Meaning: F*ck. It was atrocious! Popsy wopsy a smiling, doll-like, and pretty girl. Featured image credit: Victorian Ladies Fashion 1880s by JamesGardinerCollection. The 1940s were prime time for fun slang and this World War II-era compliment is calling out an amazing girl. More than several/a few/a couple of you have asked. 1. This blog post was written by the Oxford trade marketing team. He is soaked. Please refresh the page and try again. The Colloquial Application of Titles. In the Victorian era, there was no better way to let someone know they were unwanted than with the ultimate insult: the vinegar valentine. So, there you have a quick primer in being able to hold your own in the Victorian East End of London around the time of Jack the Ripper and the Whitechapel Murders. Aggro (or Agro) When you are mad at someone or something, you're aggroshort for "aggravated". Strong Freedom in the Zone. How every letter can be (annoyingly) silent. This is only the tip of the iceberg, as there are hundreds more words and phrases that although in common usage in the 19th century, are all but forgotten today. google_ad_client = "ca-pub-1402436233399427"; google_ad_slot = "7682907748"; google_ad_width = 728; google_ad_height = 90; In this same vein, there were other commonplace foods at this time which have pretty much disappeared from Britain today, such as Kromeskis (a type of potato croquette), the Anglo-Indian Mulligatawny soup and Salmi (a type of game casserole). 50. An emphatic term for scolding of the feminine variety. 1) Too high for his nut beyond someone's reach. He is tight. 44. caricature. In 1887 Prime Minister Robert Cecil (Bob), appointed his nephew, Arthur Balfour, as Chief Secretary for Ireland. 3. 42. Poltroon An utter coward. Suggestionize some of these Afternoonified sayings for your Chuckaboos Sauce-box. Cop a mouse was a Victorian-era phrase that meant "get a black eye." As Passing English explains, " Cop in this sense is to catch or suffer, while the colour of the obligation at its worst. And squint so in thy, doltish iobbernowle. John Taylor, All the workes of Iohn Taylor, 1630. Or subscribe to articles in the subject area by email or RSS. 56 Quick Slang Phrases From Victorian England That We Should Start They went straight from the frying pan into the dog!, USE: Oh, youve got gravy all round your sauce-box from those bags o mystery and mash, USE: Ive orf chump after seeing those bags o mystery. Wicked: great; amazing; brilliant. these are not always dictionary translation of words, but rather a Brits take on them. He is overtaken. Primary and Secondary Sources. Hence, the term jammy dodger became associated with someone who had undeserved luck. 9. So next time you sit in your Windsor chair with a tantalus full of rumshrub and stick your Roman nose into a book of Victorian literature, keep an eye out for the unusual words and phrases! Batty-fang Low. Arguments; brought into being by Queen Victoria and said to be a Scots word to describe fights among dogs. Often considered derogatory. For feare of being spide, she look'd another; and Jammiest bits of jam Absolutely perfect young females, or the Victorian eras version of Beyonces Flawless.. There was Morocco leather, Swedish bark, Berlin gloves, Ulster coats, Welsh wigs and Kidderminster carpet to name a few. police officer), Bang to rights: caught in the acthe was bang to rights thieving around, Skive: appearing to work while in fact avoiding it, Loo: toilet; bathroomIm going to the loo, Punter: a prostitute or strip joints customer, Nick: stealhe nicked a diamond right out under her nose, Bits and bobs: different thingswe had a few bits and bobs stored away in the cupboard, Chap: man; boy; friendtheres a good chap, Shambles: disarray; messthe room was in shambles, Its gone to shambles: its gone down the drain, Anorak: someone obsessively or overly interested in something, Off to spend a penny: going to the toilet, Bobs your uncle: your success is guaranteed; there you go; thats it. Bow bow mutton very bad meat, so much so that it might be dog flesh. i.e. 15. Those movies also display many of the different accentsin both franchises Colin Firth speaks using RP (Queens English) and Taron Egerton has an East London dialect. 16. 16 Historical Sexual Insults That are Just Plain Savage " It's awfy muckle" means " it's awfully big.". Nitwit: silly, or foolish, personshes such a nitwit, Off their rocker: madthey were off their rocker, they were, Mad as a hatter: madstemming from back in the day when hatters used a manufacturing process for felt that, indeed, made them mad (mercury poisoning), Prick: dick; assholehes a prick that one, Tosser: someone who doesnt have it all together, Daft cow: silly; stupid (referring to a woman), An angry Tweeter, after Brexit was announced and Trump made a statement that the Scots had made a wise decision to leave the EUthey voted to remain in the EUcalled Donald Trump a polyester cockwomble.. "Mind the grease" - "Excuse me! 3. Smothering a parrot was Victorian slang for drinking absinthe. Youre forgiven for thinking he only made these descriptions of the characters in his books because in his works of non-fiction, there are equally uncomplimentary descriptions of people he met in real life. Gadzooks! 50 Awesome British Slang Terms You Should Start Using - Lifehack As evidenced by the quotes below, female writers from the eranever missed an opportunity to slip a burn against the patriarchy into their work. 2. Nark the titter Watch the woman. Titter was apparently a derogatory term for women. How To Converse In 19th Century London - Victorian Slang Mewling quim literally translates to a whimpering vagina. Or, what wed call a wuss. Like you can tell what it means but it doesn't make much sense, because 'Victorian' implies more than just the time period, and the other implications don't apply to Romania. He is chock-a-block. ", USE: The builder is going to be in for a bubble around if he doesnt get the tiling straight!, USE: "It wasn't a mystery what happened to my husband's bag'o mystery last night. A Blowse, or Blowsabella An unkempt woman: "A woman whose hair is. An affected manner of walking seen in many women for several years and attributed to the then Princess of Wales who had had some trouble with a knee. Holborn knows little of Petty Italia behind Hatton Garden, and both these ignore Clerkenwell, which is equally foreign to Islington proper; in the South, Lambeth generally ignores the New Cut, and both look upon Southwark as linguistically out of bounds; while in Central London, Clare Market (disappearing with the nineteenth century) had, if it no longer has, a distinct fashion in words from its great and partially surviving rival through the centuries the world of Seven Dials, which is in St Giless St Jamess being ractically in the next parish. Before 'gay' became common and accepted parlance, the world invented its own unofficial terms for men who dug men. Writer at Thought Catalog. Some of the, Many British phrases are going out of fashion, according to a poll. Also, means twisted, mean, or madthat was a wicked witch, Dodgy: suspicious; not quite right; dishonestthat man was dodgy, A tad: a little bitit was a tad on the dark side, Bollocking: being punishedhe had a good bollocking, Donkeys years: agesit hadnt happened in donkeys years, Peanuts: very cheapI had it for peanuts at the local shop, Horses for courses: whats fitting for one case isnt fitting for another. 75 British Slang Words And Their Meanings - Parade Example, "Of course he lost his wallet, what an Arfarfan'arf"! In a book that became to be known as 'The People of the Abyss' London described the time when he lived in the Whitechapel district sleeping in workhouses, so-called doss-houses and even on the streets. The role of social codesin the development of euphemisms can be exploredthrough Victorian vulgarities. Yes I have a dark side, doesnt everyone? BA1 1UA. " guys in disguise " [slur] (noun): "masculine"-appearing people in "feminine" clothing. Complete guide to all the glittering regalia used at the coronation Beardsplitter A Victorian word for "penis." 2. The Cotswolds: The 20 Best Places To Visit, English Villages | What Makes The Perfect Village In England (With Examples), Visit Yorkshire, England: York, The Dales & More, English Cathedrals: The 20 Best Cathedrals In England, London Travel: The Ultimate Guide. Heres a quote form Bridget Jones Diary 3: You need some good old-fashioned lie-back-and-think-of-England bonking., In for a penny, in for a pound: if you started something, you may as well go full out and really dive into it (it stems from the fact that back in the day, if you owed a penny you might as well owe a pound due to the severity of the penalties being about the same), Death warmed up: pale or sicklyhe looked like death warmed up, Laugh like a drain: to laugh with a loud, coarse, sound, Laugh up ones sleeve: to laugh secretly, or to oneself, Bright as a button: very smart, or cheery, Full Monty: the whole package; everythingit was the full Monty. This blog post was written by the Oxford trademarketing team. 6. - Alexander Rodchenko, 1921, Donate or Subscribe Your Kind Generosity is Hugely Appreciated, The Newsletter A Weekly Pick-Me-Up & Shop Discounts, Photographs of Londons Kings Cross Before the Change c.1990, Photos of Topless Dancers and Bottomless Drinks At New York Citys Raciest Clubs c. 1977, Debbie Harry And Me Shooting The Blondie Singer in 1970s New York City, Jack Londons Extraordinary Photos of Londons East End in 1902, Photographs of The Romanovs Final Ball In Color, St Petersburg, Russia 1903, Eric Ravilious Visionary Views of England, Photographs of the Wonderful Diana Rigg (20 July 1938 10 September 2020), Photographer Updates Postcards Of 1960s Resorts Into Their Abandoned Ruins, Sex, Drugs, Jazz and Gangsters The Disreputable History of Gerrard Street in Londons Chinatown, The Brilliant Avant-Garde Movie Posters of the Soviet Union, Raymond Chandlers Guide to Street, Hoodlum, and Prison Lingo, Anthony Burgesss Lost Dictionary of Slang (1965), Newsletter Subscribers Get Shop Discounts. Oh, 'wanker'. 23. The Victorian Era spanned from the early-mid 1800s until Queen Victoria's death in 1901. A thick head, an idiot; some one who displays astounding stupidity. A. Munsell contained the following amusing and instructive passage:- The point to which I have next to direct attention is manliness in speech. An effeminate man, one who malingers amongst the women. Muttonhead is not quite so old as many of the words in this list, in use only since the early 19th century. I think you misspelled hoyden in your infographic. You can also support us by signing up to our Mailing List. 25 Great Insults From 18th-Century British Slang - Mental Floss 30. clairvoyance. Figuratively speaking, this cuss word is used to refer to an annoying person, who's being unpleasant. The Brits are as fond of slang (some dating back centuries) as the rest of the world. It makes up for this lack of lineage with a degree of oddity that sets it apart from the older words. Basically, an asshole. It comes from Her Majestys PrisonHMP, Cram: squeeze something in; to stuff; sometimes in relation to learning somethingI was cramming before the exam, Wind-up merchant: a teaser; someone who likes winding people up; someone who like playing practical jokes on people, Dog in the manger: someone who withholds something they cannot use themselves. In the Scottish Borders, we say 'yer talkin mince' which means ' your talking rubbish. Thats our guide to British insults, slang & phrases. Beach has been enjoying Pickpockets, Beggars and Ratcatchers by Kellow Chesney on London's underworld in the teeming, dirty and unmatchable nineteenth century: the illustrations are great too. A very partial list includes bonehead, bufflehead, chowderhead, chucklehead, citternhead, dolthead, doughhead, dullhead, dumbhead, dunderhead, hammerhead, hardhead, jolter-head, leatherhead, loggerhead, muddlehead, noodlehead, pumpkin head, ramhead, squarehead, thickhead, and woodenhead. Its monkeys outside comes from the phrase: Its cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. This actually does not mean what you think it does. Along with Ronnie himself and his, "It is time for art to flow into the organisation of life." Of these perhaps none has such trenchant weight as the humble asshead.