British slang examples7/22/2023 “What is that? It smells rank,” for example. It could be used for a person, for food, or perhaps most commonly for a very bad smell. It has expanded to just mean bad in general, though, depending on where you are.Īgain, this one is most commonly used in the north of England, though you’ll hear it everywhere in Britain. It can be used in a variety of ways, though again it is most often used in the sense of something disgusting or off-putting. Next, we have “rank”, another common slang term used for bad in Britain. Unfortunately, we just don’t know for sure. Some, on the other hand, believe it is related to the term “minge”, a slang term for the female genitalia in Britain. Some think it originated in Scotland in the 1970s, derived from the other Scottish slang “ming” which meant bad smelling or unpleasant in general. The origin of this term is not really clear. “They’ve changed the recipe for this, it’s mingin’ now,” for example. In all likelihood, you’re more likely to hear it pronounced “mingin’” with the G dropped, just to avoid any potential confusion. It is certainly much more common among young people today, and generally not a term you’ll hear adults use all that much. This one can be used to describe anything bad, though more often than not it has the sense of something disgusting or unpleasant. “Minging” is another common slang term used in Britain, though primarily in the north of England. In the last few decades, it has developed again to become an adjective, though precisely when this happened is unfortunately not clear to see. It was originally just a noun referring to the act itself, though in the 1950s it expanded to become a noun, too. This is attested from 1948, though again we can presume it predates this by at least a few years. “W*nk” in British slang is a verb meaning to masturbate. “This bar is w*nk, let’s go somewhere else,” for example. It has the sense of something being completely worthless and not worth considering. It’s again used across generations and isn’t really limited to any one particular group-it started being used in this way decades ago but the younger generations have certainly picked it up, too. It’s certainly profanity, though that doesn’t stop it from also being one of the most common slang terms for bad in Britain. Next we have “w*nk”, another common slang term used in Britain that you also definitely want to be careful with how and where you use it. That is to say that this is little more than a noise that you make when you are disgusted with something-and speak with a Glaswegian accent! It’s thought that it was and still is simply a natural utterance. No doubt in the spoken vernacular, it predates this by at least a few decades. This term is also very old, and is attested in writing by the 1590s at the earliest. “I used to like their music, it’s pish now,” for example. It isn’t limited to any particular age demographic, and you’ll hear this one used by just about everyone in parts of Scotland. It could be because something is making you impatient, annoying you, or even causing you disgust. It can have some subtly different senses, but one way or another, if something is pish, then it certainly isn’t good. Most commonly you’ll hear it in Glasgow though it is used in Scotland more generally. Next we have “pish”, certainly a more regionally specific one as you won’t hear this one used much outside of Scotland. The idea is that your “sh*t” is literally a separation from your body.īy the 1600s it was the taboo word we know today, and even as late as 1922 it was still drawing censorship from publishers. It ultimately derives from the Old English word scitan, in turn coming from the Proto-Germanic skit meaning “to cut”. This is a very old term, though it has undergone a lot of changes during its lifetime. “That new movie was so sh*t,” for example. Naturally many people are not naturally inclined to swear in their day-to-day lives, but the vast majority are.įurther, “sh*t” can mean many levels of bad, though at the very least it means very bad. It is used across generations and in virtually every corner of the country. Generally speaking, though, this is perhaps the single most common slang term in Britain used to mean bad. Naturally, this is profanity, so you want to be careful with the contexts in which you use it. Fortunately, in a British slang dictionary, there are quite a few informal phrases commonly used as slang.To start off with a simple one, first we have “sh*t”. Before going deeper into your exploration of British slang words, take the time to discover some slang phrases commonly used in the U.K.
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