During the 19th Century, the criminal underworld in London developed their own secret language, often based on rhyming slang. A few of the more common and interesting words are tabulated here. Enjoy ...
| Expression | Meaning | Notes / Examples |
|---|---|---|
| have a butchers | take a look | from butcher's hook = look as in "take a butchers at that" |
| north and south | mouth | |
| plates | feet | from plates of meat = feet as in "you've got big plates" |
| boat race | face | as in "nice legs, shame about the boat race" |
| skin and blister | sister | |
| trouble | wife | from trouble and strife = wife as in "going home to the trouble" |
| dustbin lids | kids / children | |
| whistle | suit | from whistle and flute = suit as in "do you like the whistle?" |
| Adam and Eve | believe | as in "would you Adam and Eve it?" |
| Rosie Lea | tea | as in "I'd love a cup of rosie" |
| Mutt and Jeff | deaf | |
| oily rag | fag = cigarette | as in "I'm going for an oily" |
| jam jar | car | |
| mince pies | eyes | as in "feast your mincers on this" |
| pen and ink | stink | as in "cor! what a pen and ink" |
| porky | lie | from pork pies = lies as in "he's telling porkies" |
| Barnet | hair | from Barnet Fair = hair as in "he's losing his Barnet" |
| Brahms | pissed (i.e. "drunk") | from Brahms and Liszt = pissed |
| Gregories | glasses / spectacles | from Gregory Pecks = specs |
| Titfer | hat | from tit for tat = hat |
| apples and pears | stairs | |
| Jimmy | urinate | from Jimmy Riddle = piddle |
| borassic | broke / skint | from borassic lint = skint as in "can't go out, I'm borassic" |
| two and eight | state | as in "he's in a bit of a two and eight" |
| Bertie Woofter | gay man | from Bertie Woofter = poofter |
| China | mate / friend | from China plate = mate as in "how are you, my old China" |
| Khyber | buttocks | from Khyber Pass = arse |
| rabbit and pork | talk | as in "Don't rabbit so much" |
| tea leaf | thief | |
| potato mould | cold | as in "it's a bit taters in here" |
| dog and bone | phone | as in "you're wanted on the dog and bone" |
| loaf | head | from loaf of bread = head as in "Use your loaf" |
| brown bread | dead | |
| battle cruiser | boozer | boozer = pub = public house (a place to drink) |
| elbows and knees | trees | |
| gold watch | Scotch | Scotch = whiskey |
| pride and Joy | boy | Take the pride and joy to the match |
| current bun | Sun | I'm going out to get a bit of current bun |
| dicky | shirt | from dicky dirt = shirt |
| pots and pans | hands | |
| Peckham Rye | tie | named after a place in London |
| Hampstead Heath | teeth | named after a place in London |
| jugs | ears | from jugs of beers = ears |
| Errol Flynn | chin | |
| almonds | socks | from almond rocks = socks |
| ones and twos | shoes | |
| daisies | boots | from daisy roots = boots |
| bird | prison | from bird lime = time as in "doing bird" |
| Expression | Meaning | Notes / Examples |
|---|---|---|
| leave it out | stop it | |
| the filth | the police | "look out it's the filth" |
| doing porridge | serving a prison sentence | |
| beak | judge | "going up before the beak" |
| screw | prison officer | "the worst thing about porridge is the screws" |
| fence | handler of stolen goods | |
| gladrags | best clothes | "get your gladrags on; We're going out" |
| nark | police informer | "he's a copper's nark" |
| grass up | to inform on | "I was grassed up" |
| nonce | sexual offender | |
| snout | tobacco | |
| sussed out | found out | "I was sussed out by the filth" |
| rumbled | found out | "We've been rumbled" |
| stitched up | set up | "We've been stitched up" |
| loan shark | unofficial money lender | |
| bother | a fight | "Are you looking for bother?" |
| guv | boss |
© 1997 Kryss Katsiavriades
Slangman
David Burke's site on American, Spanish, French and Italian slang.
| Click on the ISBN Number to go straight to the book. | COM |
Co UK |
| The British Phrasebook is an amusing and accurate account of British English from Lonely Planet. |
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| The Little Book of Cockney Rhyming Slang is a small book full of examples of Cockney rhyming slang. |
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| Rhyming Cockney Slang features a humorous slant to its subject. |
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