General
flatch
What does flatch mean?
Half, especially half a coin such as a halfpenny ('flatch yennep'). From 'half' reshaped under back-slang into 'flatch', used constantly in market pricing and change.
"A flatch yennep each, you can't say fairer than that."
Origin
Cockney costermonger back-slang of the 1840s, the reshaped form of 'half' used in coded pricing alongside yennep and dunop, recorded in the Mayhew (1851) and Hotten (1859) accounts of London street trade.
Frequently asked questions
What does flatch mean?
It means half — a back-slang reshaping of 'half', often used for a halfpenny ('flatch yennep').
Why doesn't flatch look like 'half' reversed?
Back-slang frequently bends and reshapes a word for pronunciation rather than reversing it letter-perfectly, and 'half' became 'flatch'.
Where did flatch come from?
From 1840s Cockney costermonger back-slang, documented by Mayhew and Hotten in the mid-19th century.
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