) A simple country gentleman.


tib out

tib out (third-person singular simple present tibs out, present participle tibbing out, simple past and past participle tibbed out)

tibs out (present singular third-person)
tibbing out (participle present)
tibbed out (participle past)
tibbed out (past)

[…] "tibbed out" once for a day's fishing on the Lea […]

1921, Gerald Stanley Davies, Charterhouse in London: Monastery, Mansion, Hospital, School, page 270:

(UK, slang, obsolete, Charterhouse School) To play truant.


cold gruel

(UK, slang, archaic) Misfortune; an unpleasant experience.


moveable type

en-noun

moveable type (countable and uncountable, plural moveable types)

(UK) Alternative spelling of movable type.


nappy changer

Either from nappy + changer or perhaps nappy change + -er.

Waterproof pushchair covers, wheelchair covers, pram-seat covers, playpen mats, nappy changers, small mattresses (upholstered P.V.C.), high chair cushions, beach mats ...

1963, “Baby Goods”, in Achievement, volume 30, World Trade Magazines Limited, page 37:

Eden Cinema's Cinemum continues on Friday at 10 a.m. Mums, dads, grandparents and guardians are invited to bring babies and toddlers along to the cinema. The Eden Cinemas have opted for showing not one but two films at the same time. Nappy changers and bottle warmers will be available.

2006 July 23, “Cinema for mums”, in Times of Malta:

One of the female MPs interviewed also highlighted the gender disparities in Parliament. [...] 'Not that I do not want them in the main chamber but if we had to create a bit of space for these kids to draw, and if we want to have a nappy changer, we easily can put one in the toilet.'

2024 July 21, Albert Galea, “MPs open up about psychological struggles of being in Parliament”, in The Malta Independent:

(UK, Commonwealth, rare) Synonym of diaper changer (“a changing pad (mat) or changing table”).

diaper changer

(UK, Commonwealth, often informal) Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see nappy, changer (one who changes nappies).


GVIR

(UK) Abbreviation of George VI Rex, the royal cypher of George VI.


Pygmalion word

From the 1913 George Bernard Shaw play Pygmalion, which included the line "not bloody likely" – at that point, the word "bloody" was considered scandalous. See also not Pygmalion likely.

As soon as men re-entered the company of women adjustments were made; Emma Duffin reported that one of her charges 'used the 'Pygmalion' word to me' (bloody), but she made him apologise.

1918, Julian Walker, Words and the First World War: Language, Memory, Vocabulary, Bloomsbury Publishing, published 2005, →ISBN, page 117:

Sheridan was speaking about the council fleecing tenants and used a pygmalion word.

(UK, euphemistic, obsolete) The word bloody.


brief-bag

(UK, Commonwealth, law) A traditional bag used by barristers and lawyers to carry legal documents and case briefs (not underpants).


guilt lane

(UK, slang) A row of confectionery, etc. near the checkout in a supermarket, intended to trigger impulse buying.


popty ping

From Welsh popty (“oven”) and English ping (“high-pitched sound”).

2014, F. John Hurr, Light of the Damned
First, could it be warmed up in a popty ping — a microwave oven — or consumed straight from the container?

In Wales it is known as popty-ping! / In our house it is chicken ding! / Whatever you want to call it now / It's a very clever thing somehow

2014, Pete Barry, You're Having a Larf!:

quoted in 2020, Simon Walters, The Borisaurus: The Dictionary of Boris Johnson
'Pop it in the popty-ping.' Interview with Welsh journalist Guto Hari, 10 December 2019. Describing his Brexit deal as a meal ready to go in the microwave.

Most of us don't want to bung a microwave meal into the popty ping (only for it to come out hot enough to burn your mouth off).

2023, Matt Pritchard, Dirty Vegan Fast and Easy:


Beefa

Humourous pronunciation spelling of the British English approximation of the Spanish Ibiza in dialects with th-fronting.

Pete Doherty sprayed Nirvana lyrics on the wall of a dressing room at the Ibiza Rocks Hotel when The Libertines played the venue last month (July 22).[…] It’s said Doherty also tagged a separate wall with the words “Aye Aye Beefa”.

2015 August 4, David Renshaw, “Pete Doherty ‘spray paints’ Nirvana lyrics in Ibiza dressing room following Libertines gig”, in NME:

When he’s not dozing in and out of consciousness while also vomiting in one of the club’s dark corners, he’s likely dipping his knackered pinky finger into his burlap sack-sized bag of steamy, humidified cocaine, forcefully jamming it up an unwary stranger’s nostril. “THAT’S BEEFA FOR YA, YA CUNT!!!”

2017 November 14, Austin Gebbia, “What Your Pronunciation Of ‘Ibiza’ Says About You”, in Vice:


Beefs

So, in the wake of Miliband letting off steam during a brief jaunt to Beefs and in anticipation of Luther himself playing DJ sets across the isle, here's 12 people you definitely wouldn't expect to find noshing a kebab in the carpark outside Space.

2015 June 5, Seb Wheeler, “11 people you wouldn't expect to find in Ibiza”, in Mixmag:


clerk of the pells

clerk of the pells (plural clerks of the pells)

(UK, historical) An officer within the English Exchequer, responsible for recording financial transactions.


nestle-bird

(UK, dialect, archaic) The weakest of a litter (of pigs, dogs, etc.); a runt.


secondary technical school

secondary technical school (plural secondary technical schools)

(UK, historical) A kind of secondary school in England and Wales in the mid-20th century under the tripartite system, teaching mechanical, scientific and engineering skills to serve industry and science.


lolly up

en-verb

lolly up (third-person singular simple present lollies up, present participle lollying up, simple past and past participle lollied up)

lollies up (present singular third-person)
lollying up (participle present)
lollied up (participle past)
lollied up (past)

Rhyming slang, from lollipop, to rhyme with shop (“to report to the authorities”).

2005, Noel Smith, Razor Smith, A Few Kind Words and a Loaded Gun
The bods who do it are grasses. They'll lolly you up as soon as look at you. […] The fucking bastards lollied me up for nicking the materials. I lost three days.

But some straight kid turned grass — he lollied me up, as they say — and I was asked to leave the premises.


bleeding stump

Coined by Christopher Hood and Maurice Wright in 1981 in Big Government in Hard Times. The implication is that the public service is deliberately cutting off its own hand to make a dramatic point.

Looking over my shoulder , I anticipate that Conservative Members of Parliament will drum that message home vehemently and try to spell out to parents that the "bleeding stump" syndrome does not exist if the local authority is efficient.

1995, Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons, Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).: House of Commons official report:

In the meantime, the financial crisis of the new hospital trusts at Guy's and Bradford Infirmary were used as the bleeding stump strategy to signal to the Government that the reforms were not likely to benefit the health service.

2005 August 9, Maurice Mullard, The Politics of Public Expenditure, Routledge, →ISBN, page 1987:

Second, cuts in education spending proved contentious, difficult to implement and were vulnerable to 'bleeding stump' opposition.

2019 June 18, Martin Holmes, The First Thatcher Government, 1979-1983: Contemporary Conservatism And Economic Change, Routledge, →ISBN:

(UK, politics) A deliberate disruptive or high-profile reduction in a public service, intended to demonstrate the impact of funding cuts and motivate opposition.


two cheeks of the same arse

en-noun

two cheeks of the same arse pl (plural only)

two sides of the same coin
two sides of the same coin#English

(UK, slang, vulgar, humorous) Synonym of two sides of the same coin.


I'll go to the foot of the stairs

I'll go to the foot of my stairs (alternative)
I'll go to the foot of our stairs (alternative)

"Thomas just got arrested for shoplifting." "Well, I'll go to the foot of the stairs!"

(informal, British, dated) An exclamation of astonishment, often after someone has said something shocking or unbelievable.


mozzle

en-verb

mozzle (third-person singular simple present mozzles, present participle mozzling, simple past and past participle mozzled)

mozzles (present singular third-person)
mozzling (participle present)
mozzled (participle past)
mozzled (past)


handbags at ten paces

handbags at dawn
handbags at dawn#English

(British, humorous, idiomatic) Synonym of handbags at dawn (“a catty squabble”).


Jack tar

(British) Alternative letter-case form of jacktar.


do someone's dags

"Can you climb?" asked Gale of Joe.
"Like a monkey."
"Of course," said Gale, drily, "very much like a monkey."
"That's one to you; but I can do your dags."
"You can't."
"I can — anybody's dags. Look here."

[…] do his dags for him, Billy would, if he could get at him. Wouldn't you, Billy?

1914, William De Morgan, When Ghost Meets Ghost, page 575:

(UK, slang, obsolete) To defy someone by doing something that they are unable to do.


that's the tip

that's the ticket
that's the ticket#English

(UK, slang, obsolete) Synonym of that's the ticket.


tip-topper

(UK, slang, obsolete) A swell; a fashionable man.


Squeak

An allusion to the newspaper cartoon strip Pip, Squeak and Wilfred.

(UK, military, World War I, slang) The British War Medal.


megabrill

en-adj

megabrill (comparative more megabrill, superlative most megabrill)

more megabrill (comparative)
most megabrill (superlative)

We've had some fun this month extracting the Michael from the Software Editor. Playing on his kind, easy going temperament we handed him a copy of Firebird's Don't Buy This and persuaded him that it was a collection of megabrill games.

1985, "Don't Buy This" (video game review) in Crash (issue 17, pages 46-47)

Now it was a case of wanting to go to the library for more books, to a friend's house for a chance to see some megabrill videos […]

(UK, slang, dated) Excellent; very good.


Parklife

From the 1994 Blur single "Parklife", which features a narrator speaking verbosely about his daily routine at the park, interrupted by regular shouts of "Parklife!". Popularized as a general interjection in 2014 in a Twitter meme comparing the supposed similarities between "Parklife"'s narration and the speaking style of Russell Brand.

The news won’t come as a surprise to everyone, considering the number of Twitter users who gamely shouted “Parklife!” at him recently, after Brand’s convoluted way of speaking was compared to the wordy verses of Blur’s song of the same name.

2014 November 13, Ella Alexander, “Russell Brand officially a negative influence on politics, according to this”, in The Independent:

If you can shout “Parklife!” at the end of your sentence with the word “hippocampus” “or “fusiform gyrus” somewhere in the middle, there is a chance you’ve mastered neurobabble.

2015 May 5, Jules Montague, “How to win any argument: pseudo-scientific neuro-gibberish”, in The Guardian:

As an avid reader, but one who gave up academia years ago, parsing meaning from the dense descriptors occasionally left me ready to shout Parklife. But it’s also a book which says to the reader: make of this what you will. There are no polemics here, no dumbings down.

2019 December 5, Laura Waddell, “Scotland’s ‘Unmakars’ can take you to some unexpected places”, in The Scotsman:

(UK, humorous) A response to a statement perceived as pretentious, pompous or verbose.


keepsaky

keepsaky (comparative more keepsaky, superlative most keepsaky)

more keepsaky (comparative)
most keepsaky (superlative)

(UK, dated, rare) Similar to or suitable for a keepsake.


hermeneuticise

en-verb

hermeneuticise (third-person singular simple present hermeneuticises, present participle hermeneuticising, simple past and past participle hermeneuticised)

hermeneuticises (present singular third-person)
hermeneuticising (participle present)
hermeneuticised (participle past)
hermeneuticised (past)

British standard spelling of hermeneuticize.


Mummy's boy

When I asked him how many gun slits there were, he said he hadn’t counted and he couldn’t care less. He just wants to go home. Well, what can you expect from such a Mummy’s boy?

1989, Kati David, “Robin: England”, in A Child’s War: World War II Through the Eyes of Children, New York, N.Y.: Four Walls Eight Windows, →ISBN, page 34:

His father had worried about him, he knew. Worried that at twelve he was such a Mummy’s boy. A wimp, Dad had called him, but he’d ignored that as he ignored almost everything about the man.

2013, Linda Huber, “The Stranger”, in The Paradise Trees, London: Legend Press, →ISBN, page 36:

‘Appleton’s a gas, you’ll see. After first few years. Besides, it’s about time you stopped being such a Mummy’s boy.’ Brad lies on his bed and spreads his arms. ‘I think Mum leaving is the best thing that could have happened to you.’

2017, Jason Wallace, “Gary”, in Encounters, London: Andersen Press, →ISBN, page 26:

(chiefly UK) Alternative form of mama's boy.


mummie's boy

“[…] It’s a grand life in the forests.” / “Too many mosquitos.” / “You namby-pambies, mummie’s boys. Afraid of being eaten by mosquitos!”

1944, N[ikolai] S[emyonovich] Leskov, translated by R. Norman, “The Musk-Ox”, in The Musk-Ox and Other Tales (The Tales of N. S. Leskov; I), London: Routledge, →OCLC, page 51:

His father is away all day, and it is only recently that we have even had a maid with us, except in the mornings, so that he is rather a “mummie’s boy”.

1948, Susan Isaacs, quoting a mother, “Sex Education and ‘Where Do Babies Come From?’”, in Troubles of Children and Parents, London: Methuen & Co. Ltd. […], →OCLC, page 222:

I had been at Grammar school with Ron, and tormented him once or twice, and his mum had me before Headmaster Bevans where he was never able to substantiate his complaints. He was a mummie’s boy.

2008, Henry, chapter 12, in The Henry Club, [Bloomington, Ind.]: Xlibris, →ISBN, page 198:


Mummie's boy

The last sign I am going to mention to-day is a very strong attachment for one particular person. I mean a “Mummie’s boy” or “Nannie’s baby” or “Daddie’s girl.” It is natural for a baby or a toddler to be fondest of those who have fed, bathed and dressed him, played with him (not too much, I hope) and cared for him but there comes a time—the earlier the better—when he wants to try to do things for himself, to feel his feet, and to begin to learn independence.

1931, Maternity and Child Welfare, volumes XV–XVI, London: John Bale, Sons & Danielsson, Ltd., →OCLC, page 168, columns 1–2:

He is a happy little boy and makes friends with everyone he meets. I’m happy to say he is a complete ‘Mummie’s’ boy.

1949 February 12, Robert M. Ratcliffe, quoting Mrs. Leon Lomax, “First Adopted ‘Brown Baby’ Is Here!”, in The Pittsburgh Courier, National edition, volume XL, number 7, Pittsburgh, Pa., →OCLC, page 4:

“I am glad the boys do not get homesick,” Mrs. Jarvis wrote, “I did used to worry about John as I said he was so affectionate and quite a Mummie’s boy, but school will have altered that as it would have done here.”

a. 1988, Geoffrey Bilson, “John Jarvis: Age 5; CORB Evacuee”, in The Guest Children: The Story of the British Child Evacuees Sent to Canada During World War II, Saskatoon, Sask.: Ffith House, published 1988, →ISBN, chapter VI (Brave Young Strangers), page 157:

“Sandy has done a good job…I confess I was afraid he might turn into a boring little Mummie’s boy…but really he’s very interesting to talk to…” […] “I miss you too, Mum!” he said clearly toward the hall. “But I’ll be home in ten more days, so don’t worry.” He hoped his dad was hearing this. And he didn’t care right now if it made him sound like a Mummie’s boy.

2004, Cora Taylor, Ghost Voyages III: Endeavour & Resolution, Regina, Sask.: Coteau Books for Kids, published 2005, →ISBN, pages 25 (chapter 6) and 47 (chapter 11):


mumma's boy

Good manners are important skills to learn and it’s not like you have to be a well-behaved mumma’s boy around girls. Some girls wouldn’t even be into guys like that. But it’s good to know when it’s appropriate to have good manners and when you can kick back and forget about that stuff.

2011, Jonathan Toussaint, “What not to do”, in How to Talk to Girls, Crows Nest, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin, →ISBN, chapter 4 (Getting to Know Her), page 96:

“Text Mum. Tell her to quietly excuse herself and come here.” / “I’m not a mumma’s boy, dammit.” As the youngest, Bryce and his mum did share a special bond. At times, it embarrassed him.

2015, Vonnie Davis, A Highlander’s Passion (Highlander’s Beloved; 2), New York, N.Y.: Loveswept, →ISBN:

[S]he hugged me and nurtured me, and told me everything was going to be all right. Right, like any mother would do, but for me, when I went up in my room that night, somehow I equated the fact that you know, I was like a mumma’s boy, somehow equated a sissy, and that was the reason why I got beat up.

2016, Marieke Liem, quoting Keith, “Lives Spiraling out of Control”, in After Life Imprisonment: Reentry in the Era of Mass Incarceration (New Perspectives in Crime, Deviance, and Law), New York, N.Y.: New York University Press, →ISBN, page 57:

(chiefly UK) Alternative spelling of mama's boy.


Mumma's boy

“Ah, he’s all piss and wind like a barber’s cat . . . a real Mumma’s boy.” […] “Ah, you’re not a bad poor bastard,” she sighed. “But you don’t know nothin’. You’re just a poor, inoffensive Mumma’s boy.”

1959, Dorothy Hewett, chapter 4, in Bobbin Up (Virago Modern Classics; 172), London: Virago Press, →ISBN, pages 29 and 38:

Unfortunately—or perhaps fortunately—there weren’t too many local men around Serina’s age who weren’t already married, or Mumma’s boys, or simply too unattractive for words.

2010, Miranda Lee, chapter 4, in A Night, a Secret…a Child (Harlequin Presents; 2921), Don Mills, Ont.: Harlequin Enterprises, →ISBN, page 34:

He was a Mumma’s boy as everyone said, and we saw this daily. He wouldn’t imagine himself without his mother at home, though he would be out for a major part of the day.

2021, Disha [pseudonym; Dinesh Sharma], “The Astrology Game”, in Spoken Silence, Chennai, Tamil Nadu: Notion Press, →ISBN:


thermionic tube

en-noun

thermionic tube (plural thermionic tubes)


twattiness

More than any other musical genre, excepting possibly avant-garde field recordings of firearms, hip-hop lends itself well to expressing one's belief in the twattiness of others. Which is perhaps why the author, possessed by a desire to point fingers, name names, and speak out against arseholes, was drawn to the genre.

2000, “Judge Mental & The Heavy Dread Beat”, in Ed Pinsent, editor, The Sound Projector, number 8, London, →OCLC, page 153, column 2:

My attitude affects your reaction. Your reaction affects my attitude. This is the theory behind being able to talk someone down from heightened twattiness to calm compliance.

2010, Lance Manley, “Glossary”, in Stab Proof Scarecrows, Kibworth Beauchamp, Leicestershire: Matador, →ISBN, page 366:

‘[…] Since you can obviously stand outside yourself for long enough to consider how other people may see you. And your concern about dumping Larry in it also suggests that your level of twattiness could be much lower than you think.’ […] ‘Twattiness, hey?’ she said. ‘That’s pretty original. For a self-helpy rant.’

2014, Chrissie Keighery, chapter 4, in Love Is the New Black, Richmond, Vic.: Hardie Grant Egmont, →ISBN, page 43:

(vulgar, slang, UK, Ireland, Commonwealth) The quality of being like a twat.


glime

en-verb

glime (third-person singular simple present glimes, present participle gliming, simple past and past participle glimed)

glimes (present singular third-person)
gliming (participle present)
glimed (participle past)
glimed (past)
glyme (alternative obsolete)

Of uncertain origin. Probably from Middle English glimme (“radiance, brightness”) (whence glim), Scots glim (“glance, glimpse”) or Norwegian Nynorsk glim (“glimpse, glimmer”), all from Proto-Germanic *glīmô. Compare glim, gleam, glimmer, glimpse.
The noun is derived from the verb.

bor

He was gliming at her from closer range now, and in her position—for he held her still—she could not help but glime back. He looked so humble—penitent for once, yet reproachful, his own eyes moist, and, withal, the old, audacious David, that in her own despite her anger waned.

1898, Alfred Ollivant, “The Storm Breaks” (chapter XXII), in Owd Bob: The Grey Dog of Kenmuir, London: Methuen & Co., page 212:

And on Sunday evenings, while the Primitives were singing a hymn outside their chapel before going in for service, she would be tripping past, lightly shod, and wearing a hat with an ostrich feather, on her way to town, where a German band played sacred music on the promenade, and young people, walking arm-in-arm, laughed and "glimed" at each other under the gas-light.

1921, Hall Caine, “The Call of Bessie Collister” (chapter 8), in The Master of Man: The Story of a Sin, Philadelphia, London: J.B. Lippincott Company, page 73:

A silence falls in the four-wheeler for the rest of the road home. Felix looking straight ahead and concentrating on his driving. The girls asleep in each other's arms on the back seat. And me occasionally gliming in the rear-view mirror. The dark eyes of the Romany woman.

1999, John F. McDonald, chapter 9, in Tribe, Dublin: Wolfhound Press, →ISBN, page 71:

(intransitive, UK dialectal) To glance (at); to look sideways.


glime

glimes (plural)
glyme (alternative obsolete)

‘Aw, ye wouldn't think it's true, would ye, now?’ said Ned, with a wink at Dan and a ‘glime’ at Davy.

1887, Hall Caine, “The First Night with the Herrings” (chapter X), in The Deemster, London: Chatto & Windus, page 218:

(intransitive, UK dialectal) A sideways glance.


macaroni dress

en-noun

macaroni dress (countable and uncountable, plural macaroni dresses)

(UK, historical, clothing) A type of extravagant and flamboyant clothing worn by a subculture of young English men in the late 18th century.


diesel loco

diesel locomotive
diesel locomotive#English:_Q34336


put-you-up

"No, er I, er no I didn't mean." He started to go red. "I meant that there is a put-you-up bed in the back. Oh! Hell you know what I meant."

2007, C. J. Pendergest, The Videls, Pegasus Elliot Mackenzie Pu, →ISBN, page 144:


green rod

(UK, monarchy) A ceremonial rod associated with the Gentleman Usher of the Green Rod.


cloud seven

The seven part likely derives from the expression seventh heaven, which refers to a state of heavenly bliss.

(UK, idiomatic) Often in the phrase on cloud seven: a state of bliss, elation or happiness.


on cloud seven

(UK, idiomatic) In a state of elation; very happy; blissful.


Green Striper

Green Stripers (plural)
green-striper (alternative)

(UK) An officer in the Electrical Branch of the Royal Navy.


Green Line

(UK) A network of long-distance coach services connecting central London with towns in the Home Counties.


eosinophilous

(cytology, UK) Having an affinity for dyes such as eosin.


holiday let

(UK) A property let out to tourists or holidaymakers for short periods, such as a week.


motor bogie

The motor bogie is mounted on 3 ft.-4 in. dia. wheels, one lightweight motor being fitted on each motor axle, with the motor nose resting on a rubber block carried on a bracket welded to the bogie transom.

1955 June, “Two-Car Electric Units for Tyneside and Southern Region”, in Railway Magazine, page 387:

(rail transport, UK) A bogie fitted with one or more traction motors, for the purpose of propelling a diesel-electric or electric train or locomotive. Many locomotives have three-axle motor bogies.


cake and arse party

cake and arse party (plural cake and arse parties)

cake and arse parties (plural)
cake-and-arse party (alternative)

(UK, military, slang) An unpleasantly chaotic situation; a shambles.


unrubbish

en-adj

unrubbish (comparative more unrubbish, superlative most unrubbish)

more unrubbish (comparative)
most unrubbish (superlative)

[…] they manage to land someone decidedly unrubbish to spend their lives with.

2009, Paul Robert Smith, Up a Tree in the Park at Night with a Hedgehog, page 24:

So that's why I just sent a rubbish little nothing-note (not to be confused with the very unrubbish Notes with a big N).

2020, Inky Willis, Magical Muddles: Book 2:

(UK, colloquial) Not rubbish; good or acceptable.


steam loco

steam locomotive
steam locomotive#English:_Q171043


STUC

Scottish Trades Union Congress
w:Scottish Trades Union Congress

(UK) Initialism of Scottish Trades Union Congress, a federation of trade unions in Scotland.


Fleet marriage

(UK, historical) An irregular or clandestine marriage taking place in Fleet Prison, London, England, before the Marriage Act came into force in 1754.


recco

en-noun

recco (countable and uncountable, plural reccos)

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, military slang) Reconnaissance.


thereright

[…] and thereright we came upon a well that had been filled up wi' stones and rubble years agone and then forgotten.

1923, John Read, Cluster-o'-vive: Stories and Studies of Old-World Wessex, page 12:

(UK, dialect, archaic) At once; straight away.


smooth as a baby's bum

smooth as a baby's bottom
smooth as a baby's bottom#English

(UK, informal, simile) Alternative form of smooth as a baby's bottom.


hey diddle diddle

Rhyming slang referencing the namesake nursery rhyme. Phrase first attested in Thomas Preston's Cambyses, king of Persia (1569).

"That's my cousin Reggie," said Wallaby Jack. "He's only a little feller, but he can play footy. Took a screamer first quarter, then left foot banana through the hey diddle diddle. Six big ones."

2018 November 22, Thomas Faunce, Split By Sun: The Tragic History Of The Sustainocene, World Scientific Publishing, →ISBN, page 315:

The celebrity long-drive event took place on the ninth hole of the West Course, which was won by Spiderman actor Tom Holland. Holland looked like he meant business when he ripped his drive 310 yards straight down the hey diddle diddle.

2023 November 1, Ben Smith, “Watch: Long drive bloopers from BMW PGA Championship Pro-Am”, in GolfMagic, retrieved 2025-05-13:

Now then, can Ratchford add the extras to trim Wigan's lead to just two points? Here he comes...straight through the hey diddle diddle!

2025 May 4, Matt Turner, “Wigan Warriors vs Warrington Wolves, Magic Weekend live”, in Warrington Guardian, retrieved 2025-05-13:

(UK, Australia, rhyming slang) The middle.

Hey Diddle Diddle
Thomas Preston (writer)


do a flit

en-verb

do a flit (third-person singular simple present does a flit, present participle doing a flit, simple past did a flit, past participle done a flit)

does a flit (present singular third-person)
doing a flit (participle present)
did a flit (past)
done a flit (participle past)

(UK) To change ones residence suddenly and without notice


do a moonlight flit

do a moonlight flit (third-person singular simple present does a moonlight flit, present participle doing a moonlight flit, simple past did a moonlight flit, past participle done a moonlight flit)

does a moonlight flit (present singular third-person)
doing a moonlight flit (participle present)
did a moonlight flit (past)
done a moonlight flit (participle past)

(UK) To change residence suddenly and without notice, especially overnight and under the cover of darkness.


bust one's arse

bust one's arse (third-person singular simple present busts one's arse, present participle busting one's arse, simple past and past participle busted one's arse or bust one's arse)

busts one's arse (present singular third-person)
busting one's arse (participle present)
busted one's arse (participle past)
busted one's arse (past)
bust one's arse (participle past)
bust one's arse (past)

(UK) Alternative spelling of bust one's ass.


TLATA

w:Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996

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


crispless

(UK, rare) Without crisps (potato snacks).


red 'un

Arthur Morrison, Chance of the Game
But if the clock was a red 'un, and the opportunity undoubted; to be pinched in the Bow Road merely might well imply loss of caste in the mob, but nobody need be ashamed to be pinched anywhere for a gold watch, after all.

R. Austin Freeman, A Savant's Vendetta
'Do you know a jerry when you sees one — a red 'un, mind you?' […] The fellow looked furtively at the door and then, diving into an inner pocket, pulled out a handsome gold watch with a massive chain attached, exhibited it for a moment and then dropped it back.

(UK, obsolete, thieves' cant) A gold watch.


tuppenny upright

en-noun

tuppenny upright (plural tuppenny uprights)

(UK, slang, obsolete) A cheap prostitute who offered sex in an alleyway or against a wall, with the man standing and the woman's knees raised.


fuel duty

fuel duty (countable and uncountable, plural fuel duties)

"We need a different understanding of revenues and public expenditure. The 15-year freeze on fuel duty and lack of tax on aviation fuel are effectively a huge subsidy to those forms of travel, but they are not described as subsidy because they are foregone revenue. Yet if you invest to hold rail fares, it's seen as subsidy."

2025 May 28, Ben Plowden talks to Anthony Lambert, “The railway is an essential public service”, in RAIL, number 1036, page 33:

(UK) A tax levied by the government on fuels like petrol (gasoline) and diesel.


tea loaf

(UK) A bread with a caky consistency flavoured with tea and, usually, raisins (especially currants and sultanas).


without tea and biscuits

without biscuits (alternative)
without coffee (alternative)
without tea (alternative)
without tea or biscuits (alternative)

DD rang the chief constable and threatened to ‘give him an interview without biscuits’ (?).

2006 October 7, Tamzin Lightwater, “Diary of a Notting Hill Nobody”, in The Spectator:

The army is apparently having Harry in for an interview without coffee, which is military-speak for a minor reprimand.

2012 August 22, Emma G. Keller, “Time to strip Prince Harry of his title”, in The Guardian:

It is not actually the classic 'one-sided without tea and biscuits' meeting, but initially I am told that I mustn't let 'blood-lust' curb my judgement.

2018 March 13, Mike Borlace, Spider Zero Seven, Troubador Publishing Ltd, →ISBN, page 194:

If you’re recorded running at 77.1 mph over a 75 mph speed limit for a mile or so, that’s a meeting-without-tea-or-biscuits and a threat of disciplinary action, despite the fact that all you can tell is the needle is just over 75 – and on many trains it’ll be flickering too.

2024 August 8, anonymous train driver, “Guest Blog: A train driver responds”, in Bus and Train User:

(UK, humorous, of a meeting) Inquisitorial, severe.


freemining

(British) The mining activities of a freeminer.


bachelor flat

bachelor apartment
bachelor apartment#English

(British) Synonym of bachelor apartment.


gambling hell

They bribed a certain class of merchants - worthy of no better name than the devil's stool pigeons - who infested that city, to induce the young man to drink until he became intoxicated, and then take him to their gambling hell.

1844, Jonathan Harrington Green, Gambling Unmasked! Or The Personal Experience of J.H. Green, The Reformed Gambler, page 138:

(UK, informal, sometimes derogatory) Synonym of gambling house.


stop the job

en-verb

stop the job (third-person singular simple present stops the job, present participle stopping the job, simple past and past participle stopped the job)

stops the job (present singular third-person)
stopping the job (participle present)
stopped the job (participle past)
stopped the job (past)

Blea Moor to Carlisle, derailed blocking both roads. Can you stop the job between Kirkby Stephen and Blea Moor.

1999, Stanley Hall, quoting train driver in the 1995 Ais Gill rail accident, Hidden Dangers: Railway Safety in the Era of Privatisation:

Just one ‘in traffic’ failure in ten years for me. But it was a good ’un and stopped the job entirely for a few hours...!

2018 April 21, “What the drivers think of the ‘66s’…”, in RAIL Magazine:

However, any power or equipment failures ‘stop the job’ and are disruptive to railway operations.

2025 April 29, Paul Darlington, “Railway 200: Signalling”, in Rail Engineer Magazine:

(UK, rail transport, colloquial) To completely stop all traffic.


bidcock

1868, William Henry Wheeler, A History of the Fens of South Lincolnshire
[…] bidcock, the redshank, the bittern and the wild goose.


the mixture as before

From the directions of a medical prescription.

the same mixture as before (alternative)

(UK) Used to indicate the same action, situation, or thing etc., as previously.


on the mat

(informal, idiomatic, originally UK, military) To be reprimanded or called to account by someone in authority.


DDN

(media, UK) Initialism of Double Down News.