Know Your Onions

August 06, 2012

With the Summer Olympics in full swing, I thought it would be fun to brush up on our English. Familiarize yourself with the British expressions and their meanings below, and soon you’ll really "know your onions" (be knowledgeable, that is) when it comes to "London-ese."

Bangers - sausages
Bee’s knees - awesome        
Biscuit - cookie
Bits ‘n bobs - various things
Blimey - "Oh Geez" or "My Goodness"
Bloke - a male
Bob’s your uncle! - There you go!
Bog roll - toilet paper
Bugger - a jerk
Cakehole - mouth
Chat up - flirt
Cheerio! - Goodbye!
Chips - French fries
Daft cow - idiot
Diary - calendar
Dishy - hot (as in attractive)
Dodgy - suspicious
Doris - a plain woman
Faced - drunk
Holiday - vacation
"It’s monkeys outside" - "It’s very cold"
Kip - nap, sleep
Knackered - tired
Knickers - underwear
Loo - bathroom
"Lost the plot" - gone crazy
Mate - friend
Nosh - food
"Off your trolley" - crazy, mad
Potato crisps - potato chips
Queue - wait in line
Readies - cash on hand
Ring - call
Sixes and sevens - a mess, topsy-turvy
Spend a penny - go to the bathroom
Trainspotter - a nerd or geek
Trousers - pants 

You can find these and more British phrases at The Very Best of British: The American's Guide to Speaking British and Anglotopia.net.

Bob’s your uncle!  Cheerio!

Vicki H.
Blue Springs South