English dictionary, thesaurus, translations & etymology

British Slang

What do these British Slang words mean? Clear definitions, real examples and the origin of each term — kept clean and easy to read.

British Slang Terms

Leave it, forget it, or don't bother — a way of telling someone to drop something or let it go.

Obvious or easily noticed. If something is "bait", it's not subtle and everyone can tell.

A lot of, or very. "Bare people" means many people; "bare long" means very tedious.

Physically attractive — usually describing someone's looks or physique.

Fine, okay or no problem — an all-purpose word of reassurance or agreement.

Flirting with someone, usually with a fairly obvious or persistent chat-up attempt.

Trainers or sneakers — a general British word for athletic shoes.

Excellent, impressive or great — a term of strong approval.

Your local area or neighbourhood — the streets you're from and know well.

Overly excited, hyped up, or full of yourself. Being "gassed" can mean thrilled, or getting a bit above yourself.

Tedious, or more effort than it's worth. If a task is "long", it's a drag.

A group of male friends, or one's crew — used both to refer to a friend group and to address them.

Excellent or impressive — a Northern English (particularly Mancunian) equivalent to "dench" or "peng".

Unfortunate or a real shame — describing a bad situation. Despite sounding positive, "that's peak" means "that's rough".

Attractive or very high quality. Used of people ("she's peng") and of things, especially food ("peng food").

An attractive person — combining "peng" (attractive) with "ting" (thing/person).

A versatile word meaning thanks, cool, or agreed — also used as a friendly sign-off.

A greeting meaning "what's going on?" — roughly "what's up?" or "how are you?"

A useless, unreliable or disappointing person — someone who consistently lets others down.