gherkin

From a form of Dutch gurk, an archaic variant of augurk (“small pickled cucumber”), from Low German, from Middle Low German agurke, augurke, probably via Slavic (compare Polish ogórek), from Byzantine Greek ἀγγούριον (angoúrion, “cucumber”). The underlying Dutch form may be a diminutive (gurkijn) or perhaps more probably the plural (gurken), which was then associated with the English suffix -kin (itself incidentally from Dutch or Low German). Compare German Gurke.

der

(UK, Ireland) Pickled cucumber regardless of size; a pickle


blob

en-verb

blob (third-person singular simple present blobs, present participle blobbing, simple past and past participle blobbed)

blobs (present singular third-person)
blobbing (participle present)
blobbed (participle past)
blobbed (past)

From Middle English *blob (“attested in blobby”). Possibly onomatopoeic, similarly to bleb and blubber.

inh

attested in <i class="Latn mention" lang="enm">blobby</i>

(intransitive, UK, colloquial) To spill sauce on oneself while eating.


rota

Borrowed from Latin rota (“wheel”). Doublet of rotor and ruote.

[The manager] instituted a rota for having the players attend supporters’ club meetings throughout the season, telling them it was part of the job of being a footballer.

2014 July 25, Paul Rees, “‘We got off the coach and the National Front was there … People spat at us’”, in The Guardian:

(UK, Ireland) A schedule that allocates some task, responsibility or (rarely) privilege between a set of people according to a (possibly periodic) calendar.


K

Abbreviations.
# (stenoscript) Abbreviation of counter, prefix counter-, sequence contr.

ng

prefix <i class="Latn mention" lang="en">counter-</i>, sequence contr.

(UK, government) Abbreviation of Knighthood.


hog

Sranan Tongo: agu

From Middle English hog, from Old English hogg, hocg (“hog”), possibly from Old Norse hǫggva (“to strike, chop, cut”), from Proto-Germanic *hawwaną (“to hew, forge”), from Proto-Indo-European *kewh₂- (“to beat, hew, forge”).
Cognate with Old High German houwan, Old Saxon hauwan, Old English hēawan (English hew). Hog originally meant a castrated male pig, hence a sense of “the cut one”. (Compare hogget for a castrated male sheep.) More at hew.
Alternatively from a Brythonic language, from Proto-Celtic *sukkos, from Proto-Indo-European *suH- and thus cognate with Welsh hwch (“sow”) and Cornish hogh (“pig”).

der

(UK) A young sheep that has not been shorn.

“’Ere y'are, the best rig-out you ever ’ad. A tosheroon [half a crown]^([sic]) for the coat, two ’ogs for the trousers, one and a tanner for the boots, and a ’og for the cap and scarf. That's seven bob.”

1933 January 9, George Orwell [pseudonym; Eric Arthur Blair], chapter XXIX, in Down and Out in Paris and London, London: Victor Gollancz […], →OCLC, pages 214–215:

hog (pl hog). A shilling: orig. (ca 1670), c.; in C.19–20, low s.

1961, Eric Partridge, The Routledge Dictionary of Historical Slang:

(UK, historical, archaic slang, countable and uncountable) A shilling coin; its value, 12 old pence.

hog (pl hog)... 2. In C.18–early 19, occ. a sixpence: also c., whence the U.S. sense. Prob. ex the figure of a hog on a small silver coin.

(UK, historical, obsolete slang, countable and uncountable) A tanner, a sixpence coin; its value.

hog (pl hog)... 3. A half-crown: ca 1860–1910.

(UK, historical, obsolete slang, countable and uncountable) A half-crown coin; its value, 30 old pence.


angler

/ˈæŋ.ɡlə(ɹ)/

From Middle English angler, angleer, angeler, equivalent to angle + -er.

They are sure to be clyd in the night by the angler, or hooker, or such like pilferers that liue upon the spoyle of other poore people.

c. 1608–1610, Samuel Rid, Martin Mark-all, Beadle of Bridewell:

Rogue or rascal, frater, maunderer, / Irish Toyle, or other wanderer; / No dimber damber, angler, dancer, / Prig of cackler, prig of prancer

1834, William Harrison Ainsworth, Rookwood, volume 2, Oath of the Canting Crew, pages 339–340:

(archaic, UK, thieves' cant) A thief who uses a hooked stick to steal goods out of shop-windows, grates, etc.


J

The Highways Agency plan to close J10 of the M5 to refurbish the motorway bridge.

(British, road transport) Abbreviation of junction.


TUPE

w:Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006

(UK, law) Acronym of Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006.


TUPE

en-verb

TUPE (third-person singular simple present TUPEs, present participle TUPEing, simple past and past participle TUPEd)

TUPEs (present singular third-person)
TUPEing (participle present)
TUPEd (participle past)
TUPEd (past)

(British, colloquial) To transfer (an employee or group of employees) to another employer under TUPE regulations.


FSA

Coordinate term: (successor) PRA

The FSA believed in ‘market discipline’ and failed to get its message across. The PRA will be different, its boss promises[.]

2011 May 19, Jill Treanor, “Spotlight falls on City watchdog Sants”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

Financial Services Authority
w:Financial Services Authority

(UK, historical, 2001–2013) Initialism of Financial Services Authority.


louse around

louse around (third-person singular simple present louses around, present participle lousing around, simple past and past participle loused around)

louses around (present singular third-person)
lousing around (participle present)
loused around (participle past)
loused around (past)

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

(British, slang) To slack off; to be lazy or a parasite on others.


NHS

Thank god for the NHS, because if I had to pay for these sessions myself I wouldnʼt get close to halfway to recovery before bankrupting myself.

2019, Candice Carty-Williams, Queenie, Trapeze, page 294:

National Health Service
w:National Health Service

(British) Initialism of National Health Service.


SIS

Secret Intelligence Service
w:Secret Intelligence Service

(British) Initialism of Secret Intelligence Service.


ploy

en-noun

ploy (countable and uncountable, plural ploys)

Possibly from a shortened form of employ or deploy. Or from earlier ploye, from Middle English, borrowed from Middle French ployer (compare modern plier), from Latin plicāre.


MCR

Manchester City Region
w:Manchester City Region

(UK) Abbreviation of Manchester City Region.


U

An abbreviation of a word or term beginning with the letter U. Adjective sense 1 (“characteristic of the upper classes”) was coined by British linguist Alan S. C. Ross (1907–1980) in a 1954 article, and popularized by the English journalist and writer Nancy Mitford (1904–1973).

(UK) A film with the film classification U (“universal”).


U

en-adj

U (not generally comparable, comparative Uer, superlative Uest)

I may also note here that the U-demarcation is of two types: – (1) a certain U-feature has a different, non-U counterpart as non-U wealthy / U rich; (2) a certain feature is confined to U-speech and it has a counterpart which is not confined to non-U speech e.g. the pronunciations of girl as [ɡɛl], (? [ɡjɛl]), [ɡæl], [ɡɛəl] are U, but many (perhaps most male) U-speakers, like all non-U-speakers, use the pronunciation [ɡəːl].

1954, Alan S[trode] C[ampbell] Ross, “Linguistic Class-indicators in Present-day English”, in Neuphilologische Mitteilungen [Modern Language Communications], volume 55, number 1, Helsinki: Modern Language Society, →ISSN, →JSTOR, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2015-04-15, page 24:

To TAKE a bath is non-U against U to HAVE one’s bath.

[1956], Alan S. C. Ross, “U and non-U”, in David Milsted, Brewer’s Anthology of England and the English, page 120

In a treatise that still causes ripples in English society, Mitford defined various terms as either U (upper class) or non-U.

1956, Nancy Mitford, Noblesse Oblige: an Inquiry into the Identifiable Characteristics of the English Aristocracy

Pudding when used to mean all sweet dishes at the end of a meal is non-U; the U expression is sweet.

1956 February 25, Thought, volume 8, Delhi: Siddhartha Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 16, column 1:

A wedding is a great occasion for u/non-u indicators. The u mother will be quietly dressed; the non-u one will be more ostentatious and have a corsage. The u father will be wearing his own morning coat and a carnation. The non-u father will bolster his carnation—on his hired morning coat—with a sprig of fern, and perhaps even carry a pair of grey gloves.

1968 August 21, “U and Non-U Today: 2. Actions”, in New Society: The Social Science Weekly, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 267, column 2:

The U/non-U priority rule will be in accord with servant master-type rules if masters are U and servants are non-U, for then the rules support each other. But since a master who cannot command is not a master, a non-U sergeant must take priority over a U-recruit, the same with impoverished aristocratic chauffeurs working for nouveau-riche plebeian millionaires.

1976, J[an] T. J. Srzednicki, “Structure of Beliefs and Group Structure”, in Elements of Social and Political Philosophy (Melbourne International Philosophy Series; 2), The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →DOI, →ISBN, page 135:

Was it all a huge joke … this U and non-U business? Yes and no. John Betjeman assured me that it was. But some jokes have an element of cruelty and a great many sensitive people, particularly women, must have suffered agonies of embarrassment because they were uncertain as to what was 'done,' and what was not.

1977, Beverley Nichols, “Toilet-training”, in The Spectator: A Weekly Review of Politics, Literature, Theology, and Art, volume 238, London: F. C. Westley, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 15, column 3:

The concept of U (for upper-class British usage, as opposed to non-U, or everything else) was introduced by Alan S. C. Ross (1954) and was taken up by Nancy Mitford (1956), becoming for a time something of a parlor game in which the participants tested themselves and everyone else for signs of U and non-U status.

1992, John Algeo, “Sociolinguistic Attitudes and Issues in Contemporary Britain”, in Tim W[illiam] Machan, Charles T. Scott, editors, English in Its Social Contexts: Essays in Historical Sociolinguistics (Oxford Studies in Sociolinguistics), New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 165:

Other, perhaps more contentious generalizations, which nevertheless contain a certain amount of truth, are that afternoon tea is U, starts at four and typically consists of tea, thin sandwiches and cakes.

1992, Stephan Gramley, Survey of Modern English, page 38:

To speak of lavatories is U, of bathrooms non-U; to lay cloth napkins at table is U, to lay paper napkins non-U; and so on through a myriad of equally trivial examples. I assume that there is something distinctively collusive in the way Sloanes use the U-concept: that as they individually decide whether something is U or non-U they look over their shoulders to make sure they stay in step—the community is the authority—rather than looking to the thing itself to see what profile it displays.

1993, Philip Pettit, “For Holism, against Atomism”, in The Common Mind: An Essay on Psychology, Society, and Politics, New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN; 1st paperback edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire, New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, 1996, →ISBN, part II (Mind and Society), pages 205–206:

For this we must turn to speculations such as those offered in connection with U and non-U English.

2001, Stephan Gramley, The Vocabulary of World English (English Language Series), London: Arnold; New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 205:

Eventually, as we now know, the present-day use of lunch and dinner became established among the fashionable classes. As the 20th century dawned, the pages of Punch magazine are full of references to business lunches and evening dinner parties. Meanwhile, the lower orders of society continued to use dinner for their midday meal, and so the U/non-U distinction was born. But the story of lunch and dinner is not over yet. Expressions such as lunch-box and packed lunch have reinforced a change of usage among many non-U children, so that they now happily talk about school lunches (though still served by dinner ladies).

2011, David Crystal, “65: Lunch: U or Non-U (19th Century)”, in The Story of English in 100 Words, London: Profile Books, →ISBN, page 171:

(comparable, chiefly British, dated) Abbreviation of upper class (“characteristic of the upper classes, particularly in the use of language”).

upper class

(not comparable, UK) In a film certificate: abbreviation of universal (“suitable for all ages”).


horsiculture

(chiefly British, slang) the commercial development of the countryside for pasturing or exercising horses


NHS Trust

(British) a self-governing administrative body within the NHS; usually a group of hospitals


hole-in-the-wall

en-noun

hole-in-the-wall (plural hole-in-the-walls or holes-in-the-wall)

hole-in-the-walls (plural)
holes-in-the-wall (plural)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-hole-in-the-wall.wav

automated teller machine
automated teller machine#English

(colloquial, chiefly British) Synonym of automated teller machine


eid

From Old Norse eið (“an isthmus, neck of land”), from Proto-Germanic *aidiją (“isthmus, strait”), of uncertain origin, but probably from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ey- (“to go”). Cognate with Icelandic eið, eiði, Faroese eið, eiði (“isthmus”), Norwegian eid (“isthmus”), Swedish ed. Compare Latin eō (“go, proceed”, verb).

der

(UK dialectal, Scotland) An isthmus or narrow neck of land jutting out into the sea; a sandbank cast up by the sea across the head of an open bight or inlet and having a lagoon inside it.


swottiness

(British) studiousness, the state of studying hard, the state of being swotty.


swotty

en-adj

swotty (comparative swottier, superlative swottiest)

swottier (comparative)
swottiest (superlative)

(British, slang) studious; being a swot.


G

en-noun

G (countable and uncountable, plural Gs)

(UK, education) The academic grade that comes next below F.


shitty

en-adj

shitty (comparative shittier, superlative shittiest)

shittier (comparative)
shittiest (superlative)

From shit + -y. Cognate with German Low German schittig (“dirty, shitty”), German scheißig (“shitty”).

cog

better than a poke in the eye with a shitty stick

Don't get shitty with me!

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, vulgar, slang) Annoyed.


home cinema

(UK) A system for showing cinema-quality films at home; usually comprising high-definition television and surround sound.


V sign

(chiefly UK, Ireland, Commonwealth) A gesture of contempt or insult made by raising the index and middle fingers with the palm inwards; apocryphally originated by English bowmen at Agincourt (in actuality attested only from 1901).


PII

public-interest immunity
w:public-interest immunity

(UK, law) Initialism of public-interest immunity.


JIC

Joint Intelligence Committee
w:Joint Intelligence Committee

(British) Initialism of Joint Intelligence Committee.


RFC

(aviation, British, military) Initialism of Royal Flying Corps (previous title of the Royal Air Force)

(British) Initialism of Rangers Football Club.


PUS

(UK) Initialism of permanent undersecretary.


CPS

‘Itʼs entrapment,’ said Silver. ‘The CPS wonʼt prosecute.’

2020, Ben Aaronovitch, False Value, Gollancz, page 233:

Big showering of affection at beginning of relationship can be used to confuse victims and gain control, CPS warns[.]

2023 April 23, Amelia Gentleman, “CPS includes ‘love-bombing’ in guidance on abusive partners prosecution”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

Crown Prosecution Service
w:Crown Prosecution Service

(UK, law) Initialism of Crown Prosecution Service.


Horlicks

en-noun

Horlicks (countable and uncountable, plural Horlicks)

Sir James Horlick, 1st Baronet
William Horlick

The name of the drink, first sold as "Horlick's Infant and Invalids Food", is derived from the surname of its developers, James (1844–1921) and William Horlick (1846–1936); equivalent to Horlick + -'s (possessive marker). The term later became a euphemism for bollocks (“mess; to make a mess of”).

When the theatres turned out, people flocked back for their Horlickses and cocoas. Because of the summer visitors, we were open till one o'clock in the morning.

1990, Barbara Hanrahan, A Chelsea Girl, Ulverscroft Large Print Books, →ISBN:

Kathy, drinking Horlicks and laughing about the impossibility of custard (she could not cook – she could not even stir), and obsessive about everything, found out for me that Dylan Thomas had invented a fantasy[…]

2016 December 6, Jeanette Winterson, Christmas Days: 12 Stories and 12 Feasts for 12 Days, Grove/Atlantic, Inc., →ISBN:

It did seem very odd though, drinking Horlicks in the middle of the day. From then on, first thing in the morning, after all meals, and last thing at night, Ruth made me a big mug of Horlicks. Every day, Horlicks. All day, Horlicks.

2021 March 10, Helen Jones, I Am a Real Person, AuthorHouse, →ISBN:

(chiefly British) A hot bedtime drink made with malted milk.

McDonald & Dodds is back, with episode one so deliberately hammy and meta that, technically, it should have been a complete horlicks. In one scene, when they were all hanging on to the balloon ropes, Mr Bean-like, to stop Jason Watkins flying away, it sort of was.

2021 March 1, Carol Midgley, “McDonald & Dodds review – cheerful escapism and filth-free distraction”, in The Times:

(chiefly UK, slang, euphemistic) Bollocks, a mess or balls-up.

As sleep patterns come unstuck and more and more people complain of not getting enough shuteye, so businesses have spotted an opportunity. […] And beware any consumer product which claims it will transform your slumber: it’s probably a load of Horlicks.

2018 October 8, Hannah Devlin, “Sleep: how much do we really need?”, in The Guardian:

“I don’t condone any abuses of human rights anywhere. But if we’re not condoning human rights abuses anywhere, I wouldn’t even be able to perform in my kitchen.” Which is total Horlicks, clearly, but did at least bless us with this cheering reply: “Robbie, what are you doing in your kitchen?”

2022 December 23, Archie Bland, “Friday briefing: The Crown discourse, Elon Musk tweets and 15 more things to leave behind in 2022”, in The Guardian:

(chiefly UK, slang, euphemistic) Bollocks, nonsense, false statements.


Horlicks

en-verb

Horlicks (third-person singular simple present Horlickses, present participle Horlicksing, simple past and past participle Horlicksed)

Horlickses (present singular third-person)
Horlicksing (participle present)
Horlicksed (participle past)
Horlicksed (past)

I have seen a priest massacred in charge of a Mass, experienced schoolmasters carbonated in charge of a class and felt hairdressers Horlicksed in charge of hair clippers. / On a more lasting level, it is possible for surprisingly long periods of time to be drunk in charge of a relationship.

1993 September 25, Stuart Wolfendale, “Column Eight”, in South China Morning Post:

Mr O'Brien has admitted that he was tempted to pay £100,000 to Mr Lowry, out of his own personal generosity, because he had heard pub talk that Mr Lowry's Streamline Enterprises was "Horlicksed"[—]that's a word the Irish Independent has to use as an "intermediary" because the real word is too rude.

2001 June 28, Senan Molony, “Inquiry a training ground for linguistic acrobatics”, in Irish Independent:

One does wonder how the history books will treat Gordon if, as it now looks, he won't even still be PM by the time the next election comes along. / Indeed, if he hadn’t horlicksed the economy with nuclear abandon would they have even mentioned him at all?

2009 April 15, alland...@live.co.uk, “SKY News - Dead Man Walking”, in uk.media.tv.misc (Usenet):

Not the groundsman's fault Australia horlicksed it all up in the space of a couple of hours on Friday.

2009 August 23, Ben Dirs, “Strauss's England worthy winners”, in BBC Sport, archived from the original on 2021-01-09:

Assuming the Citroen engineers haven’t really Horlicksed things up, which I suspect they haven’t, electric should be the neatest of fits for the comfy, untaxing C4.

2022 March 14, Sam Philip, “Citroen C4 PureTech 130 – long-term review”, in Top Gear:

(chiefly UK, slang, euphemistic) To make a mess of (something); to bollocks.


OT

Unbankin' packs and touches faeces, I was OT, you would find it gross

2024, “Entrapreneur”, performed by Central Cee:


CIO

Charitable incorporated organisation
w:Charitable incorporated organisation

(UK) Initialism of Charitable incorporated organisation.


balsam

en-noun

balsam (countable and uncountable, plural balsams)

Borrowed from Latin balsamum, from Ancient Greek βάλσαμον (bálsamon, “balsam”), of Semitic origin (Hebrew בושם (“spice, perfume”)); compare Old English balsam, balsamum (“balsam, balm”), Doublet of balm and desman. Not related to balsa.

der

(chiefly UK) A sweet-smelling oil or resin derived from various plants.

balzám

sweet-smelling oil or resin derived from some plants

(chiefly UK) A plant or tree yielding such substance.

Classical music is a sweet balsam for our sorrows

(chiefly UK, figuratively) Something soothing.


oof

“Oh,” Johnnie was saying, “so Quest is his name, is it, and he lives in a city called Boisingham, does he? Is he an oof bird?” (rich)
“Rather,” answered the Tiger, “if only one can make the dollars run, but he's a nasty mean boy, he is.

1888, H. Rider Haggard, Colonel Quaritch V.C. (archive.org ebook), page 232

Burlington Bertie's the latest young jay
He rents a swell flat somewhere Kensington way
He spends the good oof that his pater has made
Along with the Brandy and Soda Brigade.

1900, Harry B. Norris (lyrics and music), “Burlington Bertie”:

What's he after? Oof—oof—oof, that's what he's after. He's for his own pocket, he's for being boss of all the woolly West. He's after keeping us poor and making himself rich.

1911–1912, published 1916, Gilbert Parker, The World For Sale, book 2, chapter 10 (Gutenberg ebook, archive.org ebook)

Chuffy: It's on a knife edge at the moment, Bertie. If he can get planning permission, old Stoker's going to take this heap off my hands in return for vast amounts of oof.

1991 May 12, “Kidnapped!”, in Jeeves and Wooster, Series 2, Episode 5:

pad the oof

to fold banknotes to appear twice as much


daddy longlegs

en-noun

daddy longlegs (plural daddy longlegs or daddy longlegses)

daddy longlegs (plural)
daddy longlegses (plural)

/ˈdædɪ ˈlɒŋ(ɡ)lɛɡz/

Daddy longlegs adults are weak flyers, falling onto the water surface in the lightest of breezes, and even on calm days.

2004, Bill Hansford-Steele, African Fly-fishing Handbook, page 316:

(UK, Ireland) The cranefly; any insect of the suborder Tipulomorpha.


GMC

(politics, UK) Initialism of General Management Committee. (the general committee of a constituency party of the British Labour Party.)


GMC

(health, UK) Initialism of General Medical Council.


haricot bean

Phaseolus vulgaris
Phaseolus vulgaris#Translingual

(UK) A herbaceous plant from the Americas, Phaseolus vulgaris, the bean of which is eaten as both a green bean and dried, when it is cooked slowly as Boston baked beans.


whew

en-verb

whew (third-person singular simple present whews, present participle whewing, simple past and past participle whewed)

whews (present singular third-person)
whewing (participle present)
whewed (participle past)
whewed (past)

(UK, Scotland, dialect) To whistle with a shrill pipe, like a plover.


whew

(intransitive, UK, dialect) To bustle about.


Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod

(British) The sergeant-at-arms in the House of Lords.


fancy man

(UK, dated slang) Synonym of ponce (“a pimp hired by a prostitute”)


Q

en-noun

Q (countable and uncountable, plural Qs)

Yeah, alright, started with a Q, didn't wait in line

2023 June 1, Dave, Central Cee, Jim Legxacy, Jo Caleb, Jonny Leslie, Kyle Evans (lyrics and music), “Sprinter” (track 2), in Split Decision, performed by Dave and Central Cee, Neighbourhood; Live Yours:

Abbreviation of quarter.
(slang, UK) A quarter ounce of a drug.

Abbreviation of quarter.
A quarter ounce of a drug.


diver

LL-Q1860 (eng)-I learned some phrases-diver.wav


freeloader

From free + load + -er, originally US 1930s.

(UK, New Zealand, Canada) A person who takes expired unsold merchandise from the back of supermarket premises.


ARV

(UK) Initialism of armed response vehicle: a police car that carries firearms.


FTC

fixed-term contract
fixed-term contract#English


NIP

(UK) Abbreviation of notice of intended prosecution.


PPE

PPE (countable and uncountable, plural PPEs)

With his sights on the astonishingly narrow educational formation of the government and opposition front benches, he says: ‘PPE has a lot to answer for.’

2011, David Runciman, “Socialism in One Country”, in London Review of Books, XXXIII.15:

Philosophy, Politics and Economics
w:en:Philosophy, Politics and Economics

(UK) Initialism of Philosophy, Politics and Economics, a university degree course.


bailiff

From Middle English baillif, baylyf, from Anglo-Norman and Old French bailif (plural bailis), probably from Vulgar Latin *bāiulivus (“castellan”), from Latin bāiulus (“porter; steward”), whence also bail. As a translation of foreign titles, semantic loan from French bailli, Scots bailie, Dutch baljuw, etc. Mostly replaced the role of native reeve. Doublet of bailo.

Bailiffs of Jersey and Guernsey
High Bailiff of the Isle of Man
Landvogt
bailiff

مَأْمُور

equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts

(law enforcement) An officer of the court, particularly:

(UK) A high bailiff: an officer of the county courts responsible for executing warrants and court orders, appointed by the judge and removable by the Lord Chancellor.

(UK) A bound bailiff: a deputy bailiff charged with debt collection.

(UK, slang) Any debt collector, regardless of his or her official status.


HMO

(UK) Initialism of home/house in/of multiple occupation/occupancy: a rented house typically let as individual rooms, often to students or migrant workers.


Tail End Charlie

Tail End Charlie (plural Tail End Charlies)

(chiefly British, slang, in World War II) The last aircraft in a formation.

(chiefly British, slang, in World War II) The rear gunner in a bomber.


APACS

w:Association for Payment Clearing Services

(British) Acronym of Association for Payment Clearing Services.


music centre

(British) An integrated home audio system.


smart arse

(idiomatic, UK, Ireland, Commonwealth) One who is particularly flippant or insolent or tends to make snide remarks or jokes.


FCO

Foreign and Commonwealth Office
w:Foreign and Commonwealth Office

(British, UK politics) Initialism of Foreign and Commonwealth Office.


(British, Ireland, historical) Abbreviation of two pence, tuppence (in pre-decimalisation currency, never used for 'two new pence').


CR

(UK, rail transport) Initialism of Caledonian Railway.

(UK) Initialism of Charles Rex (“King Charles”).


PL

(soccer, UK) Initialism of Premier League.


hacking

hacking (usually uncountable, plural hackings)

From Middle English hackynge, hakkynge, hacckinge, equivalent to hack + -ing.

(UK, countable) A riding or journey on horseback.


BR

(UK, rail transport) Initialism of British Rail, formerly British Railways up to 1965.


MSA

MSA (countable and uncountable, plural MSAs)

motorway service area
w:motorway service area

(UK, Ireland) Initialism of motorway service area.


DSS

Department of Social Security
w:Department of Social Security

(British) Initialism of Department of Social Security.


take-away

The small scale of Chinese take-aways is an important factor in making these businesses viable for families.

(chiefly UK, Australia and New Zealand) A takeout restaurant, or food from such restaurant.


CSC

CSC (countable and uncountable, plural CSCs)

(UK) Initialism of close supervision centre, a type of prison


loved-up

en-adj

loved-up (comparative more loved-up, superlative most loved-up)

more loved-up (comparative)
most loved-up (superlative)

(UK, slang) Under the influence of ecstasy (the drug MDMA).


luvvy

From a phonetic spelling of love + -y; in the second sense, because this (as a term for darling or sweetheart) is perceived as a common utterance of thespians.

The other reason, of course, is that the council are New Labour; a bunch of up-themselves show-offs who'd rather hang about with luvvies than deal with the problems of real people. That's why Princess Toni has spent and is spending obscene billions of public money on the dome, while the railways grind to a standstill and hospitals leave war heroes to die on trolleys in corridors. There's no business like showbusiness - and how the government/council chooses to spend your money is certainly no business of yours!

2002 January 19, Julie Burchill, “Falling flat on their arts”, in The Guardian:

[…] a hat-trick that he [Jonathan Glazer] describes as “genuinely bewildering”. It's the kind of thing that garlanded luvvies say all the time, but it's easier to believe in this case.

2024 February 24, Raphael Abraham, “I'm suspicious of people making Holocaust films”, in FT Weekend, Life & Arts, page 3:

(chiefly British, humorous, sometimes derogatory) An actor or actress, especially a narcissistic and pretentious one.


ETD

en-noun

ETD (countable and uncountable, plural ETDs)

(UK) Initialism of emergency travel document.


league table

Imagine a country where children do nothing but play until they start compulsory schooling at age seven. Then, without exception, they attend comprehensives until the age of 16.[…]There are no inspectors, no exams until the age of 18, no school league tables, no private tuition industry, no school uniforms. […]

2013 July 19, Peter Wilby, “Finland spreads word on schools”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 6, page 30:

(chiefly British) Such a listing of hospitals, schools and other institutions showing their ranking according to various indicators of performance.


takeaway

Italian: takeaway

Swedish: takeaway

I couldn't be bothered to cook, so I bought a takeaway curry.

(chiefly UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, Hong Kong, sometimes Philippines) (Of food) intended to be eaten off the premises from which it was bought.


takeaway

If you're hungry, there's a takeaway just around the corner.

2005, Amsterdam, Time Out, page 129,
The wonderful, and deeply filling, world of Dutch broodjes (sandwiches) has its greatest champion in this takeaway, one of the very few that still features proper homemade meat and fish salads in your bun, rather than the almost ubiquitous factory prepared product that′s taken over the sandwich market.

Some of the cheapest places to eat in Kampala are the ubiquitous takeaways that dot the city centre.

2006, Mary Fitzpatrick, Tom Parkinson, Nick Ray, East Africa, Lonely Planet, page 479:

(chiefly UK, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand) A restaurant that sells food to be eaten elsewhere.

წასაღებად

restaurant selling food to be eaten elsewhere

restaurante de manducatoria para recoger

I fancy an Indian takeaway tonight.

Good Italian cuisine & friendly service. Also does takeaways, including pizza.

2008, Annalisa Rellie, Tricia Hayne, Turks & Caicos Islands, Bradt Travel Guides, page 99:

2008, The Complete Residents′ Guide: Los Angeles, Explorer Publishing, page 315,
Pizza and Thai food are popular delivery and takeaway choices, but there are a number of options.

(chiefly UK, Australia and New Zealand) A meal which has been purchased and has been carefully packaged as to be taken and consumed elsewhere.


CBA

And I've seen many examples of abysmal wordwrapping... Me, I CBA changing it, and you really need initials to be used all the time to work properly, else stuff gets mis-attributed.

1996 April 21, Kieron, “Re: olrs and message form”, in alt.fan.douglas-adams (Usenet), retrieved 2016-07-02, message-ID <Dq8E6q.JwB@spuddy.mew.co.uk>:

Each to their own eh Paul? Personally I like WS-FTP TEST version with just the two windows, and more importantly I CBA transferring over all the sites to anything new :o)

1996 April 23, Derek James, “Re: Internet Software”, in demon.ip.support.win95 (Usenet), retrieved 2016-07-02, message-ID <317d2ceb.4692859@news.demon.co.uk>:

(UK, vulgar, slang) Initialism of can't be arsed.

(UK, slang) Initialism of can't be asked.


PACE

Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984
w:Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984

(UK, law) Acronym of Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984.


humbug

humbug (countable and uncountable, plural humbugs)

→ Finnish: humpuuki

→ German: Humbug

→ Hungarian: humbug (perhaps in part through German)

→ Polish: humbug (perhaps in part through German)

John Camden Hotten
Oxford English Dictionary
Piccadilly

Origin unknown; the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) states that “the facts as to its origin appear to have been lost, even before the word became common enough to excite attention”. It has been suggested that the word possibly derives from hummer (“(slang) An obvious lie”), or from hum (“(dialectal and slang) to cajole; delude; impose on”) + bug (“a goblin, a spectre”). In his Slang Dictionary (1864), English bibliophile and publisher John Camden Hotten (1832–1873) suggested a link to the name of the German city of Hamburg, “from which town so many false bulletins and reports came during the war in the last century”, or alternatively a derivation from ambage.
Hotten also said he had traced the earliest occurrence of the word to the title page of Ferdinando Killigrew’s book The Universal Jester (see quotations), which he dated to about 1735–1740. This dating has therefore been adopted by other dictionaries. However, the OED dates the word to about 1750, as the earliest edition of Killigrew’s work has been dated to 1754.

unk

unknown

Humbugs are sweet, hard candies with a mild peppermint flavor, which are traditionally made in small batches by hand. […] Humbugs often feature the old-fashioned peppermint-stripe coloration, dark brown and off-white; are usually oblong or square (about the size of your thumb); […]

2003, Michael Morpurgo, “How to Make Old-fashioned Peppermint Humbugs”, in Private Peaceful, London: HarperCollins, →ISBN:

At half past five in the evening, Anpa sat up in bed and said he'd like a packet of humbugs. Nick and Kate looked at each other and grinned, and Nick immediately picked up his jacket and said he'd go and find some. 'Is he allowed them?' Kate whispered so that Anpa couldn't hear her. / Nick shrugged. 'Can't see how humbugs will do any harm. But I might get soft mints instead so he doesn't choke on them.'

2011, Jo Cotterill, “White Clover”, in Sweet Hearts (Forget Me Not), London: Red Fox, →ISBN, page 216:

(countable, British) A type of hard sweet (candy), usually peppermint flavoured with a striped pattern.


lamping

(UK, Ireland) A form of hunting at night, during which bright lights or lamps are used to dazzle the hunted animal or to attract insects for capture.


marzipan layer

by analogy with the layer of marzipan below the icing on a Christmas cake

(British, slang, finance) stockbroking executives immediately below the partners in a firm


marketeer

(UK) One who promotes and sells products or services; called a marketer in US English.


sanitary towel

(UK) Standard form of sanitary napkin: a pad of absorbent material used to absorb menstrual flow.


hammered

en-adj

hammered (comparative more hammered, superlative most hammered)

more hammered (comparative)
most hammered (superlative)

‘Yeah, sorry about that, I was hammered.’

2019, Candice Carty-Williams, Queenie, Trapeze, page 243:


personal video recorder

en-noun

personal video recorder (plural personal video recorders)

(television, Canada, UK, Ireland) A device that can record broadcast television programmes, or the images from a video camera, for subsequent playback through a television set


tallyho

1772, UK, probably alteration of French taïaut (interjection used in deer-hunting), from Middle French tahou, tayo, from Old French taho, ta ho, tielau (interjection given to hounds to return) (second half of 13th century), composed of ta (particle used to prod animals) + ho ! (“halt!, hold!”). More at ho.

uder

There he is! Coming out of that coppice! Tallyho tallyho tallyho!

(UK) Used to urge on a fox hunt, especially when the fox is sighted.


milk pudding

en-noun

milk pudding (countable and uncountable, plural milk puddings)

(chiefly British) Any of several simple cooked desserts made from sweetened milk and some starchy ingredient.


takeoff

takeoff (countable and uncountable, plural takeoffs)

(printing, UK, historical) The removal of sheets from the press.


OC

OC (countable and uncountable, plural OCs)

out of character
out of character#English

(UK, roleplaying games) Initialism of out of character.


crim

We were the happiest, cheeriest bunch of crims in the whole prison.

2012, Ian McTavish, A Prisoner's Wisdom: Transcending the Ego, page 128:

Are the crims running Wentworth? Woman found murdered in Wentworth Correctional Centre.


tosh

tosh (countable and uncountable, plural toshes)

From 19th-century British thieves' cant, of uncertain origin. Perhaps from *tarsh, a metathetic alteration of trash; or from toss.
Sense of nonsense possibly influenced by tush (“nonsense! tsk tsk!”) attested from 15th century.

The sewer-hunters were formerly, and indeed are still, called by the name of "Toshers," the articles which they pick up in the course of their wanderings along shore being known among themselves by the general term "tosh," a word more particularly applied by them to anything made of copper.

[1851, Henry Mayhew, “Of the Sewer-hunters”, in London Labour and the London Poor; […], volume II (The London Street-folk. Book the Second.), London: [Griffin, Bohn, and Company], →OCLC, page 150, column 2:

(uncountable, British, slang, obsolete) Copper; items made of copper.

I am present engaged in fishing for tosh in the sewers of Blastburn.

1974, Joan Aiken, Midnight is a Place, page 164:

(uncountable, chiefly British, slang, rare) Valuables retrieved from drains and sewers.

To think what I've gone through to hear that man! Frightful tosh it'll be, too.

1892 October 26, Oxford University Magazine, number 26/1:

Perhaps it helped a man into Parliament, Parliament still being a confused retrogressive corner in the world where lawyers and suchlike sheltered themselves from the onslaughts of common-sense behind a fog of Latin and Greek and twaddle and tosh.

1911, H[erbert] G[eorge] Wells, chapter 5, in The New Machiavelli, London: John Lane; The Bodley Head […], →OCLC:

‘Took yeh from the ruined house myself, on Dumbledore’s orders. Brought yeh ter this lot...’ ‘Load of old tosh,’ said Uncle Vernon.

1997 June 26, J. K. Rowling [pseudonym; Joanne Rowling], chapter 4, in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Harry Potter; 1), London: Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN:

(chiefly British, slang, uncountable) Rubbish, trash, (now especially) nonsense, bosh, balderdash

A ‘tosh’ pan... is also provided.

1881, Leathes in C.E. Pascoe, Everyday Life in our Public Schools, ii. 20

We call a tub a tosh.

(UK, archaic school slang, countable) A bath or foot pan

'Ere, tosh, you bin at Cha'ham?

1954, E. Hyams, Stories & Cream, section 175:

(UK, humorous slang, uncountable) Used as a form of address.


tosh

en-verb

tosh (third-person singular simple present toshes, present participle toshing, simple past and past participle toshed)

toshes (present singular third-person)
toshing (participle present)
toshed (participle past)
toshed (past)

Toshing, a cant word for stealing copper sheathing from vessels' bottoms, or from dock-yard stores.

(British, obsolete slang) To steal copper, particularly from ship hulls

You tend to the toshing, let Mester Hobday tend to the dealing.

1974, J. Aiken, Midnight is Place, vi. 180:

(chiefly British, uncommon slang) To search for valuables in sewers

‘Toshing’ was the name given to a punishment inflicted by the cadets on any one of their number who made himself obnoxious. The victim, dressed in full uniform, was forced to run the gauntlet of his brother cadets, who, as he passed, emptied the contents of their ‘tosh-cans’ (small baths holding about three gallons of water) over the wretched lad's head.

1883, J.P. Groves, From Cadet to Captain, iii. 227:

He toshed his house beak by mistake, and got three hundred.

1903, J. S. Farmer et al., Slang, VII. 171/1:

(UK, archaic school slang) To use a tosh-pan, either to wash, to splash, or to "bath"


tosh

From 19th-century British slang tosheroon, from or alongside tusheroon, of uncertain derivation from British slang caroon (“crown, a 5-shilling silver coin”), from Sabir and (originally) Italian corona (“crown”). The term was either derived from or influenced by madza caroon, the British slang for the Sabir and Italian mezzo corona (“half-crown”), possibly under influence from tosh (“copper items; valuables”) above or from the half-crown's value of two shillings & sixpence.

tush or tosh. Money: Cockney: late C.19–20. Ex: tusheroon... But H. errs, I believe: he should mean half-a-crown, for tusheroon and its C.20 variant tossaroon (2s. 6d.) are manifest corruptions of Lingua Franca MADZA CAROON.

1961, Eric Partridge, The Routledge Dictionary of Historical Slang:

Here's a tosh to buy yourself some beer.

1961, J. Maclaren-Ross, Doomsday Book, i. v. 63:

(British, obsolete slang, countable) A half-crown coin; its value

Half-a-crown is known as an alderman, half a bull, half a tusheroon, and a madza caroon; whilst a crown piece, or five shillings, may be called either a bull, or a caroon, or a cartwheel, or a coachwheel, or a thick-un, or a tusheroon.

1859, J.C. Hotten, A Dictionary of Modern Slang, Cant, and Vulgar Words:

‘Tush’, for money, would be an abbreviation of ‘tusheroon’, which in old cant, and also in tinker dialect, signified a crown.

1912, J.W. Horsley, I Remember, xii. 253:

(British, obsolete slang, countable) A crown coin; its value

(British, archaic slang, uncountable) Any money, particularly pre-decimalization British coinage


Premium Bond

(UK, finance) A method of financial investment available to British citizens where, instead of interest payments, investors have the chance to win tax-free prizes, or get their money back.


rouse

From Middle English rousen, from Anglo-Norman reuser, ruser, originally used in English of hawks shaking the feathers of the body, from Latin recūsō, by loss of the medial 'c.' Doublet of recuse.
Figurative meaning “to stir up, provoke to activity” is from 1580s; that of “awaken” is first recorded 1590s.

(military, British and Canada) The sounding of a bugle in the morning after reveille, to signal that soldiers are to rise from bed, often the rouse.


sickle-cell anaemia

sickle-cell anemia
sickle-cell anemia#English

(British) Alternative form of sickle-cell anemia


soc

Are you part of any socs this year?

(UK, university slang) A society (circle, club, interest group).


soc

From Middle English soke, sok, soc, from Old English sōcn. More at soke.

As proprietors of the soc, the lords claimed a great number of fees and perquisites, payable by all classes of people, whether free or servile, who negotiated any affairs within the soc, and which no doubt formed in themselves a considerable source of revenue.

1869, George Norton, Commentaries on the History, Constitution, and Chartered Franchises of the City of London, page 96:

Doubts have recently been cast upon Maitland's view that the Anglo-Saxon "sac and soc" included the right to hold a petty court, to compel tenants to attend it, and to take profits from it.

2001, Theodore Frank Thomas Plucknett, A Concise History of the Common Law, page 96:

(UK, law, historical) The lord's power or privilege of holding a court in a district, as in manor or lordship; jurisdiction of causes, and the limits of that jurisdiction.

(UK, obsolete) An exclusive privilege formerly claimed by millers of grinding all the corn used within the manor or township in which the mill stands.


sweetie

desc

→ Kashubian: switus (Canada, United States)

Can I have a box of sweeties for being a good boy?


tiller

From Middle English teler, from Anglo-Norman telier (“beam used in weaving”), from Medieval Latin telarium, from Latin tēla (“web”).

der

But search her cabinet, and thou shalt find
Each tiller there with love-epistles lin'd

1693, Decimus Junius Juvenalis, John Dryden, transl., “[The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis.] The Sixth Satyr”, in The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis. Translated into English Verse. […] Together with the Satires of Aulus Persius Flaccus. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson […], →OCLC:

(UK, dialect, obsolete) A small drawer; a till.


teatime

en-noun

teatime (countable and uncountable, plural teatimes)

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

In the end, it was the Sunday afternoons he couldn't cope with, and that terrible listlessness which starts to set in at about 2:55, when you know that you've had all the baths you can usefully have that day, that however hard you stare at any given paragraph in the papers you will never actually read it, or use the revolutionary new pruning technique it describes, and that as you stare at the clock the hands will move relentlessly on to four o'clock, and you will enter the long dark teatime of the soul.

1988, Douglas Adams, The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul:

(chiefly British) The traditional time, in the late afternoon, for serving tea (the meal).

teetyd

a time specifically for the serving of tea


presently

en-adv

presently (comparative more presently, superlative most presently)

more presently (comparative)
most presently (superlative)

From Middle English presently; equivalent to present + -ly.

Polonius: My lord, the queen would speak with you, and presently.

c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:

And presently the fig tree withered away.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Matthew 21:19:

the butler supposing the Wine had beene so carefully commended unto him for the goodnesse of it, imediately presented some unto the Pope, who whilest he was drinking, his sonne came in and never imagining his bottles had beene toucht, tooke the cup and pledged his father, so that the Pope died presently; and the sonne, after he had long time beene tormented with sicknesse, recovered to another worse fortune.

(now British, rare) Immediately, at once; quickly.


tearaway

She opened her heart / To a tearaway (sheepskin tearaway) / Was covered with scars / And full of heroin

2009, Peter Doherty, “Sheepskin Tearaway”, in Grace/Wastelands:

(informal, chiefly British, derogatory) An impetuous and reckless person who is difficult to control; a hothead.


HMT

(UK, military, nautical) Initialism of His/Her Majesty's Trawler.


tariff

From French tarif, from Italian tariffa, from Ottoman Turkish تعرفه (ta'rife), from Persian تعرفه (ta'refe), from Arabic تَعْرِفَة (taʕrifa, “tariff, rate”), from the root ع ر ف (ʕ-r-f).

der

(British) A sentence determined according to a scale of standard penalties for certain categories of crime.


VOA

Valuation Office Agency
w:Valuation Office Agency

(UK) Initialism of Valuation Office Agency.


lib

Inherited from Middle English libbe, from Old English lybb, lyb (“medicine, drug, potion, poison, charm”), from Proto-West Germanic *lubi, from Proto-Germanic *lubją (“wort, herb, drug, poison”), from Proto-Indo-European *lewbʰ-, *lewb- (“to peel, break, damage”), from Proto-Indo-European *lew- (“to cut, remove, prune, separate”). Cognate with German Luppe, Lüppe (“salve, ointment, plant juice, medicine, magic”), Icelandic lyf (“medicine, drug”).

der

(UK dialectal, Scotland) A potion; magic potion; charm; concoction.


lib

en-verb

lib (third-person singular simple present libs, present participle libbing, simple past and past participle libbed)

libs (present singular third-person)
libbing (participle present)
libbed (participle past)
libbed (past)

From Middle English *libben (suggested by libbyng (“gelding”), lybbere (“gelder”)), related to Dutch lubben (“to castrate, emasculate”), Dutch libbe (“a steer”), lubbert (“a eunuch”). Further relation uncertain. Possibly related to Old English *lybban (“to doctor”), from Proto-West Germanic *lubbjan; or perhaps related to Old English lappa, læppa (“lappet, piece, section, lobe, portion, district”). More at lop.

(transitive, UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) To geld; castrate; emasculate (usually said of animals).


apple cider

en-noun

apple cider (countable and uncountable, plural apple ciders)

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

(UK, Canada) Cider; fermented apple juice; hard cider.


telephone box

(British and Ireland) A small enclosure housing a public telephone (usually a payphone).


tuppence

tuppence (countable and uncountable, plural tuppences)

By surface analysis, two + pence, collective plural of penny.
Same for the definition: "Short for tuppence worth (“one’s opinion”)." however, this idiom is derived from this fact; in Britain it used to cost two pence ("tuppence") to post a letter, usually holding one's opinion.

short for

Milk has gone up to tuppence ha’penny a pint.

In less than four days twenty-three men had paid their tuppences to Henery, who ’ad been made the seckitary.

1909, W. W. Jacobs, “Prize Money,”, in Sailor's Knots:

‘Miss Brindle rich?’ said Aunt Maggie. ‘Bless you, she hasn’t tuppence to rub together.’

1967, Barbara Sleigh, Jessamy, Sevenoaks, Kent: Bloomsbury, published 1993, →ISBN, page 11:

(UK, Ireland, informal, dated) Two pence (in pre- or post-decimalisation currency).

(UK, Ireland, idiomatic) Short for tuppence worth (“one’s opinion”).

"Fucksticks!" When some smart-arse bastard gives me my comeuppance / "Fucksticks!" When it’s ages since I’ve seen a lady’s tuppence

2011, Kunt and the Gang, Fucksticks (song)

The lady confided to the nurse helping her up off the examination couch, and told her “He put his hand up me funnel and made me tuppence bleed!”

2012, Richard Johns, Diagnosis of the Soul: The Long Road to the Beginning:

(UK, Ireland, slang, euphemistic, usually childish) The vulva or vagina.


police box

(chiefly British, dated) A telephone kiosk where members of the public may telephone the police.


precept

Borrowed from Late Latin praeceptum, form of praecipiō (“to teach”), from Latin prae (“pre-”) + capiō (“take”).

(UK) An order issued by one local authority to another specifying the rate of tax to be charged on its behalf.

The Parish Council is financed by raising a small levy - the precept - on all residential properties within the parish. http://www.medsteadpc.org/community/medstead-parish-council-12575/home


flex

en-noun

flex (countable and uncountable, plural flexes)

From Latin flexus, past participle of flecto (“to bend”).

(uncountable, chiefly UK, Ireland) Any flexible insulated electrical wiring.


co-pilot

en-verb

co-pilot (third-person singular simple present co-pilots, present participle co-piloting, simple past and past participle co-piloted)

co-pilots (present singular third-person)
co-piloting (participle present)
co-piloted (participle past)
co-piloted (past)


mute e

(grammar, British) an unpronounced letter e at the end of a word; such as excite or glue.


mockney

en-noun

mockney (countable and uncountable, plural mockneys)

Blend of mock + Cockney.
First published use in 1967, according to the Oxford English Dictionary.

(UK, uncountable) An inauthentic imitation of Cockney accent and vocabulary.

(UK, countable) A person who speaks in this way.


floss

floss (countable and uncountable, plural flosses)

Uncertain. Perhaps from Middle English *flos (attested in Middle English Flosmonger (a surname)), related to English fleece. Alternatively from French floche (“tuft of wool”), from floc, from Old French flosche (“down, velvet”), from Latin floccus (“piece of wool”), probably from Frankish *flokkō (“down, wool, flock”), from Proto-Germanic *flukkô (“down, piece of wool, flock”), from Proto-Indo-European *plewk- (“hair, fibres, tuft”).
Cognate with Old High German flocko (“down”), Middle Dutch vlocke (“flock”), Norwegian dialectal flugsa (“snowflake”), Dutch flos (“plush”) (tr=17c.).

der

(British) Spun sugar or cotton candy, especially in the phrase "candy floss".


floss

From dialectal flosh (“a flush, stream of water, sluice”), from Middle English flosche, flusche, flasche, flaske (“a watery or marshy place, swamp”), perhaps from Old French flache, from Middle Dutch vlacke (“a flat area, plain”), ultimately related to Proto-West Germanic *fleutan. Compare also German Floss (“a float”).

w:Webster's Dictionary#Webster's New International Dictionary 1909


pitcher

To discover […] how the honest poor are compelled to hob-and-nob with the “shoful pitcher” and the “gun,” it is necessary to visit the vast nursery-grounds of crime.

1863, Blanchard Jerrold, Signals of Distress in Refuges and Homes of Charity (etc.), page 2:

(obsolete, UK, slang) One who puts counterfeit money into circulation.

(obsolete, UK, slang) A person who sells anything in the streets.


wotcher

“Wotcher, me old cock sparrow, how's the sleuthing business?” bellowed Sandy, pausing and balancing his saddle on one knee while he looped up the girth.

1962, Dick Francis, chapter 19, in Dead Cert, published 2004, page 266:

(slang, chiefly British) A friendly greeting.


wotcher

Representing an abbreviated pronunciation of various phrases.

Wotcher think?

(informal, chiefly British) Contraction of what do you.

Listen, do wotcher gotta do!

(informal, chiefly British) Contraction of what you.

Wotcher doing?

(informal, chiefly British) Contraction of what are you.

Wotcher been up to?

(informal, chiefly British) Contraction of what have you.


SAP

en-noun

SAP (countable and uncountable, plural SAPs)

(British) Initialism of statutory adoption pay. Payments made by an employer to an employee who is absent from work after the adoption of a child.


fanny fart

(UK, vulgar, slang) An emission of air from the vagina, especially when audible.


tinker

(US)

From Middle English tynkere, perhaps from Old English *tincere, from tin (“tin”) + *cere, as in bēocere (“beekeeper”).

if ifs and ans were pots and pans, there'd be no work for tinkers' hands

(dated, chiefly British and Ireland, offensive) A member of the Irish Traveller community or of other itinerant groups; a gypsy.


parkway

Bristol Parkway railway station
M32 motorway
Stoke Park, Bristol

By surface analysis, a blend of car park + railway. However, it is possible that the term originally derived from Bristol Parkway railway station built in the early 1970s, which appears to have been named after the M32 motorway, also called Parkway because it runs through Stoke Park.

(rail transport, British, Australia) A railway station built on the edge of a town, typically with a large car park to function as a park and ride interchange.


The total number of counties in the island of Ireland.

a 32-county tour

32-county republic

(Ireland, British) Covering the whole of the island of Ireland, including both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.


revision

revision (countable and uncountable, plural revisions)

Borrowed from French révision, from Latin revīsiō.

All that last minute revision really paid off in the exam! I got top marks!

2008, Philip A. Kalra, editor, Essential Revision Notes in Medicine for Students, volume 1:

(UK, Australia, New Zealand) The action or process of reviewing something previously learned, especially one′s notes in preparation for a test or examination.

review

New Zealand: reviewing something previously learned


DPA

Data Protection Act
w:en:Data Protection Act

(British) Initialism of Data Protection Act.


buckle

en-verb

buckle (third-person singular simple present buckles, present participle buckling, simple past and past participle buckled)

buckles (present singular third-person)
buckling (participle present)
buckled (participle past)
buckled (past)
buckle (infinitive)

The noun is derived from Middle English bokel (“spiked metal ring for fastening; ornamental clasp; boss of a shield; a shield, buckler; (figurative) means of defence”) [and other forms], from Old French boucle, bocle (“spiked metal ring for fastening; boss of a shield; a shield”) [and other forms], from Latin buccula (“cheek strap of a helmet; boss of a shield”) (from bucca (“soft part of the cheek”); further etymology uncertain, possibly of Celtic origin, or from Proto-Indo-European *bew-, *bʰew- (“to blow; to inflate; to swell”)) + -ula (diminutive suffix).
Noun sense 2 (“great conflict or struggle”) is probably derived from verb sense 1.2.1 (“to apply (oneself) to, or prepare (oneself) for, a task or work”).
The verb is derived from Middle English bokelen, bukelen (“to fasten (something) with a buckle or clasp; to fasten, make fast; to wrap; to arch the body”) [and other forms], from bokel (noun) (see above) + -en (suffix forming the infinitive of verbs).
In verb sense 1.2.1, the sense “to apply (oneself) to, or prepare (oneself) for, a task or work” was derived from the now obsolete sense “to equip (oneself) for a battle, etc.”, and originally alluded to armour being buckled on to the body.

nb...

bocle, bocul, bocule, bocull, boculle, bogil, bogyll, bokell, bokle, bokull, bokyll, bokylle, boucle, bukel, bukkel, bukle, bukyll, bukylle

der

[T]ake my advice, and marry in the firſt place vvhere vve can find a curate; or make uſe of our friend the licentiate, vvho vvill buckle you handſomely.

1755, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, “The Savoury Conversation that Passed between Don Quixote and His Squire Sancho Panza; with Many Other Incidents”, in T[obias] Smollett, transl., The History and Adventures of the Renowned Don Quixote. […], volume I, London: […] A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC, part I, book IV, page 228:

They were hailed […] as a young strapping Irishman, conveying an ancient maiden to Dr Rigmarole's at Redriffe, who buckles beggars for a tester and a dram of Geneva.

1822 May 29, [Walter Scott], chapter II, in The Fortunes of Nigel. […], volume III, Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne and Co.] for Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co., →OCLC, page 34:

(British, dialectal (especially Scotland) or humorous) To unite (people) in marriage; to marry.

Yet thou, they ſay, for Marriage do'ſt provide: / Is this an Age to Buckle vvith a Bride?

1693, Decimus Junius Juvenalis, John Dryden, transl., “[The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis.] The Sixth Satyr”, in The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis. Translated into English Verse. […] Together with the Satires of Aulus Persius Flaccus. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson […], →OCLC, page 90:

(British, dialectal (especially Scotland) or humorous) To unite with someone in marriage; to marry.

So they buckled together, and the Heithen were diſcomfited, and fled ouer the playne felde: but the hynmoſt of them were ſlayne.

1535 October 14 (Gregorian calendar), Myles Coverdale, transl., Biblia: The Byble, […] (Coverdale Bible), [Cologne or Marburg]: [Eucharius Cervicornus and Johannes Soter?], →OCLC, 1 Macchabees iiij:[14–15], folio lxij, verso, column 1:

VVell, it chanced that the Lord Protector [Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester] and he [Henry Beaufort, Bishop of Winchester] fell out, and the Biſhop vvould bear nothing at all vvith him, but played me the Satrapa; ſo the Regent of France vvas fain to be ſent for from beyond the ſeas, to ſet them at one, and go betvveen them: For the Biſhop vvas as able and ready to buckle vvith the Lord Protector as he vvas vvith him.

1549 March 25 (Gregorian calendar), Hugh Latimer, “Sermon VI. Being the Second Sermon Preached before King Edward VI. March the Fifteenth.”, in The Sermons of the Right Reverend Father in God, Master Hugh Latimer, Bishop of Worcester. […], volume I, London: […] J. Scott, […], published 1758, →OCLC, page 90:

In ſingle Combat thou ſhalt buckle vvith me; / And if thou vanquiſheſt, thy vvords are true, / Othervviſe I renounce all confidence.

c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene ii], page 98, column 2:

[B]eing armed vvith patience vvhen thou buckleſt vvith affliction or pouertie, hunger, or any croſſe ſoeuer thou canſt ſay, it is nothing to ouercome them.

1599, Lewis Thomas, “Christ Combating with Satan”, in Seauen Sermons, or, The Exercises of Seuen Sabbaoths. […], [London]: […] Valentine Simmes, →OCLC, folio 50, verso:

And as the vvhole armies vvere thus engag'd, and each man cloſely buckl'd to his antagoniſt, the battles vvere commonly very bloody, and great ſlaughter made on both ſides, but eſpecially on the vanquiſh'd.

1749 (date written), David Hume, “Discourse X. Of the Populousness of Antient Nations.”, in Political Discourses, Edinburgh: […] R. Fleming, for A[lexander] Kincaid and A[lexander] Donaldson, published 1752, →OCLC, page 189:

Algerine Porpoise […] Provoke him, and he will buckle to a shark.

1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “Cetology”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC, page 158:

(obsolete except British, dialectal) To participate in some contest or labour; to join in close fight; to contend.


ECGD

Export Credits Guarantee Department
w:Export Credits Guarantee Department

(British) Initialism of Export Credits Guarantee Department.


potter

en-verb

potter (third-person singular simple present potters, present participle pottering, simple past and past participle pottered)

potters (present singular third-person)
pottering (participle present)
pottered (participle past)
pottered (past)

Frequentative of pote, equivalent to pote + -er. Cognate with Dutch poteren, peuteren (“to poke, pry, search”).

(British) To act in a vague or unmotivated way; to fuss about with unimportant things.

He’s so dreamy and absent-minded. He potters about the garden all the time.

1923, P. G. Wodehouse, chapter II, in Leave It to Psmith:

(British) To move slowly or aimlessly. (Often potter about, potter around.)


elevenses

en-noun

elevenses (usually uncountable, plural elevenses)

From dialectal elevens (“the eleven-o'clock meal”).

The harvestmen who board in the farm-houses fare sumptuously during the month of harvest.— […] at eleven o'clock in the morning, and four in the afternoon, they have each a large light plum-bun, with a pint of ale a piece, carried into the field, to encourage them to work cheerfully. These extra refreshments they call, in their provincial language, their "elevenses" and "fourses." I could not at first imagine what the servants meant by talking of carrying the harvestmen their elevenses and fourses, till Mrs. Henley explained that it was a vulgar abbreviation of the four-o'clock and eleven o'clock meals.

1837 February, Anna Lee, “The Pinch of Salt”, in The Ladies’ Companion: A Monthly Magazine, Embracing Literature and the Arts, […], volume VI, New York, N.Y.: Published by William W. Snowdon, →OCLC, page 162, column 2:

"In Europe," said Ghosh Babu who read a great deal, "they all stop work at eleven to have tea or coffee or cocoa, or some stronger beverage; they call it elevenses." / […] ["]Ghosh Babu, how long time they get for elevenses?" / "About half-an-hour," replied Ghosh with authority. […] / "We get no time off for elevenses," complained Sambamurthy. "We should bring it up before the Clerks' Association."

1989, Khushwant Singh, “Man, How the Government of India Run!”, in The Collected Short Stories of Khushwant Singh, New Delhi: Ravi Dayal Publisher, →ISBN, page 96; republished as “Book Extract: They also Serve …”, in Sunday, volume 18, number 4, Calcutta: Ananda Bazar Patrika, 2 January – 2 February 1991, →OCLC, pages 75–76:

Even in these tough economic times when many employers seem hell-bent on sucking any and all vestiges of pleasure out of the daily existence of the average working stiff, some things remain sacrosanct. Chief among them is the partaking of elevenses. Even if we spend the majority of our lives glued to a desk, staring at a computer screen or in meetings pretending we care about the interpretation of a spreadsheet, the break for a hot drink and a little snackette between breakfast and lunch is a covenant between Britain and God.

2010, Simon Majumdar, “Elevenses”, in Eating for Britain: A Journey into the Heart (and Belly) of the Nation, London: John Murray, →ISBN:

Betjeman, who was a bit of a gricer, wrote: "I know of no greater pleasure for elevenses in London than to sit in this tea place and watch the trains arrive and depart."

2021 January 13, Christian Wolmar, “Read all about London's Cathedrals of Steam”, in RAIL, issue 922, page 63:

(British, informal) A short mid-morning break taken around eleven o'clock for a drink or light snack.


PP

PP (countable and uncountable, plural PPs)

planning permission
planning permission#English

(British, Ireland) Initialism of planning permission.


scrote

(chiefly UK, slang, derogatory) A worthless or contemptible person; a gobshite or toerag.


swishy

en-adj

swishy (comparative swishier, superlative swishiest)

swishier (comparative)
swishiest (superlative)

(British) Swish; fancy, posh, impressive.


toerag

"I know James Potter's an arrogant toerag," she said, cutting across Snape.

2007, J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, USA: Arthur A. Levine Books, page 674:

“I’m not racist; I don’t mind people coming in if they respect Irish people. But the likes of the toerags coming into this country – they’re not vetted and are causing havoc.”

2023 November 24, Rory Carroll, “‘Government is not listening’: anger over immigration spills into riot on Dublin’s streets”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(derogatory, British, Ireland) A worthless or despicable person.


on the bench

(historical, UK military, of a captain) Waiting to command his first vessel and assume the position of post-captain, ensuring further promotion will remain a matter of seniority rather than merit or ability.


HGV

The unnamed driver appeared before the South East Traffic Commissioner in late November, to receive a six-month HGV driving ban. It followed an earlier court appearance when he was fined a means-tested £715 and given six points on his driving licence for driving without due care and attention.

2022 December 14, “Network News: HGV driver banned after Coulsdon bridge bash”, in RAIL, number 972, page 7:

I'm a writer first, but I do have my HGV licence, and I use it every now and then.

2024 March 6, Pip Dunn, “Freight's future is in ISO containers”, in RAIL, number 1004, page 36:

heavy goods vehicle
heavy goods vehicle#English

(UK, automotive, transport) Initialism of heavy goods vehicle. (a lorry/truck weighing more than 3.5 tons)


trooper

From troop + -er, from French troupe. The sense of “one who endures adversity” comes from trouper (“member of an acting troupe”) but through assimilation with the sense of “soldier” has come to be usually spelled “trooper”.

She was built by William Denny & Bros. Ltd., and launched in 1939, but went immediately on active service as a trooper.

1947 January and February, “Notes and News: New Southern Channel Steamer”, in Railway Magazine, page 49:

(British, nautical, military) A troopship.


mizzle

en-verb

mizzle (third-person singular simple present mizzles, present participle mizzling, simple past and past participle mizzled)

mizzles (present singular third-person)
mizzling (participle present)
mizzled (participle past)
mizzled (past)

From Late Middle English misellen (“to drizzle”), cognate with Low German miseln, musseln (“to mizzle”), Dutch miezelen (“to drizzle, rain gently”). Of obscure origin, possibly a frequentative related to the base of mist; or, related to Middle Low German mes (“urine”), Middle Dutch mes, mis (“urine”), both from Old Saxon mehs (“urine”), from Proto-Germanic *mihstuz, *mihstaz, *mihsk- (“urine”), from *mīganą (“to urinate”), from Proto-Indo-European *meiǵʰ-, *omeiǵʰ- (“to urinate”). Compare also English micturate (“to urinate”), Old Frisian mese (“urine”), Low German miegen (“to urinate”), Dutch mijgen (“to urinate”), Danish mige (“to urinate”).

cog

(intransitive, British, Canada, US, chiefly dialectal) To rain in very fine drops.


mizzle

(British, chiefly dialectal) Misty rain; drizzle.


mizzle

Unknown. Perhaps from Shelta mi(e)sli (“go”).

As long as George IV could reign, he reigned, and then he mizzled.

19th c. Epigram quoted by Thomas Wright (1810 - 1877), reproduced in Webster 1902-1913

“Now you may mizzle, Jemmy (as we say at Court), and if Mr. Copperfield will take the chair I’ll operate on him.”

1849 May – 1850 November, Charles Dickens, The Personal History of David Copperfield, London: Bradbury & Evans, […], published 1850, →OCLC:

1986, Joan Aiken, Dido and Pa http://books.google.com/books?ie=UTF-8&hl=en&vid=ISBN0618196234&id=MNEhgMsgaIMC&pg=PA232&lpg=PA232&sig=JAfeh2dResB-FcNOuZRJBiu0ISA
“Now you better mizzle,” Dido told him. “Get back to your own quarters, fast.”

(chiefly British) To abscond, scram, flee.


beezer

Borrowed from Scots beezer, beeser, of unknown origin. First attested in the 1910s. The adjective is from the noun.


beezer

en-adjective

beezer (comparative more beezer, superlative most beezer)

more beezer (comparative)
most beezer (superlative)

We had a beezer time at the party.


vitreous humour

en-noun

vitreous humour (plural vitreous humours)

(ophthalmology, British, Canada) The clear gel that fills the eyeball between the lens and the retina.


pantechnicon

pantechnicon (plural pantechnicons or pantechnica)

pantechnicons (plural)
pantechnica (plural)

From Pantechnicon, a 19th-century firm which owned a building with a Greek-style facade of Doric columns in Motcomb Street, Belgrave Square, London, UK, with a picture gallery, a furniture shop, a shop selling carriages, and a warehouse for storing customers’ furniture and other items. The firm used large horse-drawn vans to collect and deliver their customers' property, which came to be known as Pantechnicon vans.
The word was coined by the firm from pan- (“all”) (from Ancient Greek πᾶν (pân), neuter form of πᾶς (pâs, “all, every”)) + τεχνικόν (tekhnikón), neuter singular of τεχνικός (tekhnikós, “technical”).

It is plain, that such writers do not rise to the very idea of a University. They consider it a sort of bazaar, or pantechnicon, in which wares of all kinds are heaped together for sale in stalls independent of each other; and that, to save the purchasers the trouble of running about from shop to shop; or an hotel or lodging house, where all professions and classes are at liberty to congregate, varying, however, according to the season, each of them strange to each, and about its own work or pleasure; […]

1852, John Henry Newman, “Discourse V. General Knowledge Viewed as One Philosophy.”, in Discourses on the Scope and Nature of University Education. Addressed to the Catholics of Dublin, Dublin: James Duffy, 7 Wellington Quay, publisher to His Grace the Catholic Archbishop of Dublin, →OCLC, page 139:

To-day will the mighty cobweb-dome receive its last survey, previous to the contractors for the building handing it over to the painters and decorators. When these have accomplished their task, then will the walls and counters begin to receive their varied and valuable stores of natural and artificial productions. Waggon-loads upon waggon-loads must, we know, be exhausted, and pantechnica emptied, before the vast area, so delicately covered, shall cry “Enough, enough;” […]

1854, “The New Crystal Palace”, in The Practical Mechanic’s Journal, volume VI, London: […] [F]or the Proprietors by George Hebert, […], pages 225–226:

We have a few economic museums, it is true; but they lack the notoriety which results from national support; and, if not carefully watched by their philanthropic promoters, these otherwise excellent places are apt to degenerate into mere advertising pantechnica.

1873 February 22, William Eassie, “Reports on Sanitary Engineering in Houses, Hospitals, and Public Institutions. […] V.—Warming and Ventilation of Houses.”, in Ernest Hart, editor, The British Medical Journal: Being the Journal of the British Medical Association, volume II for 1873, London: […] [F]or the Association by Thomas Richards, […], page 208, column 1:

Noticeably few of their buildings appear in the great eighteenth-century architectural pantechnica: Francis Smith’s prime came perhaps a little late for Vitruvius Britannicus, and in any case his houses were not of a kind to supply ammunition for Campbell’s palladianizing campaigns; by the time of Wolfe and Gandon they were very old-fashioned.

2000, Andor Gomme, Smith of Warwick: Francis Smith, Architect and Master-Builder, Shaun Tyas, →ISBN, page viii:

The Hyams extended their operations to London in 1845, when Lawrence Hyam became manager of the family’s pantechnica in Gracechurch Street, leaving his Bury St Edmunds shop in the management of one Joel Gale.

2001, Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and Natural History, volume 40, page 156:

(chiefly British) A building or place housing shops or stalls where all sorts of (especially exotic) manufactured articles are collected for sale.

For we do not employ battleships as convoys, nor even as pantechnica conveying landing parties.

1899 October 28, The Outlook: A Weekly Review of Politics, Art, Literature and Finance, page 400:

The pantechnicon was running away. It had perceived the wrath to come and was fleeing. Its guardians had evidently left it imperfectly scotched or braked, and it had got loose. […] [T]he onrush of the pantechnicon constituted a clear crisis. Lower down the gradient of Brougham Street was more dangerous, and it was within the possibilities that people inhabiting the depths of the street might find themselves pitched out of bed by the sharp corner of a pantechnicon that was determined to be a pantechnicon.

1911, Arnold Bennett, The Card: A Story of Adventure in the Five Towns, London: Methuen Publishing, OCLC 492063506; republished Toronto, Ont.: William Briggs, 1910s, OCLC 225424669, page 69

Not a day passes but some great pantechnica drive up to the door or drive down past my other window on the delivery road and drop off either £100,000 worth of Buddha or an early printed book, or a piece of furniture from a West African village.

1971, New Directions in Librarianship: Papers Read at the Week-end Conference of the London and Home Counties Branch of the Library Association, Held at Eastbourne, 30th April-2nd May, 1971, Under the Chairmanship of Derek Jones, Library Association, →ISBN, page 6:

In the Christian life we have a handicap. If we are encircled by the greatness of the past, we are also encircled by the handicap of our own sin. No man would seek to climb Mount Everest with a pantechnicon of lumber weighing him down. If we would travel far, we must travel light.

1972, William Barclay, “The Race and the Goal”, in The Letter to the Hebrews (The Daily Study Bible Series), rev. edition, Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox Press, →ISBN, page 172:

On the 3rd of September 1939 I made my will, and since then I have discovered how happy is the state of having made a will. No pantechnica will now follow my hearse, I have taken leave of all the junk in time, perhaps only just in time.

a. 1977, E. C. Large, edited by Stuart Bailey and Robin Kinross, God’s Amateur: The Writing of E. C. Large, Hyphen Press, published 2008, →ISBN, page 69:

In fact, as they later found, the auxiliary vehicle was a very large removers' van – the kind known as a pantechnicon.

1978, Lawrence Durrell, Livia: Or Buried Alive: A Novel, London: Faber and Faber; republished in The Avignon Quintet: Monsieur, Livia, Constance, Sebastian, Quinx, London: Faber and Faber, 1992, page 426

I later established that the R12 [Renault 12] and pantechnicon had both been driving in the direction of the roadblock, the R12 behind the pantechnicon.

2008, Anthony Trethowan, “Wendy Atkinson”, in Delta Scout: Ground Coverage Operator, Johannesburg: 30° South Publishers, →ISBN, page 30:

[…] Bulstrode v Lambert [1953] 1 WLR 1064 […] [T]he plaintiff made use of the route with furniture vans and pantechnicons for bringing goods to the mart. The defendant objected on the ground that the parked pantechnicons interfered with his business as a cafe and car hire proprietor, but Upjohn J held that the plaintiff could use the way with pantechnicons which could park as long as was necessary for loading and unloading, this being an incident of a right of way.

2009, E[dward] H[ector] Burn, J[ohn] Cartwright, “Adverse Possession and Limitation of Actions”, in Maudsley and Burn's Land Law: Cases & Materials, 9th edition, Oxford, New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, pages 291–292:

Shinkfield's had at one time belonged to a firm called Hutchison's which did furniture removals. They stabled their horses and pantechnicon in the yard which runs behind the Lord Palmerston and the adjoining shops, with access from North Cross Road.

2010, John D. Beasley, “What a Lot of Shops and Stalls!”, in East Dulwich Remembered, Stroud, Gloucestershire: Amberley Publishing, →ISBN:

(chiefly British) Originally pantechnicon van: a van, especially a large moving or removal van.


bing

bing (countable and uncountable, plural bings)

From Middle English bing, binge, benge (also as Middle English byngger, bengere (“grain bin, hopper”)), from Old Norse bingr (“heap of corn; bed; bolster”), cognate with Scots bing, Swedish binge (“heap”), Danish bing (“bin; box; compartment”).
Compare also Scottish Gaelic binnean meaning a small hill or slag heap.

der

(British, chiefly Scotland) A heap or pile, especially of metallic ore


fadge

"Here's a fadge (farthing) or a button," I said, taking my pocket knife and cutting a few of the stitches holding the cloth and lining together, […]

1868, Thomas Wright, Johnny Robinson, page 173:

(UK, slang, archaic) A farthing (old coin).


Of-

(British) A regulatory body for a specified industry.


convenor

(UK, Australia, New Zealand) A lecturer who takes on the mantle of managing a specific course.


bonce

Bonce (various), the head, called also "crust, chump." From bonce, a marble of larger size than ordinary, used by boys.

1889, Barrère and Leland, A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon & Cant, page 158:

To see Nina herself Nick had to crane round the big white bonce of Norman Kent, who was as sensitive to music as he was to conservatives, and kept shifting in his seat.

2004, Alan Hollinghurst, chapter 9, in The Line of Beauty […], 1st US edition, New York, N.Y.: Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN:

2010, Skins, Season 4 Episode 8, "Everyone".
Cook: I don't think you know what I am, mate. ... I'm a fucking waste of space. I'm just a stupid kid. I got no sense. A criminal. I'm no fucking use, me. I am nothing. So, please... please... get it into, you know, into your bonce... that you killed my friend. And... I'm Cook. I'M COOK!

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang) The human head.


opt-out

en-noun

opt-out (countable and uncountable, plural opt-outs)

(British, countable) A school or hospital that has withdrawn from local control.


charwoman

The cloth was laid by an occasional charwoman, who officiated in the capacity of Mr. Bob Sawyer’s housekeeper; […]

1836 March – 1837 October, Charles Dickens, chapter XXXVIII, in The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1837, →OCLC:

Through a partly-opened door the noise of a scrubbing-brush led up to the charwoman, Maryann Money, a person who for a face had a circular disc, furrowed less by age than by long gazes of perplexity at distant objects.

1874, Thomas Hardy, chapter IX, in Far from the Madding Crowd. […], volume I, London: Smith, Elder & Co., […], →OCLC:

This time was most dreadful for Lilian. Thrown on her own resources and almost penniless, she maintained herself and paid the rent of a wretched room near the hospital by working as a charwoman, sempstress, anything.

1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XVII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:

But there was nobody at Kig and Kadgit's except the charwoman wiping over the “lino” in the passage.

1919, Katherine Mansfield [pseudonym; Kathleen Mansfield Murry], “Pictures”, in Bliss and Other Stories, London: Constable & Company, published 1920, →OCLC, page 163:

[H]e described the speech of the charwoman washing the hotel stairs and gave lists of words collected from the bathmen.

1977, K.M. Elizabeth Murray, Caught in the Web of Words, Oxford: Oxford University Press, page 75:

(chiefly British) A woman employed to do housework, traditionally coming and going on a daily basis and paid weekly wages.


freshers' week

(British) The week before the academic aspects of a university start, when students may socialize and undergo induction.


bagman

(British, dated) A staff assistant to a senior police officer (such as a Detective Sergeant for a Detective Inspector).

(British) A secretary of (and keeper of equipment for) a Morris dancing side.

(UK, dated, slang) A travelling salesman.


grotty

en-adj

grotty (comparative grottier, superlative grottiest)

grottier (comparative)
grottiest (superlative)

Clipping of grotesque + -y. Piecewise doublet of grody, the American equivalent. Compare Middle English groti, grooti (“slimy, muddy”), from Old English grotiġ (“earthy, dirty”) (modern dialectal English groaty, Scots grotty), which is equivalent to groat + -y. Compare also Scottish Gaelic grod (“rotten, lousy, terrible”), Middle Irish grot (“bitter, sour”).
Originated or popularised by the 1964 film A Hard Day's Night, starring the Beatles and written by Alun Owen.

ncog

George: I wouldn't be seen dead in them. They're dead grotty.
Simon: Grotty?
George: Yeah, grotesque.

(slang, UK, Ireland, Commonwealth) Unpleasant, dirty, slovenly or offensive.


dishwasher

From Middle English dysche wescheare, equivalent to dish + washer.

(UK, dialect, Wiltshire) A European bird, the wagtail.


headmaster

(chiefly UK, Ireland) A male headteacher.

مُدِير

the most senior master in a school (male)


Threadneedle Street

Corruption of "three needle", from the arms of the Needle-makers' Company. Influenced by threading a needle.

George, known as Steady Eddie during his 10 years in charge at Threadneedle Street, said critics who attacked the Financial Services Authority were also wide of the mark.

2008 March 6, “Eddie George defends role of FSA in Northern Rock crisis”, in The Guardian:

Monetary policy may not be perfect, but it has been far better handled since the responsibility for it moved from 11 Downing Street to Threadneedle Street.

2007 December 11, Patrick Hosking, “Gieve’s head will not be enough to appease critics”, in The Times:

The Bank of England cut 0.25 per cent at each meeting - the same decision, spread over two months. Strip out that and Frankfurt and Threadneedle Street have been running the same policy for a year and a half.

2002 November 10, Faisal Islam, “Doing the Continental”, in The Observer:

(British, economics, banking, finance) The Bank of England.


shanks' pony

Believed to be of Scottish origin, from shanks' nag (shanks-naig, attested 1774).

[…]pointed out that we cared nothing, absolutely nothing, for convention, and would go in quest of the gods “on Shanks′ pony,” Anqui utterly mistook our meaning and had a pony in waiting for us when the hour came for leaving! This we dismissed after attempting to make clear our meaning.

1930, G. E. O. Knight, Intimate Glimpses of Mysterious Tibet and Neighbouring Countries, published 1992, page 56:

1989, Charles Hyatt, When Me Was a Boy, Institute of Jamaica Publications, page 43,
After all, mos′ everybody had to walk because yuh doan only get to meet people but ‘shanks pony’ was the cheapes′ form of transportation.

That was the end of the vehicle track: from then on it was shanks′s pony.

1993, John Marsden, Tomorrow, When the War Began, page 18:

Young Jim shook his head. ‘The nearest station′s about fifty miles from there. We′ll hail a lift if we′re lucky. Otherwise it′s shanks′s pony.’

1994, Jackie French, Somewhere around the Corner, HarperCollins Australia, published 2010, unnumbered page:

1999, Richard Thompson, Walking the Long Miles Home, (Mock Tudor),
And the rhythm in my shoes keeps the blues all away / When you ride Shanks's Pony you don′t have to pay

He pointed toward a groaning tram packed with malnourished workmen, rickets, and penury. Preferred shank’s pony, drizzle or no drizzle.

2004, David Mitchell, Cloud Atlas, London: Hodder and Stoughton, →ISBN:

Then four more meetings around Manhattan travelling mostly by Shanks′s pony, before arriving back at JFK for their overnight standby flight.

2007, John Forbat, Entrepreneurship: The Seeds of Success, UK: Harriman House, page 60:

Apart from the Ravenglass steam railway and Shanks′ pony, there′s no public transport to Eskdale.

2009, David Else, England, Lonely Planet, page 723:

At the bottom of the hill, Dean Stewart says, let′s get out of the automobiles and proceed as usual—by shanks′ pony.
By shanks′ pony? Mrs. Landes says.
Is that Shakespeare? Jenny asks.
No, Dean Stewart says laughing, just an expression from the folk in Missoula.

2012, Kass Fleisher, Dead Woman Hollow, State University of New York Press, page 10:

(idiomatic, UK, Ireland, Commonwealth) One's feet or legs, regarded as a means of transport.

ir en el coche de San Fernando, un ratito a pie y otro caminando


sorted

Sorted for E's & Wizz (song by UK band Pulp)

(British, slang) In possession of a sufficient supply, especially of narcotics.


sorted

A: Did you book the train tickets?
B: Yep, sorted!

(British slang) A general expression of approval or completion


hey presto

(British) Used by stage magicians, when performing a magic trick.

If you take the next left, you’ll see a big shop and hey presto, you’re there.

They stick a couple of old potshards together, search for one or two adjacent cultures, stick a label on the restored find and—hey, presto!—once again everything fits splendidly into the approved pattern of thought.

1968, Erich von Däniken, Chariots of the Gods?, Putnam:

(British, colloquial) Indicates a sudden desirable conclusion or change, as if by magic


ransom

en-noun

ransom (usually uncountable, plural ransoms)

⇒ Cantonese: 參 /参 (sam¹, “hostage”)

From the Middle English ransoun, from the Old French raençon, from stem of Latin redemptio. Entered English ca. the 13th century. Doublet of redemption.

punished with imprisonment and ransom at the King's will

1765–1769, William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England, (please specify |book=I to IV), Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] Clarendon Press, →OCLC:

(historical, law, UK) A sum paid for the pardon of some great offence and the discharge of the offender; also, a fine paid in lieu of corporal punishment.


brawn

brawn (countable and uncountable, plural brawns)

From Middle English brawne, from Old French braon (“slice of meat, fleshy part, buttock”), from Frankish *brādon, *brādan, accusative form of *brādō (“roasted meat, ham”), from Proto-Germanic *brēdô (“meat, roast”), of uncertain further origin, but possibly from Proto-Indo-European *bʰreh₁- (“to burn, heat”).
Akin to Old High German brāto (“tender meat”) (German Braten (“roast”)), Old English brǣde, brǣd (“flesh, meat”), Old Norse bráð (“raw meat”).

der

Now if your Majesty would have our bristles
To bind your mortar with, or fill our colons
With rich blood, or make brawn out of our gristles,
In policy—ask else your royal Solons—
You ought to give us hog-wash and clean straw,
And sties well thatched; besides it is the law!

1820, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Oedipus Tyrannus; Or, Swellfoot The Tyrant: A Tragedy in Two Acts:

It was brawn and shape for high tea.

1978, Jane Gardam, God on the Rocks, Abacus, published 2014, page 111:

(chiefly British) Head cheese; a terrine made from the head of a pig or calf; originally boar's meat.

And loud as brawns wer [they] snoring,

1821, John Stagg, The Cumbrian Minstrel: Being a Poetical Miscellany:

THE village of Brancepath, pleasantly situated at the distance of four miles and three- quarters south-west by west of Durham, is said to have derived its name (a corruption of Brawn's-path) from a brawn of vast size, [...]

1842, Moses Aaron Richardson, The Borderer's Table Book: Or, Gatherings of the Local History:


geez

Hi geez, you alright?

(UK, Ireland, slang) Informal address to a male.


wind up

en-verb

wind up (third-person singular simple present winds up, present participle winding up, simple past and past participle wound up)

winds up (present singular third-person)
winding up (participle present)
wound up (participle past)
wound up (past)

snitches get stitches and wind up in ditches

Twenty quid? Are you winding me up?

(British, transitive) To play a prank (on); to take the mickey (out of) or mock.

vedättää

to play a prank, to take the mickey or mock


grill

en-noun

grill (plural grills or (jewelry) grillz)

1655, from French gril, from Middle French gril, from Old French greïl, graïl (“gridiron”), from graïlle (“grate, grating”), from Latin crātīcula (“gridiron”), diminutive of crātis (“hurdle, wickerwork”), q.v. Related to griddle, hurdle.

(UK) A cooking device comprising a source of radiative heat and a means of holding food under it; a broiler in US English


grill

en-verb

grill (third-person singular simple present grills, present participle grilling, simple past and past participle grilled)

grills (present singular third-person)
grilling (participle present)
grilled (participle past)
grilled (past)

Bradly hung the fowl in a sugar-bag for to-morrow's dinner and set about grilling chops, with tomatoes stuffed with cheese and breadcrumbs in the pan.

1938, Norman Lindsay, Age of Consent, 1st Australian edition, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1962, →OCLC, page 139:

(transitive, Australia, New Zealand, UK) To cook food under the element of a stove or only under the top element of an oven – (US) broil, (cooking) salamander.


knees-up

UK 20th century. From the song "Knees Up Mother Brown" (from at least 1918; published 1938). Suggesting the motions of dancing.

Let's have a bit of a knees-up, Arp.

1956, Wolf Mankowitz, My Old Man's a Dustman:

However, having heard all the mutinous chants Taxpayer FC’s fans sang about Gollivan at Vicarage Road, Moyes has realised it’s probably part of his remit to spread some love and urge everyone in east London to have a good old Cockney knees-up before Friday’s visit from Leicester City.

2017 November 24, Jacob Steinberg, “There’s no pleasing some people”, in The Guardian:

William Hill today cut the price of a Scottish knees-up from an original 25/1 into 9/1 favourite.

2017 December 1, Mary McCool, “Prince Harry set to spend his stag do in Scotland as bookies slash odds – but Vancouver, Barcelona and Berlin are also in the running”, in The Scottish Sun:


Bourbon biscuit

en-noun

Bourbon biscuit (plural Bourbon biscuits)

(British) An oblong chocolate-flavoured biscuit with a chocolate cream filling.


sneaker

Related to how quiet the shoes are. sneak + -er

Spectator
I have just left the right worshipful and his myrmidons about a sneaker of five gallons!

(UK, dialect, archaic) A vessel of drink.


buttonhole

Originally buttonhold (“a loop of string to hold a button down”), but changed by folk etymology by influence of hole, By surface analysis, button + hole.

петлица

flower worn in the buttonhole for decoration

(chiefly British) A flower worn in a buttonhole for decoration.

(attributive) So shaped that it can be worn on a buttonhole or it is similar to a buttonhole.


spend a penny

en-verb

spend a penny (third-person singular simple present spends a penny, present participle spending a penny, simple past and past participle spent a penny)

spends a penny (present singular third-person)
spending a penny (participle present)
spent a penny (participle past)
spent a penny (past)

From the act of putting a (pre-decimal) penny in the slot of a pay-toilet cubicle.

I put on a lick of paint, slip over and spend a penny in Costing…I should technically use the one in Records but I've told them, that lavatory seat is a death trap.

1982, Alan Bennett, “A Woman of No Importance”, in The Complete Talking Heads, Picador, published 2010, →ISBN, page 14:

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, dated, euphemistic) To use the toilet.


corporation pop

From corporation (“a local authority”) + pop (“a carbonated drink”). Used in sarcastic humor, as tap water is not an affluent beverage.

com

(idiomatic, UK) Water, specifically drinking water supplied by a public utility company.


grot

From grotto, by shortening, or French grotte.

She took me to her elfin grot, / And there she wept, and sigh'd full sore, / And there I shut her wild wild eyes / With kisses four.

1819, John Keats, La Belle Dame sans Merci:


grot

en-noun

grot (countable and uncountable, plural grots)

(slang, uncountable) Any unpleasant substance or material.


fruiterer

From Late Middle English fruiterē̆r (“fruit grower; fruit dealer”), from fruitē̆r (“fruit dealer; household official having charge of fruit”) + -er (it is unclear why the second suffix was added). Fruitē̆r is derived from Anglo-Norman fruitier or French fruitier (“fruit-seller”), from fruit (“fruit”) (from Latin frū̆ctus (“produce, product, fruit; enjoyment, satisfaction”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰruHg- (“to have enjoyment of; make use of”)) + -ier (suffix forming names of jobs).

der

[T]he very ſame day did I fight with one Samſon Stockefiſh a Fruiterer behinde Greyes Inne: Ieſu, Ieſu, the mad dayes that I haue ſpent!

c. 1596–1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, The Second Part of Henrie the Fourth, […], quarto edition, London: […] V[alentine] S[immes] for Andrew Wise, and William Aspley, published 1600, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:

And Knight laughed, and drew her close and kissed her the second time, which operations he performed with the carefulness of a fruiterer touching a bunch of grapes so as not to disturb their bloom.

1872 September – 1873 July, Thomas Hardy, “‘I Lull a Fancy, Trouble-Tost’”, in A Pair of Blue Eyes. […], volume III, London: Tinsley Brothers, […], published 1873, →OCLC, page 24:

A good few Indian fruiterers who were right in the centre of Johannesburg never made the 'mistake' of serving a black man, or even another Indian, before a white customer, no matter who had come first.

1962, Ezekiel Mphahlele, “The Nationalist”, in The African Image, New York, N.Y.: Frederick A. Praeger, →OCLC, page 70:


landlord

From Middle English londlord, landlorde, from Old English landhlāford, equivalent to land + lord. Cognate with Scots landlaird, Middle Low German lantlord (“homeowner, landlord”).

cog

When asked to explain why he became a landlord, he told the Archbishop of York it was so he could close the pub on Sundays, and suppress the profane language and singing that came through the bar windows.

1980, AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd, page 102:

(chiefly British) The owner or manager of a public house.


batty rider

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

(Jamaica, US, Canada, British) extremely short shorts worn by women, so as to expose part of the buttocks


Frenchman

From Middle English Frenshman; equivalent to French + -man.

red-legged partridge
red-legged partridge


LV

As we have said before, never accept an AA increase – if you phone up and threaten to leave they will, in our experience, drop it back to the previous price. Or better still, just keep switching provider each year. LV’s cover is a good alternative.

2020 January 1, Miles Brignall, “Sit back, do nothing and the AA will double your bill”, in The Guardian:

(UK) Initialism of Liverpool Victoria: a British insurance company; also LV=.


mun

tha wut spudlee out the Yemors, and screedle over mun

1746, Exmoor Courtship, published 1879, page 50:

The English Dialect Dictionary
w:The English Dialect Dictionary

(UK, dialect, Devon, Somerset, obsolete) them


pernickety

en-adj

pernickety (comparative more pernickety, superlative most pernickety)

more pernickety (comparative)
most pernickety (superlative)

From Scots pernickety, persnickety, of uncertain origin; the Dictionary of the Scots Language says that it resembles per- (“intensifying prefix”) + nick, but might be derived from particular + finicky with the form influenced by past participles ending in -et, -it, -ed.

‘You must forgive me,’ he said. ‘I take a ridiculous pleasure in what I eat and drink. It comes partly from being a bachelor, but mostly from a habit of taking a lot of trouble over details. It’s very pernickety and old-maidish really, but then when I’m working I generally have to eat my meals alone and it makes them more interesting when one takes trouble.’

1953, Ian Fleming, chapter 8, in Casino Royale, page 48:

(chiefly UK, Ireland, Commonwealth) Fussy; paying undue attention to minor details; fastidious.


kie

From Middle English ky, from Old English cȳ (“cows”), plural of cū (“cow”).

And if thou zawest any kie come royling through this grounde,
Or driven away, tell what he was and where they may be vownde.

1567, Ovid, “The Seconde Booke”, in Arthur Golding, transl., The XV. Bookes of P. Ouidius Naso, Entytuled Metamorphosis, […], London: […] Willyam Seres […], →OCLC:

(UK, dialect, obsolete) Alternative spelling of kye, plural of cow


bonk

en-verb

bonk (third-person singular simple present bonks, present participle bonking, simple past and past participle bonked)

bonks (present singular third-person)
bonking (participle present)
bonked (participle past)
bonked (past)

Of imitative origin. Compare English bang, bounce, bump.

onomatopoeic

imitative

Sophie (Katrin Cartlidge) What is a proper relationship?
Louise (Lesley Sharp): Living with someone who talks to you after they've bonked ya.

Because most of the blokes I fancy think l'm stupid and pointless—and, so, they just bonk me and then leave me. And the kind of blokes that do fancy me, I think are drips. I can't even be bothered to bonk them. Which does sort of leave me a bit nowhere.

1994, Richard Curtis, Four Weddings and a Funeral, spoken by Scarlett (Charlotte Coleman):

But let’s not kid ourselves about bonking for Britain: this is just “the great replacement theory” with a tax code.

2022 October 10, Zoe Williams, “The Tory minister’s ‘bonking for Britain’ idea is a vile vision lurking behind cheeky Carry On imagery”, in The Guardian:

(informal, chiefly UK, transitive, intransitive) To have sexual intercourse (with).