History BritishEnglish / EnglishSlangGToL

* '''''Innit''''': Shortened form of "isn't it?" used most commonly in London and South East Wales. though also in areas of the North such as Manchester, often as a largely rhetorical verbal punctuation mark, though its exact usage shifts slightly depending on region. Overused to the point of stereotype by some, in the same way that [[CanadaEh Canadians like the word "eh"]].

* '''''Knickers''''': Underwear.

* '''Ladies''': Female toilet/restroom (short for "Lady’s toilet") - a useful alternative for anyone uncomfortable with the word 'toilet' - "Excuse me, where are the ladies?". See also '''Gents'''.

Return to the main page [[UsefulNotes/BritishEnglish here.]]
* [[BritishEnglish/EnglishSlangAToF A to F]]
* [[BritishEnglish/EnglishSlangMToR M to R]]
* [[BritishEnglish/EnglishSlangSToZ S to Z]]
* BritishEnglish/CockneyRhymingSlang

** "Come on if you're hard enough!" or "Come and have a go if think you’re hard enough!": Basically the same meaning as "bring it on!". A stereotypical FootballHooligan chant/taunt. As likely to be used to start a street brawl as during a match.

** '''''Holidays''''': "On my holidays" means on a vacation trip, as above, while "the holidays" refers to a break (recess) between school terms: "the summer holidays start next week". Provokes cringing, spontaneous vomiting, etc. in the UK if used as a non-denominational synonym for 'Christmastime', regarded as one of the chief indicators of PoliticalOvercorrectness.

* '''''It's a fair cop:''''' Notionally, this is what a good-natured crook says after being caught by the friendly village bobby (street patrolman.) Probably no actual criminal has ever said this, but it's sometimes uttered by someone who has been caught pulling a prank or otherwise engaging in minor mischief. The full phrase is "It's a fair cop, guv, you've got me dead to rights." Note that in this phrase "fair cop" means "above-board arrest", rather than "policeman".

** '''''Holidays''''': "On my holidays" means on a vacation trip, as above, while "the holidays" refers to a break (recess) between school terms: "the summer holidays start next week". Provokes cringing, spontaneous vomiting, etc. in the UK if used as a non-denominational synonym for 'Christmastime', regarded as one of the chief indicators of PoliticalCorrectnessGoneMad.

-->'''Suspicious Scot''': Whaur did ye get thae Playstations?
-->'''Thieving Scot''': Lifted 'em oot the back o' the Tescae's oan Maryhill Road.

* '''''Knickers''''': Female underwear, i.e. panties. Never used for male underwear, see 'Pants'.

* '''''Kop''''': A steep terrace in a football ground's grandstand; formerly standing-only, but clubs were forced to instal seating in the 1980's. Derived from Afrikaans; battles like Spion Kop in the UsefulNotes/TheSecondBoerWar, where British soldiers slogged up a steep mountainside only to find the Boers were already above them and waiting to open fire, left a traumatic memory behind among the survivors.

* '''''Lurgi''''': To have the lurgi : to be ill in an uncomfortable but not doctor worthy way, typically with a heavy cold. Almost allways ''the'' lurgi. Old fashioned these days, either made popular by or invented by ''Radio/TheGoonShow''. Sometimes used as Americans might use Cooties (as in "We won't play with you, you've got the lurgi"), but that is even rarer.

* '''''Herb''''': is pronounced with an "h" at the start. Brits find it slightly odd/amusing when an American mentions "erbs". The same tends to apply to other words with an unpronounced "h" sound. Creator/EddieIzzard has a memorable take on this one while comparing burial and American pronunciations; "You say erbs, we say herbs. Because there's a '''fucking''' H in it."

* '''''Herb''''': is pronounced with an "h" at the start. Brits find it slightly odd/amusing when an American mentions "erbs". The same tends to apply to other words with an unpronounced "h" sound. See Creator/EddieIzzard's take on this one [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cs5H7cgcpkg here]].

* '''''Grub''''': Food. "Grub('s) up!" = ''I say, chaps, it appears there's freshly-prepared food available.'' "Pub Grub" = Meals served in ''pubs'' that can range from well-prepared and tasty (in so-called "gastropubs") to virtually inedible (like the cheese sandwich in ''VideoGame/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy''), but usually with an emphasis on being heavy and filling. If you do get the inedible sort, the classic British approach is to not make a fuss and simply vow never to eat there again.

* '''''Guv''''': Short for "governor". Used for a boss, especially in cop shows. Note that outside of particular contexts, this is pretty archaic/clichéd. A tourist using it will get odd looks, in the same way a Brit would if they were to say "golly" or "swell" to an American. However, it does still sometimes persist for pub landlords, a fictional example being Al Murray's pub landlord persona.