# British Slang



## Trick

I'm incorprating some British slang into my WIP for a certain feel and I'm in need of help. Anything old-timey is great. Modern words are also appreciated. If the words, though perhaps not offensive in the US, are offensive to others you can send them to me in a private message. The last thing I want is to have anyone be hurt or offended by this post.

I'm looking specifically for adjectives other than Bl**dy but that can be used similarly.

Thanks all


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## Butterfly

Right, now then... It's pretty difficult to find a Brit slang dictionary without all those naughty words.

Think I found one though...

The Best of British - British Slang


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## Trick

Butterfly said:


> Right, now then... It's pretty difficult to find a Brit slang dictionary without all those naughty words.



When you say naughty, what exactly do you mean? I need all kinds. There is classism, racism, and just plain meanism (JK) in my book so I'm willing to look through any words. That, of course, doesn't mean I'll use those still very offensive today but I don't want to miss the forest for the trees.

I actually looked through that British Slang Dictionary last night but thank you anyway.


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## Butterfly

Naughty = unfettered swear words that crop up and are most often bleeped over when aired before the watershed.


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## CupofJoe

Just about every part of the UK has its own slang and regional words and they are very specific [Liverpool and Manchester slang and language use are very different and the cities are about 30 miles apart...]
If it London based then I'd avoid using cockney rhyming slang as most people in the city don't really use it, at least not in the bits I lived in...


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## Trick

Actually, I'd like some London slang and some cockney because I'll also be using this to imply accents without misspellings and I want some characters to sound like they are London-esque and others not so much. 

What is cockney rhyming slang? It sounds interesting. I'm pretty familiar with Irish slang but British slang is only familiar via tv shows and you definitely don't get the full experience.


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## CupofJoe

I can believe my Minces! You'd never Adam that this Heap don't understand the Queen's own lingo!*
Cockney Rhyming Slang - Wikipedia
If you ever get to watch "Only Fools and Horses" - that is about the best examples of rhyming slang in use on recent TV.
If you want London lingo then there is Polari! The gay/theatrical slang that was in use up to 1980s and still hold on here and there.
* Mince pies [eyes], Adam and Eve [believe], Heap of Coke [Bloke]
Modern London slang is as likely to include American, Hindi, Urdu,  Gujarati, Jamaican, Polish and even Somali phrases as it does Cockney rhyming slang...


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## Trick

Thanks, I'll check out those shows and Rhyming slang is hysterical! I never realized that it's even used in America in some small ways (put up your dukes, etc.) What an odd and unique way for slang to be born.

One particular question, if you couldn't say bl**dy nor use the F-word how might you say something like, "It's a bl**dy joke!" I really need another curse/adjective for that kind of situation.


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## Butterfly

A bleeding joke, a frigging joke, s/he's gotta be cowing joking. - Usually the g is left off to be bleedin', friggin', cowin'.


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## Trick

Since the character using the sentence just said bl**dy a moment before would it seem odd to switch to bleeding right afterward? I honestly don't know how commonly the words are mixed so I appreciate the help. And, if I typed "bleeding joke" would it imply bleedin'? I'm trying to avoid misspellings for accents but an in' instead of ing is really not too bad.


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## Butterfly

It all gets mixed up all the time.

With the -ing and -in' it depends really on who your audience is/are and whether it would register with them.

(not sure if it's an is or an are).


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## Trick

Okay, great, thanks! It's 'is' btw. Audience, though referring to a possible multitude, is a singular noun. (just my bit of snarky grammar help.)


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## CupofJoe

sodding... "It's a bit of a sodding joke."
naffing... is another good word that sort means what you want it to mean as in "Naff off!", "Naffing hell!", "Not naffing likely..."
it might be Polari or just made up for TV because they couldn't use real swear words, but to me it feels so right... very Anglo-Saxon!
Thinking about it, just about the best "English" spoken/written by Americans is Spike in BtVS and Angel.
Spike didn't always sound true to me [but there again I'm not a vampire stuck in the late 1970s] but it didn't sound like Dick Van Dyke in Mary Poppins either [that's how NOT to write or speak "English"]

[Butterfly - I haven't heard of "cowing" before, where does it come from?]


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## Butterfly

Cowing hell... I don't know. Could have originated around busy\difficult farming matters.


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## Trick

Thanks, I'll add them to my arsenal.



CupofJoe said:


> Thinking about it, just about the best "English" spoken/written by Americans is Spike in BtVS and Angel.



Until you typed that, I thought he was British (not that I knew anything about him except that he was on those shows) which just goes to show you how fooled we can be by accents that are not our own. It's funny, some British and also Australian actors do well with the "American" accent (this overall accent doesn't exist really because there are so many different American accents that I couldn't possible count them) and basically they imitate the Northwest American or the New York or Philadelphia accent - all very different. But we've had a few Dick Van Dyke-esque horrors. He really was terrible at it though wasn't he? Even we Americans think he sounded awful.


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## Sia

This is more American English vs British English but still....

I remember getting some strange looks asking for a pen and a rubber when I went to holiday to America as a young' un.  See, what you Americans call an eraser, we call a rubber.  Useful  links.

As mentioned on the video, fanny =/= bottom. It equals ... well, suffice it to say, I will be very confused if male characters have one.  Pants =/= trousers either.  Pants are underpants.  

Ah, to America, someone who is pissed is angry.  Pissed to a Brit means 'drunk.'  An angry person is 'pissed off.' 

And there's nothing wrong with giving someone a pot plant, either. Pot, on the other hand...

Ah, college.  Here, college is what you refer to as a community or junior college. What you refer to as just 'college' is university.

This might help especially if you compare it to this.

I admit to using 'color' and 'fetus' and so on as a subtleish way to represent an American accent on the page.


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## Trick

Sia said:


> I remember getting some strange looks asking for a pen and a rubber when I went to holiday to America as a young' un.  See, what you Americans call an eraser, we call a rubber.  Useful  links.



That's awesome. Are you in the UK or (as one would assume from your pic) Australia? I knew of a woman who taught kindergarten in Australia and said it was nappy time (we just call sleeping during the day a nap but nappy time is just a childish way to say it) only to have all the children whine that they didn't need nappies. Apparently nappies are diapers there... At least, that is what I heard. There are some great cross cultural things like that. In Ireland they told me to turn at the junction. I kept driving and driving looking for a train crossing. In America, they're called intersections when they're just for cars and trucks.


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## Trick

Just noticed your edit





Sia said:


> As mentioned on the video, fanny =/= bottom. It equals ... well, suffice it to say, I will be very confused if male characters have one.  Pants =/= trousers either.  Pants are underpants.
> 
> Ah, to America, someone who is pissed is angry.  Pissed to a Brit means 'drunk.'  An angry person is 'pissed off.'
> 
> And there's nothing wrong with giving someone a pot plant, either. Pot, on the other hand...
> 
> Ah, college.  Here, college is what you refer to as a community or junior college. What you refer to as just 'college' is university.
> 
> This might help especially if you compare it to this.
> 
> I admit to using 'color' and 'fetus' and so on as a subtleish way to represent an American accent on the page.



I've actually heard about a lot of those differences in my research and experience, fanny being a particularly funny miscommunication. I think it was on a TV show I saw with an American woman in England talking about how pants were hard to find because of her big fanny. That is totally PG to us and I can't imagine how people would react across the Atlantic (or Pacific for that matter.) Anything from shocked stares to laughing out loud I suppose.

I've also noticed that many of the words that the British(etc) use are also used back East (meaning Pennsylvania, New York but not the southern East Coast) My father is from Philadelphia and he always calls pants trousers. 

A pot plant here would be a naughty gift. We give potted plants. 

As for color and fetus, are you referring to spelling on both? color/colour, fetus/what? I didn't know there was another spelling if that's the case.


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## Gecks

I used 'posh' when talking to some Americans a few years back and they had no clue what that was and I sort of failed to explain it. Anyway, turns out that's British Slang I guess (I seriously had no idea!). 

If you want some Norfolk slang (where I am from in England) you can have these:
Skew whiff - means something is a bit... like on an angle. (It's from askew I think). We'd pronounce it like 'skoo wiff' in Norfolk. Also, I have heard this about quite a lot in other parts of the country
On the huh - means the same as above. 
...
lug - ear (again, I would say this is fairly common all over, I'm not even sure it's just british either). 

Oh, and bog = toilet pretty much everywhere (and if you ask for the bathroom or restroom, people will give you odd looks). 

I'm trying to think of some differences that have come up at home. I have an American mother but have lived in England my whole life. 

ps. I didn't realise 'bloody' was a british thing. 

Also, I have this to add: 
In David Crystal's "The story of English in 100 words" he notes this translation in the American version of Harry Potter (the books, not the films):
"'Bit rich coming from you' says British Harry to British Ron in The Chamber of Secrets. 'You should talk!' says American Harry to American Ron."

So apparently 'that's a bit rich' is not said much outside Britain either! 

Anyway here are some more:
Keep your pecker up! / keep your chin up! = remain cheerful. Kind of old fashioned...
Gordon Bennett! = an expression of surprise. basically the same as Bloody Hell! except politer
Want a brew? = want some tea? We often say 'brew' for tea
popped their clogs = died.


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## Ireth

Gecks said:


> Keep your pecker up! / keep your chin up! = remain cheerful. Kind of old fashioned...



Interesting... I've heard "pecker" used as a term for something else, if you know what I mean.


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## Sia

Umm ... did we make Harry Potter unintentional getting crap past the radar?

Yep, spelling.   As a general rule, words ending in -or in American English end in -our in British English.  American 'Fetus' is equivalent to British 'foetus'.  Words ending in -ed in America may or may not end in -nt.  Learned becomes learnt. Dreamed becomes Dreamt.  Here. 

Also, no-one goes to a wedding in vests and pants - that's underwear.


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## Trick

I knew the or/our one but not the foetus one; still pronounced fetus? 

Actually, dreamt is something I've seen a lot of and it is commonly pronounced that way, at least where I live. Learnt on the other hand might be considered a bit uneducated in America. Which is funny because it actually isn't. 

I laugh almost everytime someone on a british show says, "he's gone to the toilet." For whatever reason we avoid saying what people are actually doing in there. Bathroom, restroom... If you're not bathing or resting then it's a toiletroom, really.


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## Sia

I don't know about the fetus/foetus pronounciation because I don't talk about them everyday.  As for the toilet thing - it could be due to the bath = long shower = they're not really _showering_ thing. 

Mmmm


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## Trick

Although the kids could barely contain themselves in that video it was still somewhat eye opening. The English girl did a pretty good job, between laughs, with the American accent. His British accent was terrible.... and he didn't know who Charles Dickens was! The horror! Anyway, I think someone should do a video like this with some more reasonable attempts. Some of the things she said, and he had never heard, are very common in America, ie pins and needles. And she was right, Aluminum is the American spelling. Route (like root) is dialectal and it's said differently all over the states. A device to change channels is a remote; clicker comes from a particular old brand because it made that noise and it has unfortunately hung around even though it makes no sense nowadays.

Thanks for all the input! I love learning about this.


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## Gecks

Trick said:


> I laugh almost everytime someone on a british show says, "he's gone to the toilet." For whatever reason we avoid saying what people are actually doing in there. Bathroom, restroom... If you're not bathing or resting then it's a toiletroom, really.



Haha, I have never heard toiletroom! But anyway, when are say 'we' I assume you're referring to those who say 'restroom' or 'bathroom' instead of 'toilet'. However, 'toilet' came into use as a euphemism itself! 

Look up the etymology of toilet is you're super interested, but in short it very originally meant a bag for clothes, and later meant 'the act of dressing' and then later could refer to a dressing room. To do one's toilet could mean to go and smarten up really. To say you were going to the toilet initially would have been like the equiv of saying today, "I need to freshen up" or "I need to straighten my tie" (the latter is a real one I have heard as a euphemism for going to the toilet). Anyway, it eventually started to be used for referring to the thing itself, what we now mean when we say a toilet, and is no longer a euphemism... though not impolite to say. 

Back to british slang! 

If you want to go all out why not try some of these words...

I say old chap/boy/fellow, it's an absolutely spiffing/topping day, wot! (note: I have never heard anyone say 'wot' in real life..) Why don't we pop outside for a spot of cricket! Crumbs! It looks like we're going to have a spot of bother with the weather! If it rains we may have to play rugger instead! Jolly good show! Lovely Jubbly! Then we can pop inside for a brew! 

(ps. I've totally mixed up a lot of different stuff in there that doesn't really go together but woo. And about 5 years ago, I went to Morocco where the locals people there would shout "Hello English! Lovely Jubbly!" at us in odd put-on English accents as we walked around... apparently this is what they consider English people to sound like)


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## Trick

I think I knew that about the word toilet but it's probably been locked away in my brain's dusty corners too long. There are definitely some more colloquialisms I'll use and I'm keeping this thread in mind for getting them, so thank you. 

One thing you said is funny, someone pointed out earlier that a brew means tea. In the US it means beer so if it was the morning and someone said they were going to have a brew I'd think they were an alcoholic! Glad I won't make that mistake now.


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## Gecks

Trick said:


> One thing you said is funny, someone pointed out earlier that a brew means tea. In the US it means beer so if it was the morning and someone said they were going to have a brew I'd think they were an alcoholic! Glad I won't make that mistake now.



I think it was me that said brew on this thread earlier as well. There are some important differences both sides should probably remember when visiting the neighbouring country I think! 

First, and I noticed you probably realised this by the way you asterisked it in your initial post, 'bloody' is considered a swear here, though I take it it's not in the US? (a few months ago, I got in quite a bit of trouble at work (fast food) for exclaiming 'the bloody thing keep spilling' or some such similar thing in a customer facing area). It's not as strong as the f-word, but is perhaps on par with 'shit'. 

Not a language one directly, but the v-sign (like the 2-finger peace sign, but with the back of the hand) is directly as rude as the middle finger f-you, and means the same thing. 

Oh! I thought of another british word for you!
Cheers = thanks. 
eg. as you get off the bus, you can say 'cheers' to the driver, or if someone passes you something you say 'cheers'. it means exactly the same as 'thanks'. My brother used it while we were in the US and we got some odd looks. I would use 'cheers' or 'cheers mate' to someone I don't know. 

Another british way of saying thanks is "Ta" (my nanny always says "ta darling". Note also, 'nanny' or 'nan' is what we use for 'grandma' often in england, and I'm sure you know we say mum, not mom). 

Ta is a bit old fashioned, but cheers is extremely common. 

My american cousin claims we [and English people] say "quite good" and "quite nice" a lot. but note, this means "it's ok.." and definitely doesn't = very good/nice. 

Blimey, I'll stop posting here now! (I'm sorry, I studied linguistics when I was at uni and so I can't keep off anything discussing languages or language variations. . . Sadly, I've actually forgotten my whole degree so I don't have any particular insight on this to add from that)

Edit. I also thought of some terms of affection/endearment for you! 
Love - not sure how common this is elsewhere, eg. in the states
Duck - not that common anymore, at least not in my area of the country
Cock - very common up north. My old housemate (from Blackpool) used to call everyone 'cock' "alright, cock?" she'd say. or "cocker". it's basically the same as calling someone 'love' and is not at all rude, though southerners find it a bit odd. My Spanish housemate asked me, "Why does [other housemate] keep calling me cock?!" during our first week living together. 
Hinny - a northern one
Pet - a bit old fashioned I think


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## Trick

Post anything you can! I'm happy to get more and more aquainted with the differences.

No, bloody is not a swear word in the US. It just means covered in blood, so it's kinda gross if you're talking about meat or something. Pretty much everyone here knows about it though so if someone with a British accent says it, we get the meaning to a certain extent.

We only say Cheers when we're drinking and we touch glasses, like for a toast at a wedding or whatever. Like Slainte for the Irish. If you said cheers without drinks people might take it to imply you're going to go have a drink or something similar. 

Some people call their Grandmas 'Nanna' but a nanny here is hired help to care for children, not a relative.


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## Gecks

Trick said:


> Post anything you can! I'm happy to get more and more aquainted with the differences.


Haha! Ok, in which case I don't particularly have more vocab to add, but just some of this.. dribble. 

I don't know how to say... and it's probably obvious but.. this is all very different bits of 'slang' and various other colloquialisms from very different areas and class... areas. The type of person who might say 'spiffing' would certainly not use 'cock' as a term of endearment. The person who might say 'cock' would also probably call tea a 'brew' but would definitely not say something like 'keep your pecker up' or call someone a 'chap'

Some of the terms or words I have posted are associated with a particular region. eg. 'cock' 'brew' and 'hinny' are all northern terms, probably used by the working class. 'cheers' as common all over. Some of the super cliched ones are very middle/upper classy and what we would call posh. 

If someone said eg, "It's a spiffing day, pet" or mixed terms in other ways like this, it would be totally ridiculous and unrealistic. It would be the equiv of randomly switching between an american southern drawl, then into a very new englandy accent and then slipping into AAVE (african american vernacular english) or something. 

So whatever terms you use, it's probably a plan to look up what it's from (area/class etc-wise) unless you already know the term...

Because England is a lot older than, say, the US (only in terms of its English language usage and spread I mean), there is a lot more variation in accent and dialect (including vocab and grammar) without having to travel as far to get the change. Actually, I have some interesting notes on some grammatical features of the Norfolk dialect [my home county], though that's really perhaps a bit dry for this thread maybe.


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## CupofJoe

When I was a kid [so we are in the 1970s] we had a family friend who was in his 80s then and had been in India [Staff Officer in the Army] for many years up to 1947. He had a wonderful and very specific English/Indian/Military vocabulary. 
He said "Wot" a lot - a sort of exclamation mark made vocal. 
He had "Tiffin" not tea for an afternoon meal or as elevenses. 
People that helped him or was a worker was a "something-wallah", I can remember he had a car-wallah [mechanic] and called his doctor "the quack-wallah". These terms are probably borderline or outright racist now but were very colourful.
He was also the first person I knew to say "Pukka" [meaning good or right]
He would use [a lot] "snafu" as a description of something not being right or to his liking - it was years later that I learnt that it meant "Situation Normal, All F**ked Up"


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## Sia

Also, Britain covers: Wales, Scotland, England and part of Ireland thanks to the Catholic/Protestant thing they have going on. Not so much now but ... well, any time Ireland pops up on the news, we're still half-expecting some sort of conflict between those two groups. 

British Education


Hmm let me educate you on education in England.  

In America, someone who has 'left school' is probably a university dropout who we're being polite about.  In England, you talk about someone who has left school and people are picturing a 16 year old who's just graduated 'high school'. High school itself is referred to as either Upper School or Secondary School, depending on whether the county you grew up in uses a two-tier or three-tier system. 


We don't tend to talk about graduation unless we're referring to university.  _Maybe_ college if the person took a foundation degree.  We don't make as big a deal about going on to the next school either.    No primary school graduations for us!   SATs are very very different to the American ones.

American Sats are pre-college ones, right?  Our Sats are something entirely different.  The first SAT is at Key Stage 1 and we're testing 7 year olds who are in Yr 2.  Then Key Stage 2 comes along and you test people again at about 11 in Year 6.  They don't count for a lot but people make a big fuss about them because a)they're mock-mock gcses or seen that way and b)It's a holdover from the 11+ which streamed people into academic/non-academic paths.  Then Key Stage 3 - Year 9 and people are 14 years old roughly.  

So an American without any SATs has completed highschool as their highest level of education.  An English person without any Sats either has incredibly neglectful parents, is under 7, or else, was home educated/educated otherwise.  Then there's the GCSEs.

The GCSES are the biggies. This is what you're judged on when you leave school and have no experience yet. 

General Certificate of Secondary Education - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The closest equivalent to 'Higher' Americans have is probably 'AP'.  

The 'golden passport' for jobs/more education is generally 5 A*-C GCSEs, including Maths, Science and English and this is probably roughly equivalent to the highschool diploma.

Still valuable but not nearly as much. The 'silver passport' (roughly equivalent to the American G.E.D) would be 5 A*-D Gcses, including English, Maths and Science. 

Anything below a D in English, Maths and Science (although technically a decent pass) practically counts as failing high school, even if you have a bajazillion A*s (the highest possible). 

Oh and we don't get A+s on report cards even at GCSE level.  It's possible to have a good 'B' or a bad 'B' but you generally have to actually physically go up to the teacher and ask.


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## Gecks

Furthermore on Sia's comment, 'college' does NOT mean university. If someone tells me they attend 'college' I assume they are either doing some sort of vocational course, or are perhaps doing their A levels, but no in a school. People attending college are generally 16-18 years old though not necessarily. eg. many young people I work with attend college part time and do various courses like NVQ in hospitality, or childcare, or whatever. However, a university can contain colleges... where the term means a different thing again.. uh.. 

My area of the country got a little behind in upgrading the school systems and all the way through my schooling (I'm 23) we still called it first, middle, and high school. My old schools are referred to now as infant, junior, and secondary schools respectively. 

Everyone in every school does the same syllabus (to an extent, there are a few different exam boards). but generally everyone across the country in year 10 and 11 (age 14-16) will be sitting the same GCSE exam at exactly the same time, to prevent cheating. The same with the SATS in years 2(?), 6 and 9. 

Private schools don't often do the SATs but EVERYONE does GCSEs. Even homeschooled children need to take their GCSEs and can be entered as an external candidate. As Sia noted, many jobs will automatically disqualify you from applying without the correct GCSEs. (interestingly, the RAF [royal air force] had an automatic screening process and for a certain role, required a GCSE grade B in maths. A friend of mine was rejected based on not having this, despite having a [more current] grade B in A level maths which is the next level up... they wouldn't overlook his lack of GCSE though]

"Public School" - this means private school. That's because it's open to the 'the paying public'. Bit odd, but if someone says they attend 'public school' it means they attend a private school! 

On a completely unrelated note, I can across the word 'bangs' for the first time when I was about 12 and reading a book by an american author. I had no idea what this was! We say 'fringe'. 

And the most OBVIOUS one of all... "football" means Association Football (often shortened to soc or soccer football or just soccer in the USA.). But saying football or 'footy' here on its own can only mean Association Football.  If you mean American Football, you need to say "American Football" which is a bit of a novelty sport than no one really knows how to play...

By the way, Rugby is also a football code, so don't be surprised if people say Rugby Football or say they're in a Rugby Football Club. Of course it's goverened by the RFU (rugby football union).. and there are 2 main types. Rugby Football Union and Rugby Football League. It's not a league like you might use the term - league and union are different types of games with different rules. League is popular up north while Union is the most popular overall, and on a world-scale. If you play touch, it's basically like playing touch league though.


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## Rinzei

Gecks said:


> Skew whiff - means something is a bit... like on an angle. (It's from askew I think). We'd pronounce it like 'skoo wiff' in Norfolk. Also, I have heard this about quite a lot in other parts of the country
> 
> Oh, and bog = toilet pretty much everywhere (and if you ask for the bathroom or restroom, people will give you odd looks).



I find it interesting you so it as two words - I've been living in Cheshire a few years and I've always heard if as one word, like "squiff". But yes - angled, crooked, not quite straight. "That painting on the wall looks a bit squiff/skew whiff," would mean it doesn't look straight.

I don't think I've seen anyone else mention it somehow! The restroom can also be called "the loo". Such as going to, heading to, using, needi the, etc. And, yes, bathrooms will get you odd stares. Asking for "the toilets" usually gets you there though.

I don't hear people saying the word "awesome" as much as I did in the States. The equivalent of "That's awesome!" may be something like "That's bloody brilliant!". 

The British native also tends to use the word "quite" rather than "very". For instance, Bill Bailey (British comedian) asked a woman at one of his gigs if she enjoyed swimming with dolphins: "It was quite good."

A few spellings things - people have mentioned the u's - favourite, armour, colour. There are some Z's and C's that change to S's as well - recognise, apologise, realise, defense, offense (that last one is iffy).

One last slang, and one my favourite's because it confuses EVERYONE back home - chuffed. I LOVE IT. I say it way too much, I think. Chuffed is "very pleased" about something. So, say you wrote a book and got a very favourable review, you might say "I'm dead chuffed with that!" Common words used with chuffed are "dead chuffed" and "well chuffed". I've seen an example that showed "rather chuffed" but have never heard anyone make chuffed sound so formal! Also "chuffed to bits".


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## A. E. Lowan

I have a question to toss out to our UK folks, but perhaps especially Gecks since you said you studied linguistics.  We also have British characters, several actually, being introduced in our second book of our series.  My question is: these characters are very upper class wizards, primarily from the London area and the young men (in their late 20's) all attended Eton College and Cambridge together.  So, how much slang are they likely to realistically use?

Also, an interesting notes.  I find it fascinating that the term SNAFU was being used in the British military as far back as the 1940's.  I am a US Navy brat, which means I was born and grew up while my father was active duty, and SNAFU was a term I became familiar with in the US military as well!

Finally, American Football, to clarify, is basically Rugby played with 40 pounds of protective gear against 300 pound gorillas.


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## Trick

A. E. Lowan said:


> Finally, American Football, to clarify, is basically Rugby played with 40 pounds of protective gear against 300 pound gorillas.



I couldn't agree more but that kind of talk could get someone in trouble if there are any leatherheads on Mythic Scribes.

Trick: What are my options?

Torturer: Death by a thousand cuts or watch several (American) football games back to back, with Madden as the sportscaster.

Trick: I hope your knives are sharp and ready to go. Please hold the lemon juice.


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## A. E. Lowan

Trick said:


> I couldn't agree more but that kind of talk could get someone in trouble if there are any leatherheads on Mythic Scribes.
> 
> Trick: What are my options?
> 
> Torturer: Death by a thousand cuts or watch several (American) football games back to back, with Madden as the sportscaster.
> 
> Trick: I hope your knives are sharp and ready to go. Please hold the lemon juice.



*gasp*  And you live in rural Idaho?  Aren't you violating some sort of testosterone contract or something?   I love tossing the Rugby comment at the in-laws during Superbowl season - it tends to get me banished to the kitchen to make sammiches.


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## Trick

A. E. Lowan said:


> *gasp*  And you live in rural Idaho?  Aren't you violating some sort of testosterone contract or something?   I love tossing the Rugby comment at the in-laws during Superbowl season - it tends to get me banished to the kitchen to make sammiches.



Yes, but I'm from Seattle. I don't own a truck, ride dirtbikes or hunt either. I may be the sore thumb here but the endless fun I have observing the sports fan's natural habitat is like being in the wild. I feel like Dian Fossey.


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## Gecks

Rinzei said:


> I don't hear people saying the word "awesome" as much as I did in the States. The equivalent of "That's awesome!" may be something like "That's bloody brilliant!".
> 
> The British native also tends to use the word "quite" rather than "very". For instance, Bill Bailey (British comedian) asked a woman at one of his gigs if she enjoyed swimming with dolphins: "It was quite good."



"That's bloody brilliant" sounds a little bit put on to me.. I don't know how much awesome is used here compared to the states but I personally hear it all the bloody time. One of my managers at work will respond with "awesome!" to almost anything you say to her! 

Be wary of 'quite'! It's not really the same as very. If you say something was 'quite good' then it means 'well, it was ok' NOT 'it was very good'. It's either less than positive but they want to be polite, or means it was acceptably good (depends on the tone). 

Also, yes 'loo' for toilet.. I admit I didn't really think of it till you said it particularly cause it feels like such a 'normal' term to me it wouldn't spring to mind. 



			
				A.E. Lowan said:
			
		

> My question is: these characters are very upper class wizards, primarily from the London area and the young men (in their late 20's) all attended Eton College and Cambridge together. So, how much slang are they likely to realistically use?


As much as you like I reckon, but make sure it's not regional slang! Basically all the hilarious things that American actors say when pretending to be British. 

By the way, it might be notable at this point to talk about 'class' which is a little more complicated here, in terms of how we use the terms. In American I gather it is very simple in that upper class means rich. However, here:

Upper class = noble or royalty. You MUST have a title (eg. lord/lady/duke) to be considered 'upper class'. Even if you have a billion pounds and live in the biggest house in britain, if you do not have a title you are not upper class
Middle Class = this is what you are if you have loads of money. It is sometimes split into these:
Upper middle class = super wealthy. Like millionaires etc
Middle middle class and lower middle class = lines are not so clear cut but if you live in a detached house that you own (as opposed to rent) and have a professional job (as opposed to a service or labour job), and have university level education.. there's a good chance you're middle / lower middle class. It's a sort of mix of various things... uh...
Working class = probably working in a service/labour job, or with benefits, education is most likely high school level etc. 

Bear in mind that apart from the distinct separation of Upper Class, the lines are not so clear. Someone may consider themselves one thing but be considered another by someone else. But be careful saying 'upper class' when you mean 'middle class'. 

(ps. another vocab I thought of while typing about money was 'quid' which is VERY commonly used for 'pound' as in our currency. It's like saying 'buck' for 'dollar' and is used all over).


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## Rinzei

Gecks said:


> "That's bloody brilliant" sounds a little bit put on to me.. I don't know how much awesome is used here compared to the states but I personally hear it all the bloody time. One of my managers at work will respond with "awesome!" to almost anything you say to her!
> 
> Be wary of 'quite'! It's not really the same as very. If you say something was 'quite good' then it means 'well, it was ok' NOT 'it was very good'. It's either less than positive but they want to be polite, or means it was acceptably good (depends on the tone).
> 
> Also, yes 'loo' for toilet.. I admit I didn't really think of it till you said it particularly cause it feels like such a 'normal' term to me it wouldn't spring to mind.



Fair enough - "bloody" might have pushed it a bit. But I hear "brilliant" more than "awesome" by far around here. I don't actually remember that last time I heard someone say awesome and it wasn't me (followed by coworkers giggling about how "american" I was).

The 'quite' is always touchy to me - because, as you said, people do use at something being good, but not quite great. But it also feels sometimes that people use it to reduce magnitude out of politeness, like saying something was "very good" and someone else might disagree would be an offense. Does that make sense? I'm still learning the local ways (don't hurt me!).


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## Gecks

Rinzei said:


> The 'quite' is always touchy to me - because, as you said, people do use at something being good, but not quite great. But it also feels sometimes that people use it to reduce magnitude out of politeness, like saying something was "very good" and someone else might disagree would be an offense. Does that make sense? I'm still learning the local ways (don't hurt me!).



Yes, I think I agree with this, if this is what you mean...

Person A: The restaurant last night was very good!
Person B: Yeah, it was quite good. 

Where person B actually didn't think it was all that good (though they didn't think it was awful), but it would be rude to disagree with Person A. So they use 'quite'.

If person A said straight off "The restaurant last night was quite good" then they probably mean it was ok, but they're not gonna commit to saying it was great or anything. Anyone else is free to agree to varying degrees so it bypasses and potential awkwardness that would arise from having different opinions (which is rude )


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## Rinzei

Gecks said:


> If person A said straight off "The restaurant last night was quite good" then they probably mean it was ok, but they're not gonna commit to saying it was great or anything. *Anyone else is free to agree to varying degrees so it bypasses and potential awkwardness that would arise from having different opinions (which is rude )*



Yes, that's it exactly! Difficult to try and explain that mannerism. There is almost a national tendency for politeness with opinions so as to not to offend anyone, even with mundane things like saying how good a restaurant was or not.


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## Gecks

Yes, I don't know why we as a nation feel the need to agree on pointless opinions such as how good a meal was, but for some reason it's awkward to admit to enjoying it if someone else didn't or vice versa. 

Actually, I used 'quite' about 2 hours ago without thinking and immediately thought of this thread. There was an amount of cake left that could either be one very large, or 2 very small pieces. I said:
"It's not a that much, I mean it's not really a very big piece, it's quite big"

Also here's a fun phrase... I asked my American mother (who has lived here in England for over 20 years now though) if she could think of any phrases said here and not in the states. I didn't realise this one is not common in American apparently(?)

*"Bob's your uncle"* which sort of means.. well, I know exactly what it means but it's hard to explain! It's sort of like "and there you go"

eg. "To make this cake you just mix all the ingredients, put it in the oven, and bob's your uncle"

I would say it's not said especially often, but it's definitely well known (that is, everyone would understand it), and it is current and not old fashioned. It's a VERY familiar phrase, though not especially used constantly or anything, if that makes sense. No one would find it odd if it was used in daily conversation. 

Wikipedia reckons, "Typically, someone says it to conclude a set of simple instructions" which sounds about right to me... but it can be used in a few other ways... it sort of means 'everything is all right'

Also,* "take the mick" / "take the mickey"* is extremely common. It means the same as *"take the piss"*. In other words "to make fun of" 

*"Stop taking the mick/mickey/piss" = "stop making fun of me". *You can also say "take the mick[ey] out of me"

By the way, mickey comes from cockney rhyming slang. Take the mickey is the rhyming slang for "take the piss" (mickey bliss - piss). 

Both take the mick and take the piss are extremely common terms.

...

Oh! here's another one from cockney rhyming slang! Its origin is very much not really known and the word is* "berk"*. 

You can say "you silly berk" or whatever and it's kind of like saying "you idiot". This one is a bit more old fashioned. Most people would consider it not at all offensive... but of course a lot of people don't realise its origin. 

Berk from Berkeley hunt (which is a fox hound pack in the west of England). I'm sure it doesn't take much imagination to think up a very rude word that rhymes with 'hunt' and then you know what 'berk' is the cockney rhyming slang for!


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## CupofJoe

A. E. Lowan said:


> My question is: these characters are  very upper class wizards, primarily from the London area and the young  men (in their late 20's) all attended Eton College and Cambridge  together.  So, how much slang are they likely to realistically use?


They probably wouldn't have much slang from the "streets" but they will have their own Cambridge slang and for Eton college too [the college publishes their own list].
On a debatable point... Some one upper class from London going to university [for fun and not the education] is probably as likely to choose St Andrews or Edinburgh in Scotland and maybe York or Durham in the north of England and Oxford [even Exeter and Bath] in the South...


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## A. E. Lowan

CupofJoe said:


> They probably wouldn't have much slang from the "streets" but they will have their own Cambridge slang and for Eton college too [the college publishes their own list].
> On a debatable point... Some one upper class from London going to university [for fun and not the education] is probably as likely to choose St Andrews or Edinburgh in Scotland and maybe York or Durham in the north of England and Oxford [even Exeter and Bath] in the South...



Oh, thank you, Joe!


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## Sia

I  found some other  useful  resources for  you.

We do use 'pharmacy' as well but not 'drugstore'. Also, we don't talk about 'malls' - they're 'shopping centres'.


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## Sia

Furthering on from the earlier comments on education, note that Hogwarts is a Secondary School and a College.  O.w.L.s take the place of GCSEs (the old name being O-levels) and N.E.W.T.s being A-levels.


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## Caged Maiden

some from our home (my husband is from Leicester):

A "git" is a mild insult like "cur"
we say pump instead of the f-word I hate.  Another polite way is saying wind.  Rather than being gassy, you might be windy, according to my mother-in-law
a garage (pronounced GAER-adge) is a mechanic's shop
Also, foetus is pronounced the same as in American, but the "t" is a harsh sound rather than the American preference for a soft "t" sound.  Same as in the word "little".  My husband pronounces the t, where mine's like a "d".
food has all kinds of different meanings.  chips are fries, crisps are chips, biscuits are what we call cookies, rolls are what we call biscuits.  English Muffins are crumpets, salad is lettuce (as in, "I'd like a cheese and salad sandwich.") beans are a perfectly reasonable food for any meal at any time of day.  We call them pork and beans here, very different from baked beans. custard is different, a specific thing, where we use it generically, pudding is dessert, not what we think of as pudding, jelly is what we call jello, and jam is jelly, without a stipulation for whether it has seeds or not, like here. if someone is fat, you might say, "He's like a big, wobbly, jelly."
a bonnet is a car hood and the boot is the trunk.  A car boot sale is a flea market.
what we always called our "teapot" is called a kettle in England and is most certainly a different thing than a teapot.
the bin or dustbin is the garbage, which is weird, because "garbage" is from the word "cabbage", a renaissance English word for the thing tailor's scraps ended up in and were thrown away.
a bender isn't a drunken spree, it's a gay man.  I don't know how derogatory it is, but in bottom, they refer to the bishop as "the bent vicar".
My husband likes to say he's "cream crackered"  rhyming slang for knackered, meaning tired.  A knacker is a broke down car.  The knacker's yard is the junkyard.

I could really go on and on for a long time...

I'd recommend watching British comedies.  Many can be found on Netflix and Youtube.  Only Fools and Horses was mentioned and is good for common speech and rhyming slang.  Bottom is good for common speech and especially toilet humor related words and swearing.  Inbetweeners is modern and deals with more toilet humor type speech, but is from teenagers' POV.  Shameless is pretty versatile as far as content.

I had to get used to:  Me:  "What time is it?"  Him:  "Half eight."  I could never tell whether he meant half past eight or halfway to eight from seven?  It took time to get used to that.  Now, I use it in my novels because it makes so much more sense and I love it.

I remember when we were newly married.  I asked him whether he wanted some food item for supper.  He answered, "I don't fancy that."  I was like, "Excuse me?  You don't _what_?"  he wasn't trying to be posh or snooty....  My husband speaks a really understandable, middle-class accent, but he was raised in a terribly poor, ghetto neighborhood.

  So think about what your characters represent.  Are they true to their region and roots?  Are they striving to sound better than they are?  More common than their posh upbringing?  There's a lot that goes into and is extrapolated from an accent.  Americans have no concept of it, but watching my husband enjoy a BBC show is sometimes like watching an animal inits natural habitat.  He reacts and laughs at very different times than I do, and some of the jokes, I just am not equipped to get.  He'll laugh at something, say, when anaccent is used in a particular way to imply something about the character that I completely can't understand.  I mean, a British person can tell in like one sentence so much about a person by how they speak.  Region, class, tons of stuff.  We don't have anything like that in America.  I men, yeah, we can recognize an accent as Boston or Texan, but it isn't clearly defined like it is in England.  One Texan might have a drawl, terrible enunciation, and horrific grammar, but the guy standing next to him (also a native Texan), might have none of those things.  There just isn't a similar example we can draw in the US, where, when you're in England, it's very noticeable (or when you watch the tv shows) that in one show/ region, people speak one way, and in another, it's VERY different.

Mix and match with EXTREME caution.


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## Jess A

Most of the slang and ways of speaking mentioned here is also very heavily used in parts of Australia. It is in my circle, anyway. Half eight makes perfect sense to me! 

Though I've been to the US twice, before reading this, I honestly didn't realise just how different language was in America. I'm thinking: 'They _don't_ say that in the US?' I know when I went there, especially rural America, they were both confused and amused by me. 

I think the problem with people who write about characters from different countries to their own is that they rely on stereotypical slang or old slang that really isn't used as often as it's made out to be. Because of this, it sounds unnatural or comical. There are ways to introduce the language subtly so that it isn't so stark, but noticeable enough so the reader understands where they are from. People don't use slang every second, either. You should be wary of websites that list slang. I can tell you that most of the 'Australian slang' I've seen online or in dictionaries is stuff I've never heard of, never said, and may be either old-fashioned or from a different part of Australia.

Definitely watch British TV. Besides being educational, British TV is good fun and entertaining. Shouldn't be a chore 

If you are quite concerned, give your manuscript to someone from there and see what he/she thinks of it. For example, I saw something written by a friend the other day. She was writing about an English character and he said 'candy'. It was so out of place it was easy to notice. Your reader can circle it. Another example that bothers me is a so-called Australian using the term 'shrimp'. Here we call them prawns. 

What's unforgivable is 'fanny' used incorrectly. Hehehe.

I'd be interested to see a thread on Scottish slang for different areas there!


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## Sia

While we're at it, note that the Weasley twins did complete Hogwarts - NEWTS are entirely optional, just needed for a lot of jobs. Since they have enough money to start up WWW, thanks to Harry's tri-wizard winnings, they don't really need NEWTS.  I see this confusion coming up a lot in the form of 'Hagrid got his wand snapped because he was expelled and therefore didn't complete Hogwarts - why did the twins get to keep theirs despite leaving prior to finishing Hogwarts.  The sixth and seventh years are completely optional.

The answer is that the twins did complete what they needed to, they just became entrepreneurs straight out of school. Also, they left of their own free will. Hagrid was EXPELLED prior to completing Hogwarts.


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## Sanctified

Trick said:


> I'm incorprating some British slang into my WIP for a certain feel and I'm in need of help. Anything old-timey is great. Modern words are also appreciated. If the words, though perhaps not offensive in the US, are offensive to others you can send them to me in a private message. The last thing I want is to have anyone be hurt or offended by this post.
> 
> I'm looking specifically for adjectives other than Bl**dy but that can be used similarly.
> 
> Thanks all





Check out David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas, particularly the chapter, "The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish." Ignore the movie, it's terrible. The book is amazing. And it's hard to imagine anything could be more British than Cavendish's story.


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## Sia

What's a pound key ('press the pound key') anyway?

This is a pound symbol: Â£


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## CupofJoe

Sia said:


> What's a pound key ('press the pound key') anyway?
> This is a pound symbol: Â£


[On a phone keypad] they mean the "#". I'd call it a hash-tag but I have heard it called the pound-key.
The only other pound I can think of is "lb" when talking about weight.


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## Sia

Yep, on a phone keypad... the only time I heard it was on holiday in America, relatives got a call from an automated system ... and I was thinking 'What the feck is a pound key?'  I was familiar with the 'lb' and 'oz' for weights though.


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## Sia

Also, this might help:








As you can see, we call your 'French Fries' chips.  If you want the American version of chips from a Briton, ask if he has a pack of crisps.   Altough, if you ask for French Fries, you might wind up with crisps since we have a brand of crisps called French Fries.  Just because life wasn't confusing enough.

The First floor in the American sense is the 'Ground Floor' in British English.   (Basically, we count by the flights of stairs you need to climb to reach it, I don't know what you're doing.) 

And private and public and state school gets so horribly confusing that when discussing school with British and American English users present, it's probably best to just skip the terminology altogether and describe whether you paid or not and whatnot.


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## Trick

I know this thread is a covered in dust but I have to ask; do British and Australian folks say, "That's different TO that. " ?... I, and every American I can think of, say, "That's different FROM that."

Just curious.


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## Trick

Sia said:


> The First floor in the American sense is the 'Ground Floor' in British English.   (Basically, we count by the flights of stairs you need to climb to reach it, I don't know what you're doing.)



I think it's the first floor most people enter... thus we call it the First floor. Either way seems local at first glance.


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## Gryphos

Trick said:


> I know this thread is a covered in dust but I have to ask; do British and Australian folks say, "That's different TO that. " ?... I, and every American I can think of, say, "That's different FROM that."
> 
> Just curious.



I've heard people say both. I think it's one of those things that's less cultural and more just generally varied.


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## CupofJoe

I say both, but I'd probably write "different from"...


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## A. E. Lowan

Okay, this is directed to our Londoners, because my connection in the north of England has no idea. 

How often do you guys use the term "mate" to refer to your friends in conversation?  Something like this - 



> “Or at least is supposed to,” cut in Alastair.  He looked at his finished sand castle with the attitude of a stogy art critic, and finally muttered, “Meh, good enough,” before turning around completely.  “Here, mate, hand over the first brick and I’ll set us up.”



I think I've heard it used before, but I don't want to run the risk of having our British characters, all of whom come from London, sound Australian.  Help!


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## Gryphos

That example seems perfectly fine to me. Use of 'mate' is very common indeed, usually though I hear it used most often as part of set phrases such as 'cheers, mate' or 'you alright, mate?' Though, in a weird way, you're more likely to refer to someone as 'mate' if you don't know them very well, or literally just met them. You could thank a postman or a shopkeeper by going 'cheers, mate'. It basically acts as a general fill-in for someone's name.

This is just what I notice anyway.


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## Ermol

Gryphos said:


> That example seems perfectly fine to me. Use of 'mate' is very common indeed, usually though I hear it used most often as part of set phrases such as 'cheers, mate' or 'you alright, mate?' Though, in a weird way, you're more likely to refer to someone as 'mate' if you don't know them very well, or literally just met them. You could thank a postman or a shopkeeper by going 'cheers, mate'. It basically acts as a general fill-in for someone's name.
> 
> This is just what I notice anyway.



Mate, love, pet, used interchangeably depending on where you are geographically.

After learning English from textbooks and Hollywood films, I was really confused when I moved to England 10 years ago, Greater Manchester to be specific (NOT pacific!!!!). This thread would have been very useful back then.


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## A. E. Lowan

Resurrecting this thread to ask our British members a weird question. We have a term in the States for attending an event solo, "going stag." Do you use this term in Britain, or something else?


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## CupofJoe

A. E. Lowan said:


> Resurrecting this thread to ask our British members a weird question. We have a term in the States for attending an event solo, "going stag." Do you use this term in Britain, or something else?


We do use "Going Stag" but it would seem [to me at lease] to feel a deliberate Americanism if used. I'd probably so "on my Tod" [which apparently has something to do with an American Jockey...


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## Gryphos

I've never heard 'going stag' in London, though I'm not sure if other parts of the UK might; I doubt it, though. I also can't think off the top of my head of any phrases to describe going on your own to an event. I suppose it wouldn't be out of place to say 'going solo'; that seems like something I can imagine saying.


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## A. E. Lowan

So instead of...

_Alerich’s mouth pulled into a small smile. Maybe he could get himself uninvited from his own wedding and go stag with Fitz somewhere else._

I would write...?

_Alerich’s mouth pulled into a small smile. Maybe he could get himself uninvited from his own wedding and go on his Tod with Fitz somewhere else._

Does that make sense?


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## Gryphos

How old are these peeps and whereabouts are they from specifically?


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## CupofJoe

My concern might be that "on your tod" [and I have no idea if it should be capitalised] does mean alone [from the cockney rhyming slang Tod Sloan - alone]. So it looks strange to be alone and then with someone at the same time... 
And it does feel dated. When I read the words I get an image of Dell and Rodney from Only Fools and Horses in the 80s... which is probably when I last heard it used...
[You just know I'm going to spend too much time today looking up rhyming slang....]


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## Gryphos

Cockney rhyming slang in general has become a thing of the past, replaced in large part in London (and various urban centres) by MLE or 'Multicultural London English', which gets a lot of its colloquialisms from Afro-Caribbean roots. At least, this is the case for the younger generation; older people may well and do often still use a form of the Cockney dialect.


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## A. E. Lowan

Gryphos said:


> How old are these peeps and whereabouts are they from specifically?



These guys are in their late 20's, from London and quite wealthy and well educated. Just before this they get into a quote battle between Shakespeare and Marlowe.


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## CupofJoe

If they are quoting Shakespeare and Marlowe [regardless of the period context] I don't think "on your tod" would work... Unless they were deliberately using the affectation of a cock-er-nee accent...


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## SumnerH

A. E. Lowan said:


> So instead of...
> 
> _Alerich’s mouth pulled into a small smile. Maybe he could get himself uninvited from his own wedding and go stag with Fitz somewhere else._
> 
> I would write...?
> 
> _Alerich’s mouth pulled into a small smile. Maybe he could get himself uninvited from his own wedding and go on his Tod with Fitz somewhere else._
> 
> Does that make sense?



What about just "head off with Fitz somewhere else" or "sneak off/go off/run off/etc..."?

FWIW, I'm a 40-something American native and "go stag" sounds extremely dated to me--I've heard it before, but generally from older generations and nostalgia havens like Archie Comics.



Sidebar: It's kind of amusing to me that "go stag" is an Americanism, but "stag do" (for bachelor party) is a Briticism.


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## Mackilt

On his "Tod" would be on his own so he couldn't go with Fitz.
"Maybe he could get himself ejected from the wedding and hit the town with Fitz" depends of course on where they intend to go.



SumnerH said:


> What about just "head off with Fitz somewhere else" or "sneak off/go off/run off/etc..."?
> 
> FWIW, I'm a 40-something American native and "go stag" sounds extremely dated to me--I've heard it before, but generally from older generations and nostalgia havens like Archie Comics.
> 
> 
> 
> Sidebar: It's kind of amusing to me that "go stag" is an Americanism, but "stag do" (for bachelor party) is a Briticism.


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## A. E. Lowan

Another question with London English in particular in mind, same group of wealthy characters. Would they sometimes refer to Americans as "Yanks?"


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## A. E. Lowan

The exchange in question is this...


_*Alerich snorted at his twin’s horrid bedside manner. “Okay, okay, you’re right.” He ran his fingers through his hair one last time and thought. “There’s a swing dancing club not too far from here called Jitterbug.”*_

_*Fitz perked up. “Capital idea. Let’s get pissed and teach these Yanks how to dance.” His voice was a little loud and just a tiny bit slurred, but he’d been drinking from his magical flask all day.*_


Does this make sense, or just sound dumb?


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## CupofJoe

If you are using words like "swing" and "Jitterbug", then "Yanks" would fit in. 
It has a slightly dated feel for current use.


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## A. E. Lowan

It's true that Fitz can be a little old-fashioned and formal in his word choices. Think a 28 year-old Lord John Marbury from The West Wing and you basically have Fitz Martin.  Brilliant, self-destructive, and deaf.


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## Gryphos

'Yanks' is incredibly dated – with regards to general use, at least. But if the character's a little posh, then it's more alright.


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## A. E. Lowan

They're very posh: Eton, Cambridge, Alerich has a title, the whole nine yards.


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## Gryphos

A. E. Lowan said:


> They're very posh: Eton, Cambridge, Alerich has a title, the whole nine yards.



Honestly then you could totally get away with them using those kinds of dated words.


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## A. E. Lowan

Awesomesauce! Thank you so much for your help.


----------

