The Queen's English

This is by no means a comprehensive list. UK term first, US equivalent follows. If word you're looking for is not found below, try here ("What a load of codswallop!") or here (Britspeak).

The British also have a Cockney rhyming slang. Using a pair of words, such as bread and honey, the first word is substituted with for a word that rhymes with the second word, such as money. Bread becomes slang for money. Some of the words below are adaptations for this slang, such as cobblers awls, which rhymes with balls (or bollocks in this case), hence cobblers becomes rhyme for bollocks. Click here for additional Cockney rhymes.

Thanks to all of my London colleagues, without whom this list would not be as complete. One other word of warning -- if a word below is succeeded by warning that word is offensive (i.e bollocks or slapper), it's probably not wise to use it in front of your British client's wife or kids, or your English girlfriend's parents. A B C D E F G H I,J K L M N O P Q R S T U,V W X,Y,Z

A

air-con - air conditioning, A/C.
arse - backside, derriere
ass - donkey, idiot, not your backside or derriere
aubergine - eggplant

B

banger - the blandest sausage available on Earth (made with meat and cereal or other grain filler). Though bangers and mash (potatoes) are a pub staple, Cumberland sausages are better to this American.
bang-on - See spot-on.
bap - hamburger bun, pita bread, one of my English colleagues said it fit for the flour tortillas served with his fajitas at Chevy's as well
barrister - trial lawyer
biscuit - cookie. A savory biscuit is an American cracker. The best description of an American biscuit a small fluffy, flaky scone without the currants.
bitter - national beer of Britain, darker and stronger than lager - cannot complete the British experience without having a bitter on draught in a London pub
bloke - person of male gender
blower - telephone, my British colleague surprised me when I thought I heard "She is on the blow, mate!" which for all of you English readers is American slang, meaning she is on cocaine.
bog - toilet, as in "going to the bog," (considered gutter talk)
bollocks - exclamation, i.e. "bollocks to that!" Nonsense, bull----. Derived from original meaning of word which refers to testicles. (considered offensive)
bomb - (noun, verb) not a dismal failure or a dud, but a smashing success, or succeeding all expectations.
bonnet - (car) hood
boot - (car) trunk
boozer - pub, bar
(the) box - television, also "telly," presumably a contraction of "idiot box."
brackets - American parentheses
brilliant - cool, excellent, good, great, right-on, used frequently to describe anything positive.
bubble & squeak - veggie dish consisting of cabbage, potatoes and cheese, more appetizing than it sounds.
bugger! buggered - (exclamation) expression of misfortune or frustration. (Adjective) broken, hosed, not functional. Not a nice word in UK.
bugger all - nothing
bulldog - British caricature of man's best friend, or a binder clip used to fasten papers together that are too big to staple or fasten by paperclip (an analogy to the dog's big jaws)
bum - backside, derriere
busker, busk - (noun) street musician, (verb) to play an instrument or sing. "No Busking" signs in Tube stations are to prevent self-proclaimed musicians from staging a recital and putting out a hat to collect tips.

C

capsicum - bell pepper
cello tape - scotch tape, clear tape
chemist - pharmacist
cheers - thanks, goodbye
chippy - fish and chips takeaway place
chips -- french fries
cobblers - see bollocks
cock-up - (verb or noun) mistake, screw-up
concession - abbrev. "concs"; discount, as in student or pensioner discount.
courgette - zucchini
crisps - potato chips

D

dodgy - questionable, unreliable, used frequently to describe anything negative.
dosh - money
draught - draft (pronounced "draft")
dust bin - trash can, also called rubbish bin

E

elastoplast - band-aid
engaged - (telephone) busy, "his line is engaged"

F

fag - cigarette, not derogatory term for homosexual male, also snout and salmon (Cockney rhyme for salmon and trout).
fanny - female genitalia, your fanny pack is a bum bag in the UK.
filter coffee - coffee that isn't instant; what to order if you wish regular coffee. If you hate milk like I do, be sure to specify it black, or it will be assumed you take milk.
first floor - second floor, first floor is the ground floor.
flannel - washcloth
flat - apartment
flatmate - roommate, in UK a roommate is someone you share a bed with, which might explain the weird looks you get when you start talking about your roommates, if they number more than one and/or are the same gender.
flyover - overpass
football - soccer, American football is "gridiron" (don't expect the average Englishman to be any more knowledgeable about or interested in American football than Americans are about cricket.)
fortnight - 2 week period
fringe - hair that's above one's eyes (US bangs), as in getting one's fringe trimmed.

G

ground floor - first floor, second floor in UK is first floor in USA or Canada.
grotty - run-down, dingy, skanky

H

hash - (noun) not the eating or smoking kind, but what Americans call the "pound" sign, which in the US is #, in the UK, Ł. Helpful when listening to English phone menus.
hire - (verb) rent, (noun) rental, as in "do you hire bicycles?"or "bicycles for hire"
hood - (car) top, on convertible "taking the hood down" is lowering the top.

I, J

iced lolly, lolly - popsicle
jumper or jersey - sweater, sweater is a sweat shirt in the UK.

K

knackered - tired, exhausted -- from an archaic term for euthanizing old horses, or "knackering" them
knock up - not impregnate, but to wake up, when your hotel promises a wake-up call, they may tell you that you will be "knocked up" in the morning.

L

lager - closest American equivalent to beer, Becks, for example.
lager top - draft (or draught if you're not North American) lager with a float of lemon-lime soda (or what they call lemonade)
lemonade - lemon lime soda (i.e. Sprite, 7-Up). American lemonade is "old fashioned" lemonade.
let - rent, as in "flat to let."
lift - (noun) elevator
loo - (noun) toilet, ask for the toilet, loo or WC (water closet), not the bathroom, which is where you bathe.

M

marmite - salty yeast extract spread on bread and toast, similar to Aussie vegemite, an acquired taste.
mash - mashed potatoes, not what goes into the still, and no, I don't think "squish", "splush" and "smush" are other British side dishes, although "squash" is a still beverage.
mate - buddy, friend, bro'
mind - (verb) watch out for, look out for, as in "Mind the gap!"
mod cons - modern conveniences, what many ads for upscale properties state that their properties have.
motorway - freeway

N

nappy, napkin - diaper or feminine hygiene product - paper or cloth thing that is used for dining is a serviette in the UK.

O

old fashioned lemonade - lemon juice and sugar, what we call lemonade in the States. Lemonade in UK is lemon-lime soda.
over the top - overdone, overexaggerated, overkill. All of this press coverage of the Monica Lewinsky scandal is a bit "over the top!".

P

pants - undergarments found beneath American pants (which are trousers in UK). Saying nice pants to a British women (or man) may be risky unless you wish to be knocked into next week.
paraffin - kerosene, lamp or heating oil
partner - one's significant other in all relationships, not just homo ones.
pensioner - senior citizen
petrol - gas for the car - gas in UK is what gas stoves use or what happens when one has indigestion.
phone box - phone booth
Pimms lemonade - sweet fizzy brown spritzer, which tastes like whiskey spritzer made with Pimms (a whiskey-based liqueur) and lemon-lime soda, an acquired taste.
pissed - drunk, loaded, not angry (which is pissed-off).
pitch - grass playing field, as in football or rugby pitch
porter - doorman: in an apartment complex they are doormen and security guards and they port absolutely nothing! (Although they are a wealth of information and will talk your ear off given the opportunity.
post box - mail box
pram - baby stroller
pudding - the dessert course. Unless it's a savory pudding, in which case it's a dark starchy thing served with the main course. Or a yorkshire pudding, which is a bread-like thing in bowl shape.
punter - ordinary guy, everyman "With the tax increase, a punter will have to pay more for a pint of bitter."

Q

queue, queue up - (noun) line, (verb) line-up
quid - pound (as in money). "The bloody repair cost 100 quid!"

R

redundancy - eliminated job, layoff victim -- happening all too frequently with British manufacturing jobs
return, return ticket - roundtrip
ring, ring up - (verb) telephone, call using telephone
rosie - (noun) Cockney rhyming slang for tea, derived from Rosie Lee, as in "those English, they make a good cuppa rosie!"
rubber - eraser
rubbish - garbage or trash, also nonsense, i.e. "What he was saying is a load of rubbish!"

S

serviette - napkin, in UK, a napkin is a diaper
shag - have sex with (not to be used in proper company).
shandy - half UK lemonade (something also known as Sprite), half beer, whuzzup with this UK obsession of beer mixers?!
shattered - (adjective) tired, exhausted
silencer - (car) muffler, as opposed to a handgun muffler
singlet - tank top, in UK, tank top is a sweater vest
skiving, skiving off - (verb) to avoid doing work, to blow off one's obligations, slacking
slapper - woman of questionable repute, tramp, slut (not a nice word in UK).
snog, snogging - full contact kissing and groping. What the couple that sits across from you on the Tube all too frequently does
spanner - crescent wrench, British wrench is American monkey wrench
spot-on - (also bang-on) exact, right on the money
spotted dick - not an STD symptom, but a dessert pudding made from suet and raisins served traditionally in winter.
solicitor - legal counsel, lawyer but not a trial lawyer, which is a barrister.
squash - in addition to being a game using raquets and a ball, British for sweet fruit beverage, or juice concentrate.
stroppy - cranky, grouchy
straight away - right away, "I'll take care of it for you straight away!"
subway - underpass, not the train, which is the Tube
sultanas -- raisins
superb - see brilliant
surname - last name, might prove helpful on the UK Immigration & Customs form
sweet - candy, dessert

T

take-away - take out, to go
teat - tip of a baby bottle or nipple of a cow, "nipple" refers to human body part only
telly - television, TV set, a.k.a. "the box"
toad-in-a-hole - meat served with potatoes in a yorkshire pudding.
toilet - what to ask for instead of bathroom or restroom.
torch - flashlight
tosser - a fool, a jerk, a dumb-ass
trainers - athletic shoes, tennis shoes
trolley - cart, i.e. grocery trolley, baggage trolley
trousers - pants (ALWAYS), in UK pants are underwear.

U, V

university/varsity - what we call college in the US, college is the UK equivalent of high school.

W

wanker - see tosser (literally means masturbator, as does tosser)
way out - exit, not directions to the Andromeda galaxy
WC - (water closet) toilet
whinge - (verb) whine, as in "he's just another whinging yank tourist!"
windcheater - windbreaker
windscreen - (car) windshield
wrench - monkey wrench, pipe wrench. American wrench is British spanner.

X, Y, Z

yob - thug, hoodlum, low-life
yorkshire pudding - bread-like thing that's in the shape of a bowl.
zed - letter z

Š 1999 by headwall

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