Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Why are my Wellies in the Wheelie Bin?!

Ok. So, this isn't food related, but I feel the need to share a few of my observations and amusements with British English language.

We all love the British accent. It sounds polite and sophisticated, intelligent and erudite. But just like there are many different accents across America, there are many different British accents, in fact, probably even more than there are in the U.S.
This link to the British Library's sound archives allows you to listen to over 70 regional dialects of England! http://www.bl.uk/learning/langlit/sounds/index.html

Having been in London for about seven weeks now, I've been able to hear some slang and have been wonderfully delighted to realize that British slang is charmingly quaint! British slang loves the letter y! And why not? I agree it is an under-used and under-appreciated letter, straddling the worlds of consonants and vowels, but never before could I have thought it could be attached to so many words! Here are a few of the countless examples. I hope they make you equally giddy!

Baccy: tobacco
Barmy: crazy
Bendy Bus: articulated bus or accordion bus
Budgie: short for budgerigar (Australian parakeet)
Brolly: umbrella
Butty: chip sandwich
Juicy bits: pulp in orange juice
Manky: dirty, gross (but even more specific: bath towels in an English winter turn manky)
Nappy: diaper
Old Blighty: England
Parky: cold
Pinny: apron
Posty: mailman
Rumpy Pumpy: hanky panky
Sarny: sandwich
Shreddies: Chex cereal
Smarmy: smug and pretentious
Snarky: sharply derisive (supposedly North American, but I hear it here all the time)
Snog: to kiss (not a -y ending but one of my favorites!)
Squidgy: soft or mushy
Squiffy: tipsy/drunk
Techy: touchy
Telly: television
Tickety-boo: things are going well!
Toasties: toasted sandwiches
Trolley: cart, ie: shopping cart or luggage cart
Wellies: galoshes (short for Wellington Boots)
Wheelie Bin: trash can with wheels
Wonky: unstable, asymmetrical; strange

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