Wakefield Family History Sharing
Local Slang (more to come)
If you know any slag words that are from the area let me know
Words
Slang | Explanation | |
‘od |
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'Arf baked | A siumpleton or could be used as 'Well that's an arf baked idea' - a not very good idea or suggestion | |
Alike | Similar | |
Allus | Always | |
Amongam | Amongst them, in the group of people | |
Appen | Perhaps, maybe | |
Aye | Yes | |
Backend | The back end of the year, Autumn | |
Backword | To give backword, call off engagement | |
Bad 'un | No good ‘he's a bad ‘un' | |
Badger | To persist for information. Also a dealer in flour or meal | |
Bagsey | A childhood term - 'Bagsey my turn first', | |
Bally thing |
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Barmpot | A stupid or idiotic person | |
Beast | Cow / cattle | |
Beggar me | I don't believe it an exclamation | |
Bide | I can't bide him | |
Billio |
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Blaggin | To go bramble collecting. Blaggin is also used as a term for people who are bragging about themselves. | |
Bleb | A spot or blister | |
Blinkin' | 'That blinkin thing' | |
Blubberin | Crying | |
Blue murder | Big trouble, ‘He'll be playing blue murder with you' | |
Bob | A pre-decimal coin, the shilling. Also to 'bob in' to call in on someone, visit. Also to offer a quick punch - a bob on the nose | |
Bobbin | A reel of cotton | |
Bonce | Head | |
Bonny | Pretty | |
Booit | A Boot. Can also be used in an expression where people are 'sacked' no longer needed in their employment 'to get the booit' - sacked | |
Brat | A noisy, unpleasant, unruly child | |
Brain box | Very clever | |
Brass | Money | |
Brock | A badger | |
Brussen | A brussen person is someone who is thought to be a bit "forward" or thinks they are "something special"!. Can also mean someone who is a bit of a rough character. | |
Buffit | A stool | |
Butterfingers | A clumsy person also someone who cannot catch | |
By gum | 'O goodness' or My God. As in the term 'eeh ba Gum' Oh my God | |
By jingo | An exclamation. 'Well I never' | |
Callin | To talk, gossip. 'Callin to neighbours' | |
Capt |
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Carry on | Surprised, asthonished 'What a carry on' | |
Champion | Great 'Thats champion' | |
Chelp(ing) | To talk loudly. 'Stop chelping' - stop the back chat, being cheaky to parents/adults | |
Chomping | Collecting wood for the bonfire | |
Chuffed | Pleased, excited, proud of an event, person or even yourself | |
Chunter | A moaner/grumbler 'To chunter on'. Chunterer, one who continues to ramble on after the event/conversation is over. | |
Clever clogs or Clever dick | A know it all kind of person | |
Contraption | A piece of machinery. | |
Courtin' | Going out with the same girl/boy on a regular basis - 'going'steady' | |
Coyl 'oyl | The coal cellar or place where coal was kept | |
Creed | To cook rice in a small amount of water before adding milk/cream when making a traditional rice pudding | |
Daft | Stupid, daft 'as a brush' | |
Delve | To dig or search for something | |
Din | Noise | |
Doff | To take your cap/hat off. 'to doff your cap' | |
Egg on | To encourage someone to do something, usually refers to mischief | |
Famished | Hungry but nearly always embellished to suggest starving when that is not the case | |
Fettling | To tidy up, clear away | |
Fibbin' | Telling lies | |
First fooit | The first person over the threshold on NewYears Day. By tradition the person should be dark haired and bring coal and bread with a pinch or salt, the household will have plenty of warmth, food and health. The house in return should offer their hospitality. | |
Flaggin, flagged | Tired, worn out | |
Flippin' heck | An exclamation of surprise or shock | |
Fond | A liking for 'fond of spogs'. | |
Fowk | Folk | |
Friggin' | A curse 'friggin 'ell' | |
Gaffer | The Boss | |
Galivant | To travel, to visit lots of places or go away often | |
Gassing | To talk | |
Gawk | To stare 'what you gawkin at?' | |
Gear | Clothes | |
Ginnel | Narrow path between buildings/fences/walls | |
Giz, Gizzyer, Gizza | Give, Give me your, Give me (us) a example 'gizza spog' - give me a sweet ; 'gizyer spogs' - give me your sweets ; 'gizza crog' - give me a lift on your bike | |
Goat (acting the) | Playing around, acting foolishly | |
Go blue | Get mac 'she'll go blue wi' you' | |
Goosegog | Gooseberry | |
Gormless | Silly, careless | |
Grand | Good, great. 'Thats reeit grand, that is' | |
Gunna | Going to. 'Ya gunna go shoppin' - Are you going shopping | |
Int' | In the. 'Int th' cellar' | |
Jammy | Very lucky. 'Jammy beggar' | |
Jiggered | Tired, exhausted | |
Jock | Food, lunch | |
Joker | Nuisance, liar | |
Kak handed | Left handed or a clumsy person | |
Kali (kayli) | Sherbert. Was either dipped with licuorice or your finger | |
Kid | To lead on, tell a fib. 'He's kiddin me' | |
Kindlin | Firewood | |
Knockerupper | A person who was paid to make sure people who started work early knew the time | |
Knocking off time | End of work, home time | |
Kwak | A fake or poor doctor. In past times was used for people who we now call 'complimentary therapists' | |
Lacadazical | Lazy, dreamy, in a world of their own | |
Laik | To play out. 'To laik art' | |
Lark | 'to lark about' to play | |
Lig(gin) | To lay 'to lig in bed' - to stay in bed long past when you should be up' | |
Livestockq | Mice / vermin | |
Loopy | Daft | |
Lug | Your ear | |
Mackers | stones | |
Manky | Not very nice, unpleasant | |
Mashin' | When making tea, leaving the leaves to soak for a while in the boiling water. ‘I've just mashed yer tea' | |
Midden | The outside toilet, when people still had them | |
Middlin | Average 'fair to middlin', okay | |
Mind | Watch out 'Mind yer head' | |
Nesh | Cold | |
Nin com poop | Fool. 'Yer a right nin com poop, you are!' | |
Nithered | Very cold, freezing | |
Nobbut | Nothing but - 'Its norbutt thunder' | |
Nous | Sense - 'Use tha nous' | |
Nowt | Nothing | |
Owt | Anything | |
Oyk | To lift up for example to 'oyk up yer leg' - lift up your leg | |
Pikelet | A crumpet | |
Pine | Yearn for | |
Plot neet | Bonfire Night, November 5th | |
Pogged | To be full after eating ; to have eaten too much ; to be overfull | |
Poor show | Went badly | |
Pop | A soft drink. Also used to 'to play pop' tell someone off | |
Reek | To smell, badly | |
Reet | right | |
Romancin' | Fibbing, embellishing the truth | |
Rue | To regret. 'You'll rue the day' | |
Rum job | A bad thing | |
Scallywag | A naughty, mischievous child | |
Shank's Pony |
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Slammed up | Tidy up, make sure all is put away | |
Scrumping | Collecting apples from other people gardens/orchards - taking without consent | |
Scryking | To cry | |
Skeg | To look at. 'tek a skeg o're that' - take a look at that; 'gizza skeg' - let me have a look | |
Skin you | 'I'll skin you alive'. You are in deep trouble | |
Skullery | A small kitchen area | |
Sling, slinging | To throw, throwing | |
Snek | A door catch 'put the snek on' - close the door | |
Snicket | Alley way, footpath, back alley | |
Spice | Sweets | |
Spog (s) | Sweets | |
Spoggies | Sparrows. example 'stop slinging mackers at the spoggies' - stop throwing stones at the sparrows | |
Stalled | Fed up, bored | |
Starve | To be hungry 'I'm half starvin' | |
Starved | To be cold ‘You'll be starved without yer at' or 'You'll be half starved in this weather' | |
Summat | Something. 'Summat up?' | |
Sup | To drink. 'Sup ya tea and shut up' | |
Tackle | Tools, equipment | |
Tarra | Goodbye | |
Teem | To pour 'teem that milk out' - pour out the milk. Also to rain heavy 'its teeming down' | |
Think on | Remember what's been said | |
Thissen | Yourself | |
Tickled pink | Highly amused | |
Titfer | A hat ' titfer tat' | |
Topcoit | An overcoat | |
Tors | Marbles - a childrens game | |
Touched | A simple person | |
Trunklement(s) | 'any other items, not specified' a friend of mine uses the word for her possessions or clutter. It is sometimes can be found in old wills instead of itemising lots of small items the following was used 'and all my trunklements' |
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Ummer | Bother, big trouble 'Blumin ummer' | |
us | ||
Warna | Worse than | |
Watter | Water, also known as 'Corporation pop' | |
Wick | Full of energy, fast | |
Yonder | Over there 'o'er yonder' |
Sayings
Saying | Pronounced | Explanation |
As 'appy as Larry | Said to mean a happy person, but can also in the opposite context means a miserable person. Being in the situation and knowing who the term is said about and who is saying the phrase, the context would be obvious | |
'assock o'er suplas | Hassock over surplus means falling, stumbling, to trip over. The hassock being a kneeling mat/cushion in churches and a surplus is part of a clergymans dress - and in the saying you can imagine a vicars legs going in the air and his 'uniform' following. | |
Best bib and tucker | To get dressed up for a special occasion | |
E's not backard at cummin forrad | A pushy, person. Someone who wishes to have their point put forward, nevermind anyone else. | |
Fair t'middlin | Fair, even - not at either end of one persons reason. In the middle, fair to all, even! | |
Happy as a sandboy | A child enjoing themselves | |
'Appy as a pig in muck | Very happy, content with oneself | |
Its lak Briggate 'ere | Briggate, Leeds is a very busy street, hence using Briggate to say somewhere is crowded. Could be used for either a house, shop or outside place | |
Living over the brush | An unmarried couple living together | |
More brass na brains | More money than sence. To spend on silly or extravagant things unecessarily | |
Nine shilling short of a ten bob note | Said about a person who is a little on the simple side or not understanding the situation | |
Not enough to room swing a cat | A small space, cramped or crowded | |
Od thi 'osses | Stop what you are doing/saying, slow down, take it easy | |
Pop yer clogs | When you pop your clogs - you die | |
Put t'wood in t'oil | put twood in toyle | Close the door |
Tipple over tipple tales | A backward summersault or flip | |
Were ya born in a fild | Were you born in a field basically means you've left the door open - close it. The answer to that is yes !! - Wakefield or any other town ending in field. | |
Where thas muck thas brass | Possible explanation. People who handled brass get very dirty and foundry owners were wealthy. Also brass is a term for money | |
Westgate Drift | A local term for the employment exchange that used to be on Westgate/Back Lane. When asked where you worked you answered Westgate Drift - locals knew you were unemployed, strangers were led to believe you were employed at the local 'pit' |
A little ditty about
'Bob' |
If your Bob dosn't gi' our Bob that Bob
that your Bob owes our Bob, our Bob is gunna gi' your Bob a bob on
the nose !!!! |
Translation |
If your Robert does not give our Robert that shilling that he owes him, our Robert will hit your Robert on the nose !!! |
Contributers to this list include :- My father Mr C. Wilkinson, Wakefieldfhs mailing list subscribers, Cathryn Denby
carol[at]wakefieldfhs.org.uk
(cut and paste this into your email programme and replace the [at] with a @ )