British and American people speak the same language ... well, mostly. Each of these two cultures has several words and phrases all its own.
This glossary "translates" many of these terms, serving as a "bridge" between the language differences on either side of "the Pond."
0 - 9
24 hour clock - 24 hour clock (military time) is used quite widely in the UK. It ensures there is no confusion between am and pm times, particularly on timetables for planes and trains for example.
99 - A cone filled with soft ice cream and a Cadbury's flake - a long crumbly stick of chocolate.
999 - The equivalent of the emergency service number 911 in the US.
A
A-Level - At 18, school kids take around three A-Levels. These are the qualifications that will get them into university or not, depending on the results. University entrance in the UK is based solely on merit so these exams are important. Similar to SATs in the US.
AA - The Automobile Association. Similar to the AAA in the US. But unlike the AAA, they carry a workshop with them and fix the car at the side of the street if they can, or carry your car anywhere in the country if they can't.
Accumulator - Car battery (dated).
Aerial - Antenna. An aerial is on a car, an antenna would be found on insects.
Ace - If something is ace it is brilliant. Kids call cool stuff ace, or brill.
Action replay - Instant replays of moments in sporting events.
Advert - A television commercial, as well as a printed ad in a magazine or newspaper, etc.
Aeroplane - Airplane.
Afters - Dessert. "What's for afters?" means "What's for dessert?"
Aga - A type of stove that not only cooks the dinner but in many cases, heats the water and the house too. You used to find an Aga in most farmhouses but they have become a status symbol in the UK and have become very popular in any sort of house.
Aggro - Deliberate troublemaking. Short for aggravation, it's the sort of thing you might expect at a football match. In other words - trouble. There is sometimes aggro in the cities after the pubs shut.
AGM - Most clubs, societies and companies hold an Annual General Meeting. In the business sense it is a meeting of the shareholders.
Airing cupboard - In British houses we have a hot water tank in a cupboard off the landing or in one of the bedrooms. Since it is warm in there, we usually hang clothes in it to let them air. That's why we call it the airing cupboard.
Air screw - Propeller (dated).
All-in - Inclusive.
All right? - This means, "Hello, how are you?" You would say it to a complete stranger or someone you knew. The normal response would be for them to say "All right?" back to you. It is said as a question. Sometimes it might get expanded to "All right mate?"
Alsatian - German shepherd.
Aluminium - Aluminum. It is pronounced Al-u-min-i-um.
Amber - Part of the traffic light color sequence. The sequence is red, red and amber (together), green. Then green, amber, red.
American football - The US version of football, so named to differentiate it from football (known as soccer in the US).
Anorak - A nerd or a square.
Anorak - Parka. A very untrendy kind of waterproof, padded coat with a zip. The sort of thing your mother made you wear when you were 10 and you still haven't forgiven her for it. Especially if she made you put the hood up when it rained. Possibly called a slicker in American.
Arse - It basically means the same as ass, but is much ruder. It is used in phrases like "pain in the arse" (a nuisance) or I "can't be arsed" (I can't be bothered) or you might hear something was "a half arsed attempt" meaning that it was not done properly.
Arse about face - This means you are doing something back to front.
Arse over elbow - This is another way of saying head over heels but is a little more descriptive. Usually happens after 11pm on a Saturday night and too many lagers.
Arse over tit - Another version of arse over elbow, but a bit more graphic.
Arsehole - British equivalent of the US slang term asshole.
Arseholed - Drunk. Usually in the advanced stages of drunken stupor, someone would be considered "completely arseholed."
Articulated lorry, Artic - This is a trailer truck. Usually shortened to artic.
As well - "Too" or "also" or "as well" in the US.
Ass - Donkey (or sometimes a backside).
Aubergine - Eggplant.
Au fait - This means to be familiar with something. For example, after studying this glossary, one would be au fait with the differences between American and British English.
Autocue - Teleprompter.
Autumn - Fall (as in the season after summer).
B
B&B - These are bed & breakfasts and are the cheapest kind of accommodation available here. In the UK, a B&B basically consists of a room in someone's house and a good cooked breakfast.
Back of beyond - Middle of nowhere.
Backy - Tobacco. The sort you use to roll your own.
Bacon - British bacon comes in numerous varieties, such as back, throughcut, streaky, smoked, green and dry cured. Streaky is the cheapest as there is almost no meat on it. It is the closest to the bacon in the US. The most expensive is back, as it is almost all meat.
Balaclava - Ski mask.
Ball - Prom.
Bang - A rather unattractive way of describing having sex.
Banger - An old car. Your first car is usually an old banger. A banger is also a firecracker, as well as a sausage.
Banger - The good old British banger is bigger and fatter than the American breakfast link sausage. It is served for dinner with fried onions and gravy, in batter as toad in the hole or for breakfast with eggs, back bacon, mushrooms, black pudding, fried potatoes, grilled tomatoes, toast and marmalade. There are also many regional sausages that combine different meats, herbs and spices. And don't forget good old Bangers and Mash.
Bank holiday - National holiday. There are about five bank holidays every year in Blighty. They are the days that everyone has off. They are called bank holidays because the banks close on them, as do most businesses. Examples would be August Bank Holiday, New Year's Day and Spring Bank Holiday.
Bap - A soft round roll, lightly floured. These are like hamburger buns in America, but also eaten as sandwiches. Yummy with bacon and egg oozing out.
Barbie or BBQ - Short for barbeque, a grill.
Bar billiards - A pub game played on a pool-sized table. You have seven white balls and a red one. There are no pockets around the table but there are 9 holes in the table surface and three wooden mushrooms. The object is to shoot from one end of the table and get balls into the holes without hitting the mushrooms over, but after hitting another ball.
Barmy - If someone tells you that you're barmy they mean you have gone mad or crazy. For example you'd have to be barmy to visit England without trying black pudding.
Barmaid - A female bartender in a pub.
Barman - A male bartender in a pub.
Barrister - Trial lawyer. An attorney that would represent you in court.
Bathroom - In a British house, you will find a bath in the bathroom. (In smaller houses there may also be a toilet). So when we are going to the bathroom - we are not answering a call of nature - we're going for a bath.
BBC English - BBC English is used by many people to mean the proper pronunciation of English words, or a standard accent.
Beading - The stuff that goes around the edge of cheap furniture. Known as wood trim in the US.
Beastly - You would call something or somebody beastly if they were really nasty or unpleasant. Most people would consider you a snob or an upper class git if you used this word.
Bedsit - This is the kind of accommodation many students live in when they cannot afford anything else. It is basically a single room with a bed, cooker, table and sofa. You would normally share the bathroom. The nearest thing in the US is an efficiency.
Beeb - The Beeb is the nickname for the BBC, the British Broadcasting Company, our main TV company. We all pay a licence fee to watch the BBC but it does mean that there are no ads on their channels.
Beefeater - This is the name given to the guards at the Tower of London.
Beer - Normally called bitter, this is the most popular alcoholic beverage of the UK male drinking population. It is served in pints at just under room temperature (real ales, however are served AT room temperature). Real Ales are non carbonated beers made from hops and barley.
Beer mat - Pubs always serve beer on a little card coaster which advertises the brewery or beer. They make great frisbees and are used for several pub games/jokes/tricks.
Bees knees - This is the polite version of the dog's bollocks. So if you are in polite company and want to say that something was fabulous, this phrase might come in handy.
Beetroot - Beets. Here they come ready cooked, normally in a little jar or in a bucket in street markets.
Belisha beacon - The orange flashing globes at each side of a zebra crossing.
Belt up - Shut up.
Bender - A heavy drinking session (also called a pub crawl).
Bender - A bender is a gay man. Also referred to as a woofter and a few rather unsavoury terms.
Berk or Burk - A fool, a moron.
Bespoke - We say something is bespoke if it has been created especially for someone, in the same way that you say custom-made or designed according to your needs or specifications.
Best - If you say "A pint of best please landlord." in a British pub, you will be served with a pint of fine British ale.
Best of British - Short for "best of British luck," it simply means good luck.
Bevvy - Bevvy is short for beverage, but it usually means of the alcoholic nature.
Bickie - Short for biscuit, it means cookie in the US.
Big dipper - Roller coaster.
Big girl's blouse - This is a nice way of saying someone is a wimp. It means someone is being pathetic. It works well for girls and blokes.
Biggie - A biggie is what a child calls his feces. Biggie also means erection.
Big Issue - The Big Issue magazine is there to talk about homeless issues and help homeless people make money. Homeless people make money for every issue they sell on the street to people passing by. They may come up to you and shout "Big Issue."
Bill - In restaurant or pub, this is the check you pay.
Bill - Police.
Billiards - A ball game with three balls, one red and two white, played on a table like a pool table but bigger. The original billiards table had no pockets and points were only scored by making cannons - making your white hit both other balls. Today's billiards tables have pockets, so that scores are made by cannons but also by pocketing a ball, after hitting any other ball.
Billion - A billion in the US is a thousand million but in English it is a million million, though recently we have started to apply the US meaning.
Bin - Trash can. You would put a bin liner in it before you put the rubbish in it to keep it clean. Bin day is the day that the bin men in the bin lorry come and empty your dustbin. A bin would normally mean the one in your house - whereas the dustbin would normally mean the one outside - though that sometimes gets called the bin too.
Bin bag or bin liner - Trash bag. The black bag that you put inside the kitchen bin to save you having to wash out the bin each time you empty it.
Bin day - Trash collection day.
Bin liner - The same as bin bag.
Bin lorry - The vehicle that the bin men drive.
Bin men - Trash collectors.
Bins - Eyeglasses.
Bird - Your bird is your girl. A bit old fashioned and only used by your Dad or Grandad. Not very politically correct.
Biro - Ballpoint pen. The most popular brand is Biro and now everyone calls every pen a Biro.
Biscuit - Cookie. Savoury biscuit is a cracker.
Bite your arm off - This means that someone is over excited to get something. For instance you might say that kids would bite your arm off for an ice cream on a sunny day.
Bitter - Bitter is what we call beer. However, this is not what you call "beer" - we call that lager. Beers are the dark ales that are so popular amongst British drinkers. Served a little below room temperature, but not cold like yours.
Black pudding - One of the staples of a cooked breakfast. Looking like a black sausage it is made from pigs blood and fat.
Bladdered - An ugly expression meaning drunk.
Black Maria - Paddywagon.
Blancmange - A gelatin-like pudding. Blancmange is custard that has been made thick, and allowed to set. It is generally served as one of the layers in a trifle. The bottom layer would be sponge cake soaked in jelly, then some fruit, then the blancmange, then a layer of whipped double cream and finally a chocolate flake crumbled over the top.
Blast - An exclamation of surprise. You may also hear someone shout "blast it," or "bugger and blast."
Blatant - Something that is really obvious.
Bleeding - An alternative to the word bloody. You'll hear people say "bleeding hell" or "not bleeding likely" for example.
Blighty - England (dated).
Blimey - Another exclamation of surprise. You might hear "Gawd Blimey" or "Gor Blimey" or "Cor Blimey". It is all a corruption of the oath God Blind Me.
Blinding - If something is a blinding success, it means it was fantastic.
Blinkered - Someone who is blinkered is narrow minded or narrow sighted - they only see one view on a subject. It comes from when horses that pulled carriages wore blinkers to stop them seeing to the side or behind them which stopped them from being startled and only let them see where they were going.
Blinkers - These are the things that horses wear to stop them seeing anywhere other than straight ahead. You call them blinders.
Block of flats - Apartment house.
Bloke - Guy. A "good bloke" is a "nice guy."
Bloody - Mild expletive, sometimes meaning very. Mostly used as an exclamation of surprise ( "bloody hell" or "bloody nora"). Something may be "bloody marvellous" or "bloody awful". It is also used to emphasise almost anything, "you're bloody mad", "not bloody likely" and can also be used in the middle of other words to emphasise them ("Abso-bloody-lutely!")
Blooming - Another alternative to the word bloody. You might hear someone say "not blooming likely" so that they don't have to swear.
Blotto - Drunk.
Blow me - An exclamation of surprise, short for "blow me down," meaning something like I am so surprised you could knock me over just by blowing. Similar to "Well knock me down with a feather."
Blower - Telephone.
Blunt - If a saw or a knife is not sharp we say it is blunt (instead of dull).
Blu tac - Poster putty. Another name brand that has become the generic term (like Biro for pen and Hoover for vacuum cleaner).
Boarding school - These are the schools where kids live as well as learn. Some of them also take day boys and girls.
Bob - You still hear older folks talking about a couple of bob, meaning a couple of shillings. Nowadays a shilling would be five pence and a couple of bob would be ten pence.
Bob-a-job - Even after decimalisation in the UK, bob-a-job lived on for many years. Once a year the cub scouts went around the village or town with their bob-a-job forms with the objective of doing little jobs for people for a bob a go, or 5 pence as it became. The problem with bob-a-job, even when I was a cub, was that the name didn't move with the times and some people took it a bit too literally. There was nothing worse than cleaning two cars, mowing the lawn, washing the windows then being given five pence by some stingy old bloke.
Bob's your uncle - This phrase is added to the end of sentences a bit like "and that's it." For example if you are telling someone how to make that fabulous banoffee pie you just served them, you would tell them to boil the condensed milk for three hours, spread it onto a basic cheesecake base, slice bananas on top, add some whipped double cream, another layer of banana and Bob's your uncle.
Bobby - Policeman.
Bodge - To do a bodge job means to do a quick and dirty. Make it look good for the next day or two and if it falls down after that - hey well we only bodged it. Applies to building, DIY, programming and most other things.
Boffin - A nerd, usually male.
Bog - A vulgar word for the toilet, either the room or the pan itself.
Bogey - Booger (the stuff from the nose).
Boiler suit - An all-in-one coverall that protects clothes from oil and filth in dirty working conditions. Originally used my men working in boiler rooms.
Bollocks - Technically speaking it means testicles but is typically used to describe something that is no good (that's bollocks) or that someone is talking rubbish (he's talking bollocks). Surprisingly it is also used in a positive manner to describe something that is the best, in which case you would describe it as being "the dog's bollocks."
Bomb - If something costs a bomb it means that it is really expensive.
Bomb - If something goes like a bomb it means it is going really well or really fast. Or you could say an event went down like a bomb and it would mean that the people really enjoyed it. In the US the meaning would be almost exactly the reverse.
Bonce - Your bonce is your head. If someone tells you to use your bonce it means "think about it."
Bonfire night - "Remember, remember the 5th of November. Gunpowder, treason and plot". Although Halloween originated in England, it is not celebrated as wildly here as it is in the US. But a week later, everyone in England lights a huge bonfire and sets off lots of fireworks and eats burgers, baked potatoes, hot dogs, parkin cake and all sorts of other goodies, huddled around the fire. Every community and many companies organise bonfires for those with no garden. It is all in celebration of Guy Fawkes who tried to blow up the houses of parliament. What a great thing to celebrate. A guy is burned on the fire, made by the kids from old clothes and stuffed with straw and paper. A guy is an effigy of a human.
Bonk - To have sex.
Bonnet - A car's hood. Also an old-fashioned hat.
Boob tube - Tube tops in the US.
Book - Reserve.
Boot - A car's trunk.
Booze cruise - Booze is cheaper in France and it is worth the trip just to stock up on alcohol. The cheapest way to do this is to take one of the booze cruises offered by the ferry companies. Basically you and bunch of your buddies take the ferry to France, drinking all the way, stock up on booze in a French hypermarket (still drinking), then jump back on the ferry to England and do some more drinking.
Botch - There are two expressions here - to botch something up or to do a botch job. They both mean that the work done was not of a high standard or was a clumsy patch.
Bottle - Courage. If you have a lotta bottle you have no fear.
Bounder - Cad.
Box - A television.
Brace - The metal device for straigtening teeth.
Braces - Suspenders for holding trousers up.
Brackets - Parentheses. Or the things that hold shelves up.
Brassed off - Fed up or "pissed off" about something or at someone.
Brill - Short for "brilliant," meaning cool or excellent or awesome.
Bristols - Breasts. Bristols is short for bristol city's (a football team), city's rhymes with titties, i.e. breasts.
Brock - Badger (dated).
Brolly - Umbrella.
Brooch - Pin.
Brown bread - Wheat bread. In cheap restaurants the choice of bread may be "white" or "brown". This is our equivalent of white or wheat.
Brown sauce - It is pretty much like steak sauce, except it is put on things like cooked breakfast.
Brum - Short for Birmingham. People from brum are brummies and they speak brum.
Brummy - A person from Birmingham who speaks brum.
Bubble & squeak - Cabbage and potato dish. An old English breakfast dish made from frying up left over greens and potato.
Bucks fizz - A mimosa in the US, which is drink made from champagne and orange juice.
Budgie - One of the most popular pets in the UK, a budgie is a small green bird. Budgie is short for budgerigar, which is a small Australian parakeet.
Bugger - Like bloody it has many uses apart from the obvious dictionary one pertaining to rather unusual sexual habits. Today we might use the sh** or the f*** words but bugger is still as common. The fuller version of this would be "bugger it". It can also be used to tell someone to get lost (bugger off), or to admit defeat (we're buggered) or if you were tired or exhausted you would be buggered. You can also call someone a bugger.
Bugger all - Nothing. If something costs bugger all, it means that it costs nothing. Meaning it is cheap. If you have bugger all, it means you have nothing.
Bulb - When your indicator stops working you probably need a new bulb. Don't ask for a lamp.
Bum - Buttocks. It might also be someone who is down and out, like a tramp. You might also bum around, if you are doing nothing in particular, just hanging out. Finally to bum something means to scrounge it from someone.
Bum bag - Fanny pack in the US.
Bum chum - Gay man. We have lots of other expressions, too numerous to list here. Some of the less offensive include shirtlifter and arse bandit.
Bump start - When you buy your first car as a student in the UK, one of the first lessons you learn is how to bump start it. When the battery is flat you get a couple of strong mates to push you along the street, with the key in the ON position, second gear engaged and your foot on the clutch. When you reach enough speed you take your foot off the clutch, your mates hit their faces on the back of the car and with luck - the car starts. In America, if you have a manual car, this procedure would be called popping the clutch.
Bun in the oven - To have a bun in the oven is to be pregnant.
Bung - To bung something means to throw it. For example a street trader might bung something in for free if you pay cash right now. Or you could say "bung my car keys over, mate".
Bung - A bribe. Also means a stopper. As a verb, it means to toss.
Bungalow - A house with no upstairs. A one-floor house. Not popular with anyone but the old.
Buns - Rolled up hair in the shape of a currant bun. Or a type of pastry.
Burk or Berk - A fool.
Busker - A street entertainer, someone who makes his or her living by singing, playing or acting on the street to amuse the crowds of passers by. Busking is down to a fine art at Covent Garden in London.
Bus station - A bus terminal.
Butchers - To have a butchers at something is to have a look.
Butterfingers - You would call someone butterfingers if they were clumsy and dropped something.
Butty - Sandwich. The most famous butty is the chip butty. The perfect chip butty (invented in Liverpool) consists of two fairly large slices from a large white loaf, liberally buttered, layered with chips (salt and vinegar optional) and smothered in tomato sauce.
C
C of E - The Church of England. Our official protestant church - of which the Queen is the head.
Cab - A taxi.
Cabinet maker - Skilled carpenter.
Cabriolet - Convertible car.
Cack-handed - Clumsy.
Cagoule - A thin, windproof jacket used in outside pursuits because it takes up almost no space when folded up.
Cake hole - Mouth. To say "Shut your clanging cake hole." means "Be quiet."
Calabrese - Broccoli rabe.
Call - If the announcer at Bristol railway station says that the train at platform 10 will call at Nailsea, Backwell, Weston-super-Mare, Highbridge, Bridgwater and Taunton, it means that the train will call at the stations, not stop at them.
Candyfloss - Cotton candy.
Canteen - Cafeteria.
Caravan - Motor home. The trailer houses that come out every summer and block all our little British roads and bring everyone to a complete standstill.
Car boot sale - A boot sale is where hundreds of people descend on a field with cars full of unwanted wedding presents, clothes and other junk. They set it all out on wallpaper pasting tables for the general public to come and buy. It's like an outdoor garage sale.
Cardie - Cardigan, a sweater with buttons down the front like a shirt.
Carnival - Parade. Every winter, thousands of people build floats that are pulled behind tractors, covered in lights, made up into all kinds of weird scenes to take part in the carnival. The event moves from town to town and takes place every night in the dark so that the scenes can be lit up. Tens or hundreds of floats will take part in a carnival.
Car park - Parking lot, normally uncovered.
Carpet - Reprimand.
Carriageway - Highway.
Carrier bag - Shopping bag.
Carvery - The best Sunday would consist of getting up late, trundling down to a remote country pub and having the carvery. This consists of roast joints of meat. There will be a whole turkey, a leg of pork (with the skin on, scored, salted and roasted HOT so that it turns into crackling), leg of lamb and a big piece of beef. This will all be accompanied by the usual apple sauce (pork), mint sauce (lamb) and Yorkshire pudding (beef) as well as roast potatoes, roast parsnips and other sundry vegetables with a large jug of gravy, made from the meat juices, in the pan it was roasted in.
Cashier - Bank teller.
Cashpoint machine (cashpoint for short) - An ATM.
Castor sugar - This is white sugar that is somewhere between icing sugar and granulated sugar in texture. It is very finely granulated sugar, ideal for things like meringues, where granulated is too coarse and icing is totally unsuitable.
Casualty - Hospital emergency room. These days you also see A&E on the signs, which is short for Accident and Emergency.
Catapult - Slingshot.
Cat's eyes - The little white highway reflectors in the middle of roads.
Cattle class - A rather unflattering description of coach class air travel.
Ceefax - This is the text service found on the TV. On British TVs each channel has a text service as an alternative to the regular programming. You can hit the mute and press the TEXT button and read several hundred pages of info from TV listings to news, from the lottery results to cheap holiday deals. Ceefax is the BBC version. On the commercial channels, the equivalent is teletext.
Central reservation - The median, usually consisting of grass or kerbing, that separates the oncoming traffic in the middle of a two-way road.
Chalk and cheese - This is short for the expression "as different as chalk and cheese". You hear it when people are bitching about other couples they know who are very different to each other. You might say "like night and day."
Chap - Guy. Women are sometimes referred to as chapesses.
Chat show - Talk show.
Chat up - Chat flirtatiously. To chat someone up is to try and pick them up.
Cheeky - Cheeky means you are flippant, have too much lip or are a bit of a smart arse. Generally you are considered to be a bit cheeky if you have an answer for everything and always have the last word.
Cheerio - A friendly way of saying goodbye. Or in the north "tara" which is pronounced sort of like "churar".
Cheers - This word is obviously used when drinking with friends. However, it also has other colloquial meanings. For example when saying goodbye you could say "cheers", or "cheers then". It also means thank you.
Cheesed off - A polite way of saying you are pissed off with something.
Chemist - Pharmacist.
Cheque - Check. How we used to pay our bills before electronic banking started. Banks provide them for free in the UK.
Chip butty - Sandwiches made from white bread, buttered and filled with piping hot chips and tomato sauce.
Chip shop - Abbreviation for fish and chip shop. Also known as the "chippy" or "chipper" in some places.
Chipolata - A small pork sausage about the size of those served with breakfast in places like Denny's and IHOP. Not as popular as the fat old British banger. Chipolata is also a term used by women when they are winding up their husbands about their unimpressive manhood. In this instance the emphasis is usually on the "small" sausage.
Chips - Fries (as in French fries). Fish and chips is still a favourite in Old Blighty. Whilst government health restrictions prevent them from being served in newspaper any more, they still taste best from the bag, liberally dosed in salt and malt vinegar. Not to be confused with french fries, which are weedy little poncey things.
Chivvy along - When standing patiently in a checkout queue, you might chivvy along the old ladies in front of you. If only they would stop fannying around and hurry up.
Christian name - Your first name. You would see it on forms that require both parts of your name separately. We generally ignore middle initials as fairly irrelevant and avoid the use of additions like "junior" and "IIIrd", unless you happen to be a king, of course.
Christmas crackers - Brightly decorated paper tubes with a handle at each end. You reach across the table and ask someone to pull the other end. When it breaks, a snapper gives out a loud bang, a party hat drops out along with a small gift and a terrible joke.
Chrysanths - Short for chrysanthemums.
Chuck - A term of endearment, pronounced more like chook.
Chuffed - Pleased. You would be chuffed to bits if you were really pleased about something.
Chum - Friend. We might also say mate.
Chunnel - The famous channel tunnel is called the chunnel. If you visit London it is well worth taking the 3 hour train ride from Waterloo, right into the heart of Paris.
Cider - In some parts of south west England, Cider is more popular than beer. It is made from the juice of apples, allowed to ferment and is generally more alcoholic than most beers.
Cinema - Movie theater.
Clear off! - It basically means "Get lost!" or "Get out of here!"
Clever clogs - Wise guy. Also called a clever dick or smart arse.
Clever dick - Wise guy, also called a smart arse.
Clingfilm - Plastic wrap for covering food.
Clippie - Bus conductor (Scotland).
Close - Dead end.
Clot - If someone calls you a clot, they are calling you stupid, or a dim wit.
Cloth ears - This is the polite way to call someone a deaf git. Politely put it simply means you are deaf.
Clotted cream - This cream looks a bit scary at first. It is yellow and crusty on top. It is thicker than single cream or double cream and totally delicious. It is served in blobs with cakes or spread on scones.
Coach - We differentiate between a coach and a bus. A bus is usually the sort that you pay as you enter and the routes are not generally that long. They drive through the towns and villages of the UK. A coach normally goes from city to city, more like US greyhounds. They have fewer or no stops at all and you would buy a ticket in advance and have to go to the terminal to get on one.
Cobblers - An equivalent of "what a load of cobblers" would be "what a load of bollocks."
Cockney rhyming slang - There are lots of words that make up cockney rhyming slang. These are basically rhyming words like "butchers hook" which means "look". If you are in London and you hear someone talk about a Septic they are probably talking about you - because it's short for "Septic tank" which equals "yank", which is our word for an American.
Cocktail stick - Toothpick.
Cock up - Mistake.
Coconut shy - This is a side show you'll find at fairs and fetes. You buy some wooden balls and throw them at coconuts on sticks. If you knock one down, you keep it.
Codger - Old timer. Also called an old bloke.
Codswallop - If someone is talking a load of codswallop, he or she is talking rubbish (baloney in the US).
College - We use this word to mean university as well as other higher education establishments.
Comprehensive school - The US equivalent is high school. If a kid didn't pass the eleven plus exam, they went to a secondary modern school, rather than a grammar school at the grand old age of eleven. The system changed so that both types of school were replaced with an all encompassing comprehensive school.
Conkers - Horse chestnut. Also the name of the children's game that uses them. To play conkers you thread your conker onto a shoelace with a knot in the end and take it in turns to hit your friend's conker then let him hit yours. The winner is the one whose conker does not break up. After beating one friend your conker is called a one-er. After beating two friends it is called a two-er, unless his had previously beaten another one in which case yours would be a three-er and so on. Treating your conker with drugs, heat or other secret strengthening tricks is strictly forbidden, punishable by death under UK law.
Continental quilt - This is what we used to call duvets. Since the UK was the last country in Europe to figure out what they were, we seem to have made up name a for them. Now we just call them duvets.
Cooker - Range or stove. The top is the hob and the inside is the oven.
Copper - Either a policeman or the coins in your pocket that are not silver.
Coppice, Copse - Thicket.
Cor - Another expression of surprise. It will sometimes be lengthened to "cor blimey" or "cor love a duck." "Cor blimey" is a variation of "Gawd Blimey" or "Gor Blimey." They are all a corruption of the oath "God Blind Me."
Cordial - Cordial or squash in the UK is a concentrated drink, mostly for kids. Just add water.
Coriander - Cilantro. It took a while to figure out why coriander wasn't available in supermarkets. Now we know. This applies to the fresh sort in particular.
Corn dolly - On the top of some thatched houses there is a model of an animal - often a pheasant. These are made of straw (the same as the roof) and are just there for decoration.
Cornflour - Corn starch.
Cornish pasty - Nothing beats a proper pasty. Sadly these days they are harder to find. Many outlets sell what they call "pastys" but they are cheap and nasty imitations. A real pasty from Cornwall, is a pastry in the shape of a half circle, filled with spiced meat and potatoes.
Cot - The crib a baby sleeps in.
Cotton wool - Cotton.
Couch - Sofa.
Council house - Called projects in the urban US, a council house is a government built house to help people on lower incomes have a home. They all used to be rented from the government but now most tenants have the option to buy relatively cheaply to help them get on the house ownership ladder. Most council houses are fairly large, for families, but not terribly attractive.
Council estate - A neighbourhood of council houses.
Counterfoil - The stub of a check. If you still use a cheque book in the UK, it is the bit that stays in the book.
Courgette - Zucchini.
Course - A class, such as a course in business at university.
Cozzy - Short for swimming costume, or bathing suit.
Cracker - Party favor.
Cracking - If something is cracking, it means it is the best. Usually said without pronouncing the last "G". If a girl is cracking it means she is stunning.
Crackling - The skin of the pork joint, scored with a knife, rubbed with salt and roasted so that it crunches around the outside of the meat.
Cram - To study hard right before an exam.
Crap - The same word in both countries, but less rude here.
Crash - A wreck (as in car accident). Same as a pile-up but involving fewer vehicles.
Cream tea - A real cream tea consists of a pot of tea, some fresh warm scones that you spread with homemade strawberry jam and top with thick, yellow, clotted cream.
Creche - Day care center.
Crikey - Another exclamation of surprise. Some people say "Crikey Moses".
Crisps - Potato chips.
Crispy duck - In almost every chinese restaurant in England this is on the menu. It is marinated roasted duck that is smashed up at the table and served in tiny, almost see-through pancakes with hoi-sin sauce and shredded cucumber and spring onions. It is eaten like Fajitas
Crumpet - A cratered flat cake. Toasted and covered in butter, so that it drips into the holes, the crumpet is enjoyed at tea on a Sunday, during the winter. It is about the size and shape of an English muffin (itself recently introduced to the UK and unheard of by most Brits). Crumpet also has another meaning. Men might refer to women as a bit of crumpet, or they might fancy some crumpet tonight.
Crusty dragon - Really crispy booger.
Cubby hole - Small nook or cranny.
Cul-de-sac - Dead end.
Cupboard - Any closet in the house. Cupboards in the kitchen contain food, crockery, cutlery etc. In the bedroom they contain clothes and sometimes skeletons.
Cuppa - Cup of tea. Served at 4pm, sometimes with tea cakes, crumpets, biscuits or cakes. Tea is also served in bed at the weekends when you wake up.
Current account - Checking account.
Curry - England has more than it's fair share of Indian restaurants. Anything from a korma or a bhuna to a madras or a vindaloo are amongst the favourite curries. Curry houses are one of the few places that serve alcohol (lager) after the pubs shut. Therefore it is very popular, after your 10 pints of lager, to pop next door to the curry house for 10 more pints, some poppadoms and a good curry.
Cutlery - Knives and forks.
Cutting - Clipping (e.g., from a newspaper).
CV - Resumé. Short for the latin, Curriculum Vitae, meaning "the course of life".
D
Daddy long legs - Crane fly (as in the insect).
Daft - Stupid. A daft ‘apeth which is short for a daft half penny (in old money).
Dapper - If you are particularly well dressed, you would be described as being dapper.
Daps - Sneakers.
Day boys/girls - The kids who attend boarding schools, but rather than live there, they attend each day just like other schools.
Dear - Expensive.
De-mister - De-froster. Most cars have them on the back window. Some have them on the front too.
Desmond - A desmond is a lower second class honours degree. Our honours degrees are ranked (from best to worst) as a first class (a first, for short), an upper second (two-one for short), lower second (two-two or desmond for short) and a third. You can also get a non-honours and a pass. Desmond comes from Desmond Tutu (two-two, get it?).
Des res - If someone lives in a particularly nice property in a nice part of town it would be referred to as a des res. It is short for desirable residence and usually means bloody expensive.
Diary - Appointment book.
Dicky - Dicky rhymes with sicky and means you feel sick.
Diddle - To rip someone off or to con someone is to diddle them.
Digestive biscuit - These are one of the most boring biscuits you can buy in England. However, they are popular because they make the perfect cheesecake base.
Dim - A dim person is stupid or thick or a dim wit.
Dim wit - Someone who is thick is a dim wit or just dim.
Din into - Hammer (an idea) into someone's head.
Dinner jacket - Tuxedo. We usually refer to it as our DJ.
Dip stick - Apart from being something you find in your car, a dip stick is someone who is stupid or who has done something stupid.
Direct debit - Similar to electronic funds transfer.
Directory enquiries - The equivalent of 411 telephone directory assistance/information in the US. In the UK, the number is 192.
Dirty weekend - A dirty weekend is one
where a couple disappears for a few days for rampant sex.
Dish up - If you say to dinner guests that you are "about to dish up" you are about to serve dinner.
Dishy - If someone is a bit of a dish or a bit dishy it means they are attractive or good looking.
Diversion - Detour.
Divvy - This is another word like dip stick for someone who is a bit stupid.
DIY - This is short for do it yourself and applies not just to the DIY stores but also to anything that you need to do yourself. For example, if we get really bad service in a restaurant, then we might ask the waiter if it is a DIY restaurant - just to wind them up.
Do - A party.
Do - If you go into a shop and say "do you do batteries?" it means "do you sell batteries".
Do - If you drive along a motorway in the wrong lane the police will do you. You could then tell your friends that you have been done by the police. Prosecute is another word for it.
Doctor - Spay, neuter.
Doddle - Easy task, a cinch.
Dodgem cars - Bumper cars. Generally shortened to "dodgems", the little electric cars at the fair.
Dodgy - Iffy, suspect. If someone or something is a bit dodgy, it is not to be trusted. Dodgy food should be thrown away at home, or sent back in a restaurant. Dodgy people are best avoided. You never know what they are up to. Dodgy goods may have been nicked. Neighborhoods that are a bit dodgy should be avoided.
Dog's body - Someone who gets all the menial tasks to do, like fetching and carrying. Someone called a gofer in the US.
Dog's bollocks - You would say that something really fantastic was the dog's bollocks.
Dog's dinner - If you make a real mess of something it might be described as a real dog's dinner.
Dons - The professors at Oxford or Cambridge universities.
Doner - Short for a doner kebab. The closest thing in the US is a gyro. Kebabs in England, whether shish (meat on a skewer) or a doner (lamb on vertical spit), are served in split pitta bread with salad. There is a whole culture difference between the clean living shopping mall gyro and the greasy doner. Whilst the gyro is available all day and all evening and enjoyed by everyone, the doner is generally sold after 11pm in England to young males, after the pubs close and after 8 or so pints of lager. Usually served with extra hot fresh chilli sauce and on greaseproof paper so the oil is funnelled back onto your trousers, it is usually enjoyed standing up.
Donkey's years - A long time. If you haven't seen someone for donkey's years, it means you haven't seen them for ages.
Doodle bug - The flying bombs that Hitler sent over to England during the war.
Dosh - Money.
Dotty - Feeble-minded.
Double cream - This is even thicker than single cream and is also served with desserts, tarts etc.
Double decker - A bus with an upstairs and a downstairs.
Double yellow lines - The double yellow lines are the no parking zone. The traffic wardens are pretty hot on cars parked on double yellows. By the way - you can generally park on single yellow lines after 6pm and at weekends unless it says otherwise on a nearby lamp-post.
Downmarket - Seedy.
Draughts - Checkers.
Drawing pin - Thumbtack.
Dresser - Dresser hutch or china cabinet. A piece of furniture in the kitchen or dining room that has an enclosed cabinet for its bottom half and an open, doorless cabinet on top for standing plates in upright.
Dressing gown - Robe.
Drink driving - Drunk driving.
Drink up - In a pub, 10 minutes before closing time you will hear the barman shout "last orders please". This tells you to get the last round in before it is too late. When the clock strikes 11pm, they will then shout "time" to tell you it is too late to order any more. You now have 20 minutes to drink up after which time it is illegal to drink. This is called "drinking up time".
Drop a clanger - To make a gaffe or a faux pas. For example, if you ask a large woman on the tube if she would like your seat since she is so obviously pregnant and she tells you she is fat, not pregnant, then you have dropped a clanger.
Drunk in charge - The equivalent of DWI and DUI offences for "driving while intoxicated" and for "driving under the influence." "Drunk in charge" is never shortened to DIC (for obvious reasons).
Dual carriageway - Divided highway. All have a 70mph speed limit unless indicated (posted) otherwise.
Duck - A term of endearment like "love" or "dear." Usually pronounced more like "dook", which rhymes with "book".
Due care and attention - This is the name of a motoring offence that covers many driving violations, such as driving in the middle lane of the motorway when you should be in the inside lane.
Duff - Anything that is duff is useless, junk, trash. It usually means that the object doesn't do the job it was intended for.
Duffer - Any person that is duff could be referred to as a duffer.
Duffer - An old duffer is either someone who is not very good at something or someone who is old. Like an old geezer.
Dull - Someone or something that is dull is boring. Note: Something that is no longer sharp is "blunt," NOT "dull."
Dummy - Pacifier (as in for a baby). Also the mannequin in a clothing shop window or someone who has no brain.
Dungarees - Overalls.
Dust cart - Another word for the lorry that the bin men drive.
Dustbin - Trash can. When you empty your bins the day before bin day, you put them in the dustbin outside.
Dustman - Trash collector.
Duvet - Most Brits have dispensed with blankets and sheets and now sleep under a duvet. It is similar to a comforter but has a removable cover that can be washed. Duvet's warmth is measured in togs, 2 or 3 togs for summer duvets and 11 or more for winter ones.
British-American Glossary 
