English sounds very different depending where you are in the UK. People from the North of England have a completely different accent to those from the South. But the language is also made up of some different regional vocabulary . (This is called ‘dialect’ or ‘slang’.)

For example, if you are in London, you might experience Cockney rhyming slang. This was spoken by ‘Cockneys’ - the people from the ‘East End’ of London where it originated. And it is still used by local people around the capital today.

How it works: This is more than just slang – it is almost a ‘secret’ code for those who know it. A word in a sentence is replaced by words that rhyme with it. This is usually a famous person, a place, or a common object. eg. Acker Bilk = milk (Acker Bilk was a famous musician in the UK from the 1950s).

Below is a ‘country cousin’ (dozen) of the more famous Cockney expressions. Some of these are so common they are used all over the UK. Why not surprise people by learning some of them?

Rhyming slang 

TRANSLATION

Apples and pears
Stairs

Ruby Murray
Curry

Trouble and strife
Wife

Butcher’s hook
Look

Adam and eve
Believe

Barnet fair
Hair

Mutt and Jeff
Deaf

Acker Bilk
Milk

Mince pies
Eyes

Plates of meat
Feet

Loaf of bread
Head

Boat race
Face

Here they are again in some sentences to help you make sense of it! Notice, sometimes the actual rhyming word is not used:

-          It’s time to go up the apples and pears to bed.
-          Why don’t we go out for a nice Ruby Murray?
-          I must go home to see the trouble and strife
-          Let me a have a butchers at it
-          I don’t adam and eve it!
-          I need to have my barnet done
-          Speak louder I’m a bit Mutt and Jeff
-          I’m going to the shop to get some Acker Bilk
-          You’ve got lovely mince pies!
-          My plates are killing me!
-          Use your loaf! (use your brain)
-          He’s got a great body - it’s a pity about the boat race!

Local dialect

Of course, it’s not just the Cockneys who have their own way of speaking. Wherever you are in the UK, everyone has a different accent in their speech, and use local slang in their language which is specific to the area they are from.

Accents can change within a short distance – Manchester and Liverpool are only 30 miles apart, yet the people sound completely different. And if you are in Glasgow, the local people speak very quickly and with a strong Scottish accent.

Sadly, we can’t really help you understand all of the accents here. However, we can help you learn some of the slang. There are hundreds of examples where different words are used to describe the same thing, depending on where you are in the British Isles. For example, if you’re happy in Liverpool then you are ‘made up’ but if you are in Birmingham, then you are ‘bostin!’

According to a recent study, there are 480 different ways of saying you are cold, and 700 ways of describing a child who avoids going to school! Someone who writes with their left hand could be described as ‘keggy handed’ in central England, and a ‘cuddy-wifter’ in Northumberland!

Here are 10 different ways of saying words you might use every day. Why not put some into your working vocabulary?

Cold
freezing
chilly
baltic
nesh
brass monkeys
nithered
starved
taters
bitter
perishing

Friend
mate
pal
comrade
buddy
chum
mucker
bud
marra
butty
dude
    

Baby
bairn
sprog
kid
babby
nipper
wean
little one
bab
babe
child

Had too much to drink
hammered
wasted
tipsy
bladdered
rat arsed
steaming
smashed
pissed
slaughtered
trolleyed

Someone who is good-looking
fit
gorgeous
easy on the eye
hot
sexy
a right looker
lush
lovely
cute
tasty


By Matt Taylor

USEFUL WORDS

native speaker = a person who speaks a language as their first language
mother tongue = the language that you first learn to speak when you are a child
official language = usually the language that most people in a country speak
accent = a way of pronouncing the words of a language that shows which country, area or social class a person comes from
dialect = the form of language that is spoken in one area with grammar, words and pronunciation that may be different from other forms of the same language
slang = very informal words and expressions
colloquial = words used in conversation but not in formal speech or writing
rhyme = a word that has the same sound or ends with the same sound as another word
intonation = the rise and fall of the voice in speaking, which affects the meaning of what is being said

COLLOQUIAL ENGLISH & SLANG

A: Lend us a few quid.  I’m broke.
(Lend me a few pounds, I haven’t got any money)
B: Here’s a fiver.
(Here’s five pounds)
A: Smashing. Ta.
(Great.  Thanks)

A: Posh suit!
(Your suit is very smart)
B: My grandparents’ 50th wedding anniversary.  We’re having a bit of a do.
(We’re having a party)
A: Come and have a drink first.  On me.
(I’ll pay)
B: Just for a mo.  Mustn’t get there plastered.
(Just for a short time.  I mustn’t arrive there drunk)

A: You look a bit fed up.  What’s up?
(What’s wrong)
B: Someone’s pinched my brolly and it’s coming down in buckets.
(Someone’s stolen my umbrella and it’s raining a lot)
A: Oh, tough luck.
(Bad luck)

A: Someone’s walked off with my specs.
(Someone’s taken my glasses)
B: Don’t be daft.  You’ve got them in your hand.
(Don’t be silly)
A: Oh, yes.  I’m going bonkers
(I’m going mad)