British Slang: 120 Words Explained, From Knackered to Peng
You can pass an English exam, understand every episode of an American sitcom, and still have no idea why a British colleague just said the meeting was "a bit of a faff" and that she was "gutted" but "chuffed" about the "dodgy" biscuits. This is the honest guide to British slang: the everyday words the whole country uses, the London and multicultural slang your younger colleagues use, the regional words that mark where someone is from, and the ones that mean something completely different in American English.
Reading about it is not speaking it
SPAIKING gives you an AI partner that speaks back and corrects you in real time, so your practice is real reps instead of quiet tapping.
What's in this guide
- British slang everyone in the UK uses
- Understatement: the slang that hides in plain sight
- London and multicultural British slang
- Regional British slang
- British vs American: the same words, different meanings
- How British swearing works
- Older British slang you will still hear
- Common mistakes non-Brits make with British slang
- Learn to hear it, then try to say it
- Frequently asked questions
- Frequently asked questions
British slang everyone in the UK uses
These are not regional or generational. Your grandmother in Devon and a teenager in Glasgow both use them, and a non-Brit who learns just this table will understand about eighty percent of casual British speech.
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| knackered | exhausted | "I'm absolutely knackered after that shift." |
| gutted | bitterly disappointed | "Gutted we lost on penalties." |
| chuffed | pleased, proud | "She's chuffed with her exam results." |
| cheeky | slightly naughty but charming; also "small, unplanned" | "A cheeky pint after work?" |
| dodgy | suspicious, unreliable, of poor quality | "That kebab was a bit dodgy." |
| a faff | a fiddly, annoying hassle; "to faff about" = waste time | "Renewing the passport was such a faff." |
| fit | attractive | "Her new boyfriend is well fit." |
| gobsmacked | astonished | "I was gobsmacked when he proposed." |
| skint | broke, out of money | "Can't come out, I'm skint till payday." |
| quid | pound (money); never "quids" | "Lend us twenty quid." |
| fiver / tenner | five-pound / ten-pound note | "It only cost a tenner." |
| a grand | a thousand pounds | "The car was two grand." |
| mate | friend, and also any man you are talking to | "Cheers, mate." |
| cheers | thanks; also a toast; also bye | "Cheers for the lift." |
| ta | thanks | "Ta, love." |
| brilliant | great | "Brilliant, see you at six." |
| lovely | nice, good, fine (used constantly) | "Lovely, that's all sorted then." |
| sorted | arranged, fixed, done | "Tickets are sorted." |
| bloke | man | "Nice bloke, bit quiet." |
| lad / lads | young man / the boys, the group | "Out with the lads on Friday." |
| bird | woman (dated, slightly disrespectful) | "His bird's from Leeds." |
| the loo / the bog | the toilet | "Where's the loo?" |
| bin | rubbish bin; to bin = throw away | "Just bin it." |
| rubbish | garbage; also "nonsense" or "bad" | "That film was rubbish." |
| naff | tacky, uncool | "Naff Christmas jumper." |
| tat | cheap junk | "The shop sells tourist tat." |
| grub / nosh | food | "Let's get some grub." |
| a cuppa | a cup of tea | "Fancy a cuppa?" |
| a brew | a cup of tea (North) | "Put the kettle on, I'll have a brew." |
| pissed | drunk (not angry) | "He was pissed by nine." |
| pissed off | annoyed | "She's pissed off about the delay." |
| taking the piss / taking the mick | mocking, or exploiting | "Fifty quid for parking? They're taking the piss." |
| bollocks | nonsense; also testicles | "That's bollocks, he never said that." |
| the dog's bollocks | excellent (yes, really) | "The new stadium is the dog's bollocks." |
| bugger | mild expletive, or an annoying thing or person | "Bugger, I've missed the train." |
| bloody | intensifier, mild | "It's bloody freezing." |
| blimey | surprise | "Blimey, that was close." |
| crikey | surprise, slightly old-fashioned | "Crikey, look at the size of it." |
| gutting | very disappointing | "It's gutting to miss the wedding." |
| miffed | mildly annoyed | "A bit miffed he didn't reply." |
| narky | irritable | "Don't get narky with me." |
| stroppy | in a bad mood, sulky | "The kids are being stroppy." |
| whinge | to complain | "Stop whinging and get on with it." |
| moan | to complain | "He's always moaning about the weather." |
| dishy | attractive (dated) | "The new doctor is a bit dishy." |
| minging | disgusting | "Those trainers are minging." |
| manky | dirty, grotty | "A manky old towel." |
| grotty | unpleasant, run-down | "A grotty little flat." |
| poxy | worthless, annoying | "This poxy phone keeps dying." |
| gaff | home | "Party at my gaff." |
| kip | sleep, a nap | "I need a kip." |
| snog | kiss passionately | "They were snogging at the bus stop." |
| shag | have sex (vulgar but common) | Self-explanatory. |
| fag | cigarette (in Britain, not a slur, but avoid it around Americans) | "Popping out for a fag." |
| queue | line, and to line up | "Join the queue." |
| brolly | umbrella | "Take a brolly, it's chucking it down." |
| chucking it down | raining hard | "It's chucking it down out there." |
| wellies | rubber boots | "Muddy walk, wear your wellies." |
| jumper | sweater | "Nice jumper." |
| trainers | sneakers | "New trainers." |
| telly | television | "What's on the telly?" |
| the tube | the London Underground | "Get the tube to Camden." |
| motorway | highway | "M25, the world's biggest car park." |
| dead | very (North) | "Dead good." |
| well | very (London and South) | "Well nice." |
| proper | very, real, genuinely | "A proper cup of tea." "He's proper annoyed." |
| dodge | avoid | "Dodged a bullet there." |
| leg it | run away fast | "Leg it, the bus is here!" |
| wangle | get something through cleverness | "She wangled a free upgrade." |
| have a butcher's | have a look (Cockney rhyming: butcher's hook) | "Have a butcher's at this." |
| the full monty | the whole thing | "Went for the full monty, three courses." |
| Bob's your uncle | and there you have it, done | "Turn left, then right, and Bob's your uncle." |
| chock-a-block | completely full, crowded | "The pub was chock-a-block." |
| innit | isn't it; also general agreement (London) | "Cold today, innit." |
| fancy | to want; to be attracted to | "Fancy a drink?" "I think he fancies you." |
| reckon | think, suppose | "I reckon it'll rain." |
| gutted vs chuffed | the two most useful emotional words in the country | See above. |
Reading about it is not speaking it
SPAIKING gives you an AI partner that speaks back and corrects you in real time, so your practice is real reps instead of quiet tapping.
Understatement: the slang that hides in plain sight
The hardest British slang is not the odd words. It is the ordinary words used to mean the opposite of what they say. Britons communicate through understatement, and a foreigner who takes them literally will be confused for years.
| They say | They mean |
|---|---|
| "Not bad." | Very good. |
| "Quite good." | Fairly disappointing (in England; in the US "quite good" is a compliment). |
| "A bit of a problem." | A disaster. |
| "I'm a bit tired." | I have not slept in three days. |
| "It's a bit chilly." | It is minus four. |
| "With the greatest respect..." | You are an idiot. |
| "I hear what you say." | I disagree completely. |
| "That's a brave idea." | That is insane. |
| "I'll bear it in mind." | I have already forgotten it. |
| "Not to worry." | I am furious but will never mention it. |
| "It's fine." | It is not fine. |
| "Interesting." | Nonsense. |
| "You must come round for dinner." | Do not come round for dinner. |
| "Sorry?" | I did not hear you, or, what did you just say to me? |
| "Cheers, thanks, ta, brilliant, lovely." | All four are said at once when leaving a shop. This is normal. |
"Sorry" deserves its own note. Britons say sorry when you bump into them, when they bump into you, when they need to get past, when they disagree, and before asking any question. It is punctuation, not apology.
London and multicultural British slang
Much of the slang you hear from younger Britons, especially in London and other big cities, comes from Multicultural London English (MLE), a dialect shaped by Jamaican, West African, South Asian and Cockney influences, and spread nationally through grime, drill and TikTok. Adults over forty may not use these; adults over forty in London will still understand them.
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| peng | very attractive, or very good (food) | "That girl is peng." "Peng chicken." |
| bare | a lot of, very | "There were bare people at the party." |
| peak | bad, unfortunate (opposite of the American meaning) | "You lost your phone? That's peak." |
| long | tedious, too much effort | "Walking there is long, get the bus." |
| safe | okay, cool, thanks, bye | "Safe, see you later." |
| allow it | leave it, forget it, don't | "Allow it, man, he's not worth it." |
| wagwan | what's going on (from Jamaican patois) | "Wagwan, bro." |
| bruv / fam / cuz / g | friend, term of address | "You good, fam?" |
| mandem / gyaldem | the boys / the girls, the group | "Out with the mandem." |
| ends | your neighbourhood | "Come to my ends." |
| yard | home | "Back to my yard." |
| bait | obvious, well known | "That's a bait excuse." |
| wasteman | a useless person | "He's a wasteman, don't lend him money." |
| moist | pathetic, weak, soft (insult) | "Stop being moist." |
| butters | ugly | "The shoes are butters." |
| gassed | excited, hyped | "Gassed for the weekend." |
| hench | muscular | "He's hench now." |
| calm | fine, no problem | "Is that alright?" "Calm." |
| dead | bad, boring (as an adjective) | "The party was dead." |
| dench | excellent (2010s, fading) | "Dench trainers." |
| rinsed | mocked heavily; or used up | "They rinsed him for that haircut." |
| bookey / boo-key | strange, suspicious | "That alley looks bookey." |
| sket | promiscuous woman (offensive) | Avoid. |
| roadman | a street-tough young man, often mocked | "Full roadman outfit, puffer and Nike tech." |
| creps | trainers | "New creps." |
| garms | clothes | "Nice garms." |
| lit | exciting (now dated) | "The rave was lit." |
| jarring | annoying, irritating | "He's so jarring." |
| swear down | I swear, honestly | "Swear down, I saw him." |
| say nothing / say less | agreed, understood | "Pick you up at nine?" "Say nothing." |
| nang | excellent (East London, dated) | "Nang." |
| par / parred | a disrespect / disrespected | "That's a par." |
| my days | expression of surprise | "My days, look at that." |
| ting | thing; also a girl (as in "my ting") | "It's a London ting." |
| man | I, me, one (MLE pronoun) | "Man's not hot." |
| certi | certified, reliably good | "Certi tune." |
| whip | car | "Nice whip." |
| bread / p's | money | "Making p's." |
Innit belongs to both lists. It started as "isn't it" and now works as a universal tag question and agreement: "He's late again, innit." "Innit though." Do not try to conjugate it.
Regional British slang
Where someone says one of these tells you where they grew up.
Scotland
- wee small ("a wee dram")
- aye yes
- ken know ("I dinnae ken")
- bonnie pretty
- braw great, excellent
- dreich grey, wet, miserable weather (the perfect word)
- scunnered fed up
- greeting crying
- bairn child
- baltic freezing
- glaikit stupid-looking
- messages groceries ("going for the messages")
- outwith outside of
- How? why ("How no?" = why not?)
North of England (Manchester, Liverpool, Yorkshire, Newcastle)
- our kid my sibling (Manchester)
- mint excellent (Manchester)
- sound good, fine, trustworthy ("He's sound")
- buzzing excited
- la / lad mate (Liverpool)
- boss excellent (Liverpool)
- made up delighted (Liverpool, Manchester)
- owt / nowt anything / nothing (Yorkshire: "Owt for nowt")
- ey up hello (Yorkshire)
- ginnel / snicket an alley
- canny good, nice, or "quite" (Newcastle: "canny good")
- howay come on (Newcastle)
- pet / hinny love, dear (Newcastle)
- bairn child (Newcastle too)
- gadgie man (Newcastle)
- radgie a tantrum, or an aggressive person
- nesh feels the cold easily (Midlands and North)
- mardy sulky, moody (Midlands and North)
Wales
- tidy great, good ("Tidy, that")
- cwtch a cuddle, a hug; also a cupboard (Welsh word, used in English)
- now in a minute soon-ish, at some point
- lush lovely, gorgeous (also West Country)
- butt / but mate ("Alright, butt?")
- chopsy mouthy, talkative
West Country and Bristol
- gert lush really lovely
- alright my lover? hello (not romantic)
- proper job done well
- mind used at the end of sentences for emphasis ("It's cold, mind")
- where's that to? where is it?
Ireland and Northern Ireland (not Britain, but you will hear it)
- craic fun, a good time ("What's the craic?")
- grand fine, okay ("It'll be grand")
- yer man / yer woman that guy / that woman
- eejit idiot
- wee small (Northern Ireland)
- class excellent
- gas funny
Reading about it is not speaking it
SPAIKING gives you an AI partner that speaks back and corrects you in real time, so your practice is real reps instead of quiet tapping.
British vs American: the same words, different meanings
These cause real confusion and occasional offence.
| Word | British meaning | American meaning |
|---|---|---|
| pants | underwear | trousers |
| trousers | pants | (rarely used) |
| fanny | female genitals (vulgar) | backside (mild) |
| fag | cigarette | homophobic slur |
| pissed | drunk | angry |
| quite | fairly, moderately (a downgrade) | very (an upgrade) |
| chips | thick fries | crisps (thin, in a bag) |
| crisps | chips (in a bag) | (not used) |
| biscuit | cookie | a soft bread roll |
| jumper | sweater | a sleeveless dress |
| vest | undershirt | waistcoat |
| pavement | sidewalk | the road surface |
| first floor | the floor above the ground floor | the ground floor |
| football | soccer | American football |
| table (a topic) | bring it up for discussion | postpone it |
| rubber | eraser | condom |
| bum | backside; or to borrow ("bum a fag") | homeless person |
| shattered | exhausted | broken |
| torch | flashlight | a burning stick |
| public school | private, fee-paying school | state school |
| peak | bad (MLE) | the best |
How British swearing works
British swearing is heavier and more frequent than American, and several words that are strong in the US are mild in the UK.
- Bloody is mild, roughly "darn", and used everywhere.
- Bugger, sod, git, prat, wally, plonker, pillock, numpty, muppet are all mild insults for a fool. A British parent might call their child a muppet with affection.
- Bollocks means nonsense, and is moderate. "The dog's bollocks" means excellent.
- Twat, wanker, tosser, knob, bellend are the middle tier. Wanker is the classic British insult and the hand gesture that goes with it is universally understood.
- The c-word is far more common in Britain, Ireland and Australia than in the US, and among some groups it is almost affectionate ("he's a good c***"). It is still strong. As a foreigner, understand it, do not use it.
- Piss appears in dozens of phrases: pissed (drunk), pissed off (annoyed), taking the piss (mocking), piss off (go away), piss-up (a drinking session), piss poor (terrible), pissing it down (raining).
Older British slang you will still hear
Not dead, just older. Useful for understanding your British in-laws and every British TV drama.
- smashing great
- spiffing excellent (now only ironic)
- jolly very ("jolly good")
- old chap / old bean friend (ironic now)
- codswallop / poppycock / tommyrot nonsense
- gormless stupid-looking
- daft silly
- barmy crazy
- potty slightly crazy
- bonkers crazy
- chinwag a chat
- natter a chat
- kerfuffle a commotion
- hullabaloo a commotion
- argy-bargy a scuffle, an argument
- in a pickle in trouble
- up the duff pregnant
- on the pull looking for a romantic encounter
- on the lash out drinking
- lost the plot gone crazy
- throw a wobbly have a tantrum
- gone pear-shaped gone wrong
- a damp squib a disappointment
- sod's law if it can go wrong, it will
- a right one a strange or foolish person
- a bit much excessive
- wind-up merchant someone who teases people
Common mistakes non-Brits make with British slang
- Saying "quite good" as praise. In England, "quite" often downgrades. If you mean very good, say "really good" or "brilliant".
- Taking "you must come for dinner" literally. Wait for a date. If no date comes, it was politeness.
- Using "fanny" as an American. It means something very different, and everyone will laugh.
- Overdoing it. One "cheers" and one "mate" sound natural. "Cheers mate, that's proper mint, innit, bruv" in one sentence sounds like a parody, and Brits will assume you are mocking them.
- Mixing regions. "Innit" is London; "our kid" is Manchester; "aye" is Scotland. Combining them marks you as someone who learned British from television.
- Missing the sarcasm. Roughly half of British statements are ironic. If a Brit says something surprising in a flat voice, assume it is a joke.
- Confusing pissed and pissed off. One is drunk, one is angry. Both are common.
- Saying "bloody" too much. It is mild, but it is not nothing, and it sounds odd in a foreign accent.
Learn to hear it, then try to say it
Understanding British slang is mostly listening: British TV, podcasts and football commentary will teach you more in a month than any list. Saying it convincingly is harder, because the words are tied to accent, rhythm and a very specific deadpan delivery. "Not bad" only means "very good" if you say it flat, with the tiniest pause before it.
If you are learning English and want to sound like a person rather than a textbook, the slang is where to start, but say it out loud. SPAIKING's AI speaking partner will run a natural British-style conversation with you, understatement and all, and correct your pronunciation in real time, which is the only way "knackered" stops coming out as "nackerd" and "innit" stops sounding like a question.
Reading about it is not speaking it
SPAIKING gives you an AI partner that speaks back and corrects you in real time, so your practice is real reps instead of quiet tapping.
Frequently asked questions
What are the most common British slang words?
The words used across the whole UK, by every age group, include knackered (exhausted), gutted (disappointed), chuffed (pleased), cheeky, dodgy, skint (broke), quid (pound), mate, cheers (thanks), sorted, bloke, loo (toilet), fancy (want or be attracted to), reckon (think), pissed (drunk) and innit (isn't it).
What does "peng" mean?
Peng is London and multicultural British slang for very attractive or very good. "She's peng" means she is beautiful; "peng food" means delicious food. It is used mostly by younger speakers and spread nationally through grime music and social media.
What does "innit" mean?
Innit is a contraction of "isn't it" that has become an all-purpose tag question and agreement word in British English, especially in London: "Cold today, innit." "Innit though" means "I agree." It no longer has to match the verb in the sentence.
What is the difference between British slang and Cockney rhyming slang?
Cockney rhyming slang is a specific East London tradition where a word is replaced by a rhyming phrase, often shortened: "have a butcher's" (butcher's hook = look), "use your loaf" (loaf of bread = head), "apples and pears" (stairs). General British slang is the everyday informal vocabulary of the whole country, and only a few rhyming-slang phrases are in common use nationally.
Why do British people say "quite good" when they mean not very good?
British English uses understatement heavily, and "quite" often softens rather than strengthens: "quite good" can mean "acceptable, but I was not impressed". In American English "quite good" means "very good". Context and tone decide, and a flat delivery usually signals the downgrade.
Is "bloody" a swear word in Britain?
It is a mild swear word, roughly equivalent to "darn" or "damn", and is used constantly for emphasis: "bloody cold", "bloody brilliant". It is acceptable in most casual settings, though not in formal writing or, traditionally, in front of grandparents.