I got about half of them, @Gramps49, but I’m in Australia. We tend to get a fair bit of both lots of slang. No idea about the Monday morning quarterback, though. Or Jonesing.
are you wanting the Brits to give a British English definition of those terms, if there is one, or are you wanting us to try and say what they mean to an American ?
Or even translate the American meaning into a similar term understood by Brits ?
1. Buck
a) Act contrary to b) male rabbit or deer
2. Pass the buck
Shirk responsibility
3. Going Dutch
Halving the cost
4. Sweet
Pleasing.
5. Zonked
Exhausted
6. Bought the farm
Died
7. Shoot the Breeze
Chat
8. Jonesing
Wanting badly
9. John Hancock
?
10. Monday Morning Quarterback
Speculatively, someone wise after the event.
11. Ride shotgun
Have a protective role
12. For the Birds
Unworthy of consideration
13. Put up your dukes
Prepare to fight
14. Carpetbagger
Exploiter, opportunist
15. Pork
Pigmeat
Firenze, I only know 1,4 and 7.
Numpty = idiot, fool, daft
Blether = keep on talking
Kybosh= put the kybosh on something, stop it.
With regard to regional accents, Darllenwr is from Stourbridge, but doesn’t have a Midlands accent. Shortly after we were married, we went into Birmingham to look for a mahjong set. We went into a big store, couldn’t see one, so I asked a shop assistant. She couldn’t understand my Welsh accent, I couldn’t understand her Midlands accent, and Darllenwr, who could understand both of us, stood to one side chuckling!
1. Buck,
a) Act contrary to, or b) male roe deer or rabbit.
2. Pass the buck
Evade responsibility and dump it on someone else.
3. Going Dutch
Each person paying for their own meal.
4. Sweet
Sugary tasting, and from that, pleasant in a non-threatening way.
However, 'be sweet on someone' = 'romantically attract to someone', but is old fashioned and probably obs. (What other mystery meaning does it have)
5. Zonked
Exhausted (I thought zonked was a BrEnglish expression)
6. Bought the farm
Apart from buying an agricultural holding, unknown.
7. Shoot the Breeze Unknown.
8. Jonesing Unknown
9. John Hancock Unknown
10. Monday Morning Quarterback Unknown. Quarterback itself is one of those mysterious transatlantic words that one has seen but doesn't know what it means..
11. Ride shotgun
Be a metaphorical bodyguard in a metaphorical passenger seat.
12. For the Birds
Expression for condemning a ridiculous suggestion founded in delusion.
13. Put up your dukes
Clench ones fists and go into boxer's attack position.
14. Carpetbagger
As @Firenze, Exploiter, opportunist
15. Pork
As @Firenze, Pigmeat, (What other mystery meaning does it have)
However 'porky' = lie. That's rhyming slang.
signature (because on the Declaration of Independence he wrote so large). As in, "Just put your John Hancock on this line, and the shiny object is yours."
that they are from outside the region. Someone unwanted coming in from other parts to do things the locals may or may not want done.
Pork=
amendment in a spending bill that benefits one particular state or district, and not the country as a whole, OR benefits one particular industry or other subportion of the country. Normally this is done in a tit-for-tat manner. If you vote for a new post office in my district, I'll vote for a new courthouse in your county.
I'm certain #2 doesn't mean what it sounds like it means, and I've no idea about #3. A lot of these are Scots, and are words that I understand but wouldn't use. I think the only ones of these I know I've used in speech are Numpty, Kybosh, and probably Blether (I might have to think hard about whether blether and blither are different words or not.) I don't think I've ever used wean as a noun, and I know I've never used the rest, but I know what they mean.
Buck
Male deer.
Sudden jump by a horse or pony.
US slang for a dollar. Pass the buck
To shirk responsibility, give control of a difficult task or decision to someone else. Going Dutch
An outing where each person pays their own way. Sweet
Single item of confectionery. The opposite of sour. Non-U term for dessert. Zonked
Brought to collapse by exhaustion. Bought the farm
I think its something to do with crashing a single-seater aircraft. Shoot the Breeze/ Jonesing/ John Hancock/ Monday Morning Quarterback
Not a clue. Ride shotgun
To give support in a situation which may turn into an argument/ altercation. For the Birds
Not an expression I'm familiar with. Put up your dukes
To confront an opponent before a boxing bout. Carpetbagger
Fly-by-night financial opportunist - origin from the upheaval in the former Confederate States after the 1860s civil war in North America. Pork
Uncured pig meat. Very occasionally to refer to another's excessive weight.
So @Gramps49, what do you understand by Hoist with his own petard?
Talking about sweet and London street usage reminded me that there is Multicultural London English, and Multiethnic London English, not sure if they're identical. Anyway, it used to be said that it had Jamaican roots, but this seems inaccurate, and it's a mixture of different dialects. It's supposed to be "post-racial", however, I don't know enough about it.
We should be grateful that chickpeas aren't Ffa Cyw, as they could so easily have been.
Some people call them garbonzo beans I believe.
That is what they are called in Washington State.
Here is a test I want out British cohorts to complete.
Please define the following words or phrases (no cheating):
1. Buck
2. Pass the buck
3. Going Dutch
4. Sweet
5. Zonked
6. Bought the farm
7. Shoot the Breeze
8. Jonesing
9. John Hancock
10. Monday Morning Quarterback
11. Ride shotgun
12. For the Birds
13. Put up your dukes
14. Carpetbagger
15. Pork
I am sure our British friends can come up with similar phrases we Americans would not understand.
Canadian prairies, old man here.
I don't know:
3. going Dutch - maybe means skinny dip
10. I think jonesing means longing for something
12. John Hancock - I've heard it, does it mean "every man" like John Doe
14. Monday Morning quarterback - know what it means, never would use it
19. carpetbagger - unsure
21. pork - other than the meat, if it is "pork barrel" then it's taking money or benefits not rightfully your's, usually politicians paying their friends
May I ask if any of you use the term "gong show"? I've heard it is not international.
May I ask if any of you use the term "gong show"? I've heard it is not international.
A Gang Show is a theatrical performance by a scouting group. I have no idea what a gong show might be. Gong, as well as being the metal thing you bang, is an archaic word for faeces, and for the facility in which one produces it.
Out of context, I'd suspect that it was rather rude, but I don't think you'd have introduced it here if it was.
Lacking further inspiration, I'll go with a bowdlerization of shit-show.
'Cute hoor' is more Irish than Scottish. 'Cute' = shrewd, cunning. 'He's that cute, he could mind mice at a crossroads'. 'Hoor' = whore, but with no sexual connotation: cf Chaucer 'He was a gentil harlot and a kynde' - a rogue or scoundrel.
May I ask if any of you use the term "gong show"? I've heard it is not international.
A Gang Show is a theatrical performance by a scouting group. I have no idea what a gong show might be. Gong, as well as being the metal thing you bang, is an archaic word for faeces, and for the facility in which one produces it.
Out of context, I'd suspect that it was rather rude, but I don't think you'd have introduced it here if it was.
Lacking further inspiration, I'll go with a bowdlerization of shit-show.
A gong show is when something goes wrong and it is funny.
A shit show is when something goes wrong or is messed up from the beginning, and it isn't funny.
"The church service was a total gong show when the usher tripped, and threw the offering plate up in the air and pennies, envelopes and prayer requests rained down, as if from heaven." And everyone laughed.
that they are from outside the region. Someone unwanted coming in from other parts to do things the locals may or may not want done.
Pork=
amendment in a spending bill that benefits one particular state or district, and not the country as a whole, OR benefits one particular industry or other subportion of the country. Normally this is done in a tit-for-tat manner. If you vote for a new post office in my district, I'll vote for a new courthouse in your county.
Regards Carpetbagger
The term comes from how Northerners, who wanted to take advantage of the devastation of the South after the civil war came with their belongings stuffed in carpet bag luggage.
Regards Bought the farm
The term comes from WWI when the servicemen would have enough government life insurance on them so that if they died, their survivors could buy a farm to sustain themselves.
Pork also has another more vulgar meaning, btw.
Regards the British terms. I think I could only give an educated guess on "Being (someone's priest"
Trying to control someone else's life.
Regards, Hoist one's own petard
I happen to know that one because I am reading a book on Capt Cook's adventures in the South Pacific.
The American term for it would be "Blow up in one's own face."
Isn't to be someone's priest the equivalent of putting them to bed with a shovel?
Pretty much. Back in the days when I was an Ag and Fish librarian a chap in the American Midwest sent me a query about this, as he manufactured these fishing accessory wooden clubs called 'priests'. I explained there were so called because they 'gave the last rites' to the fish. He sent me one which of course I left in the library. I sometimes wonder what happened to it.
Well to be truthful, I wouldn't have posted that, but I am swaggering a bit because the dog and cat and I were playing pirates. If you're going to be a pirate you need to be prepared to stab. Our enemy is the Spherical Bastard Virus. My wife mostly ignores me.
My physio in hospital said “sweet” whenever any excercise went well, so I assume it is street talk for “good “ or “that went well”. Lord P uses “cool beans” in a similar way.
I don’t know where that one has come from.
On priest, I don't think you beat a fish to death, as above, usually a tap on the head dispatches them. Having said that, I was a catch 'em and chuck 'em back fisher, as nearly all coarse fishing is in UK, with exception of pike and zander, but they are predators.
I get the feeling that the Easter Bunny is made more of in the States than in Britain. It seems to have a distinct personality, as far as I can make it, while over here we get chocolate rabbits and that's it. Or am I out of touch with my own culture again?
Comments
Some people call them garbonzo beans I believe.
That is what they are called in Washington State.
Here is a test I want out British cohorts to complete.
Please define the following words or phrases (no cheating):
1. Buck
2. Pass the buck
3. Going Dutch
4. Sweet
5. Zonked
6. Bought the farm
7. Shoot the Breeze
8. Jonesing
9. John Hancock
10. Monday Morning Quarterback
11. Ride shotgun
12. For the Birds
13. Put up your dukes
14. Carpetbagger
15. Pork
I am sure our British friends can come up with similar phrases we Americans would not understand.
Or even translate the American meaning into a similar term understood by Brits ?
a) Act contrary to b) male rabbit or deer
2. Pass the buck
Shirk responsibility
3. Going Dutch
Halving the cost
4. Sweet
Pleasing.
5. Zonked
Exhausted
6. Bought the farm
Died
7. Shoot the Breeze
Chat
8. Jonesing
Wanting badly
9. John Hancock
?
10. Monday Morning Quarterback
Speculatively, someone wise after the event.
11. Ride shotgun
Have a protective role
12. For the Birds
Unworthy of consideration
13. Put up your dukes
Prepare to fight
14. Carpetbagger
Exploiter, opportunist
15. Pork
Pigmeat
Now, what about
1. Numpty
2. Cute hoor
3. Be (someone's) priest
4. Blether
5. Wean
6. Wheen
7. Kybosh
8. Teuchter
9. Guddle
10. Stushie
Firenze, I only know 1,4 and 7.
Numpty = idiot, fool, daft
Blether = keep on talking
Kybosh= put the kybosh on something, stop it.
With regard to regional accents, Darllenwr is from Stourbridge, but doesn’t have a Midlands accent. Shortly after we were married, we went into Birmingham to look for a mahjong set. We went into a big store, couldn’t see one, so I asked a shop assistant. She couldn’t understand my Welsh accent, I couldn’t understand her Midlands accent, and Darllenwr, who could understand both of us, stood to one side chuckling!
Here goes, fairly close to @Firenze's answers.
1. Buck,
a) Act contrary to, or b) male roe deer or rabbit.
2. Pass the buck
Evade responsibility and dump it on someone else.
3. Going Dutch
Each person paying for their own meal.
4. Sweet
Sugary tasting, and from that, pleasant in a non-threatening way.
However, 'be sweet on someone' = 'romantically attract to someone', but is old fashioned and probably obs. (What other mystery meaning does it have)
5. Zonked
Exhausted (I thought zonked was a BrEnglish expression)
6. Bought the farm
Apart from buying an agricultural holding, unknown.
7. Shoot the Breeze
Unknown.
8. Jonesing
Unknown
9. John Hancock
Unknown
10. Monday Morning Quarterback
Unknown. Quarterback itself is one of those mysterious transatlantic words that one has seen but doesn't know what it means..
11. Ride shotgun
Be a metaphorical bodyguard in a metaphorical passenger seat.
12. For the Birds
Expression for condemning a ridiculous suggestion founded in delusion.
13. Put up your dukes
Clench ones fists and go into boxer's attack position.
14. Carpetbagger
As @Firenze, Exploiter, opportunist
15. Pork
As @Firenze, Pigmeat, (What other mystery meaning does it have)
However 'porky' = lie. That's rhyming slang.
garbonzo beans
Unknown.
Carpetbagger has the implication
Pork=
Oddly Dutch Uncle is not uncommon here (particularly among us older folk), but I have no idea what Dutch Cap is.
I'm certain #2 doesn't mean what it sounds like it means, and I've no idea about #3. A lot of these are Scots, and are words that I understand but wouldn't use. I think the only ones of these I know I've used in speech are Numpty, Kybosh, and probably Blether (I might have to think hard about whether blether and blither are different words or not.) I don't think I've ever used wean as a noun, and I know I've never used the rest, but I know what they mean.
Male deer.
Sudden jump by a horse or pony.
US slang for a dollar.
Pass the buck
To shirk responsibility, give control of a difficult task or decision to someone else.
Going Dutch
An outing where each person pays their own way.
Sweet
Single item of confectionery. The opposite of sour. Non-U term for dessert.
Zonked
Brought to collapse by exhaustion.
Bought the farm
I think its something to do with crashing a single-seater aircraft.
Shoot the Breeze/ Jonesing/ John Hancock/ Monday Morning Quarterback
Not a clue.
Ride shotgun
To give support in a situation which may turn into an argument/ altercation.
For the Birds
Not an expression I'm familiar with.
Put up your dukes
To confront an opponent before a boxing bout.
Carpetbagger
Fly-by-night financial opportunist - origin from the upheaval in the former Confederate States after the 1860s civil war in North America.
Pork
Uncured pig meat. Very occasionally to refer to another's excessive weight.
So @Gramps49, what do you understand by Hoist with his own petard?
Canadian prairies, old man here.
I don't know:
3. going Dutch - maybe means skinny dip
10. I think jonesing means longing for something
12. John Hancock - I've heard it, does it mean "every man" like John Doe
14. Monday Morning quarterback - know what it means, never would use it
19. carpetbagger - unsure
21. pork - other than the meat, if it is "pork barrel" then it's taking money or benefits not rightfully your's, usually politicians paying their friends
May I ask if any of you use the term "gong show"? I've heard it is not international.
A Gang Show is a theatrical performance by a scouting group. I have no idea what a gong show might be. Gong, as well as being the metal thing you bang, is an archaic word for faeces, and for the facility in which one produces it.
Out of context, I'd suspect that it was rather rude, but I don't think you'd have introduced it here if it was.
Lacking further inspiration, I'll go with a bowdlerization of shit-show.
I find it quite a useful expression.
A gong show is when something goes wrong and it is funny.
A shit show is when something goes wrong or is messed up from the beginning, and it isn't funny.
"The church service was a total gong show when the usher tripped, and threw the offering plate up in the air and pennies, envelopes and prayer requests rained down, as if from heaven." And everyone laughed.
Regards Carpetbagger
Regards Bought the farm
Pork also has another more vulgar meaning, btw.
Regards the British terms. I think I could only give an educated guess on "Being (someone's priest"
Trying to control someone else's life.
Regards, Hoist one's own petard
I happen to know that one because I am reading a book on Capt Cook's adventures in the South Pacific.
The American term for it would be "Blow up in one's own face."
Pretty much. Back in the days when I was an Ag and Fish librarian a chap in the American Midwest sent me a query about this, as he manufactured these fishing accessory wooden clubs called 'priests'. I explained there were so called because they 'gave the last rites' to the fish. He sent me one which of course I left in the library. I sometimes wonder what happened to it.
I am still adjusting to the word "stuffed."
I learned a new meaning for crumpet today, though.
It's better to toast them under the grill as the sides need different timing. Plain butter's best but some like honey or golden syrup.
Try them with Marmite!
Marmite is not welcome in this house - food of Satan. We do enjoy Vegemite on toast but not on crumpets.
This 😀!
Yes, every last cell.
I don’t know where that one has come from.
You're saying that just to troll, aren't you?
Please?
Marmite is Satan's earwax.
Then butter tomato and cheese.
Re toasted