"B" Slang

bap

Street

The sound of a gunshot, doubled or tripled up in lyrics for rhythmic effect — bap bap bap. By extension, to bap somebody is to shoot them. Drill rappers use it as both ad-lib and verb in the same bar.

bar

Internet

Slang for a large round sum — a million rand in South Africa; also used for £1,000 in some British usage.

bar hop

General

An air trick where the rider swings both feet forward over the handlebars and back again before landing, hopping the legs over the bars. It shows air control and timing.

baraja

General

To cancel or change plans at the last minute, or to let a topic drop. Implies flakiness.

barbie

General

A barbecue, both the appliance and the social gathering.

barbie snags

General

Sausages intended for cooking on a barbecue.

barbiecore

Pop

Used adjectivally for anything blindingly pink and doll-glam.

bare

British Mle

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

bare minimum monday

Internet

A self-care approach to Mondays that reduces pressure.

bare minimum mondays

General

A practice of starting the workweek with small, low-pressure tasks and minimal expectations to reduce stress and burnout. The idea is to ramp up gently rather than sprint from Monday morning.

barf me out

Pop

Used to reject something tacky, embarrassing, or distasteful.

barkit

General

Properly filthy. Caked in dirt to the point it's almost a second skin. Used on weans, footballers, and anything that's been near a puddle.

barm

General

A soft, round bread roll — the vessel for a proper Manc chip butty or bacon sarnie. From 'barm', the foam off fermenting yeast originally used to leaven the dough. Fighting words across the North: barm in Manchester, bap in Liverpool, breadcake in Yorkshire, roll in the South. Pick the wrong one in the wrong city at your peril.

barnet

General

Often used when talking about a haircut or messy hair.

barnet fair

General

The hair. 'Barnet Fair' rhymes with 'hair', and is clipped to 'Barnet', dropping the rhyme.

baron

Gaming

Baron Nashor — the major objective in the river pit. Kill it and your whole team gets a buff that empowers minions and supercharges your push. Taking Baron is usually the setup for ending the game.

barracks lawyer

General

A junior service member who loudly claims expertise in military law and regulations, usually to argue his way out of things.

barracks rat

General

A service member who stays in the barracks during liberty instead of going out into town.

barras

General

The Barras — the open-air weekend market in Glasgow's East End around the Gallowgate. Named for the barrows traders used to wheel their gear about. Knock-off trainers, dodgy DVDs, vintage gold and the legendary Barrowland Ballroom upstairs.

barrel

General

The effect when a wave rolls over and encloses a temporary horizontal tunnel of air. Riding inside it is the ultimate surfing experience.

barrel roll

General

Being rolled and spun by the churning water of a breaking wave after a wipeout; the washing-machine feeling of a hold-down.

barrio

Street

The hood — but specifically a Latino one. Carries pride, history and a sense of belonging more than the flat English 'neighbourhood' ever could. Where you're from, who raised you, who's got your back.

barry

General

Very good, excellent; particularly Edinburgh usage.

bars

Music

As an exclamation, 'bars!' shouted to celebrate an especially good line.

barspin

General

A trick where, while airborne, the rider takes one hand off the bars and spins them a full rotation before catching them again and riding away. A staple of park and street riding.

base

Internet

A purchased item of clothing that a cosplayer heavily modifies as the starting point for a character costume, rather than sewing from scratch.

based

Internet

Admirably true to yourself and unafraid of what others think — saying what you believe regardless of whether it's popular. The rough opposite of "cringe".

based and redpilled

Internet

Praise pasted under a take the commenter agrees with and considers both unflinchingly self-confident (based) and revealing of a hidden truth the mainstream won't admit (redpilled). 4chan-origin, now half-ironic across Discord, Twitter and Reddit — increasingly hard to tell if any given use is sincere.

baseplate

General

The flat metal plate of a truck that bolts directly to the underside of the deck and holds the rest of the truck assembly.

bash cash

General

British hospital slang for the small extra payment a doctor pockets for writing a medical report for the police after an assault victim turns up in A&E. A quiet earner on top of the NHS wage. Pure dark humour: someone got bashed, doc gets the cash.

bashment

Music

A big, lively party or dance; also used as an adjective for energetic party-style dancehall music.

basic

Internet

Describes someone or something seen as boringly mainstream and predictable, following popular trends without originality.

basis point

General

0.01%. One hundred basis points = 1%. Used everywhere interest rates, yields and fees live, because 'the Fed hiked 25 basis points' is unambiguous while 'a quarter percent of a percent' isn't. Written 'bp' or 'bps', said 'bip' or 'beep' on desks.

bass face

Music

The contorted, scrunched expression that takes over your face automatically when a filthy bass line or drop hits hard.

bassa-bassa

General

A confused fight or loud disagreement. Reduplicative for disorder.

bastle

General

A fortified farmhouse of the Border country, built for defence against raiders.

bat

Street

A slim, cigarette-shaped one-hit pipe, usually stored in a dugout, that is dipped into ground cannabis and smoked in a single draw.

bate

General

Hiberno-English spelling of 'beat', reflecting how it's actually said. Means to physically beat someone up, or as an adjective ('I'm bate') to be exhausted, defeated, wrecked. Works both for the fight and the aftermath.

bathers

General

A swimming costume; the usual word in Victoria and South Australia.

battenburg

General

The high-visibility checkered pattern (usually yellow and blue for police, yellow and green for ambulance, yellow and red for fire) plastered down the sides of UK emergency vehicles.

batter

Street

A cannabis extract with a thick, pliable consistency similar to cake batter, closely related to budder.

battery

General

The pitcher-and-catcher combination; the two are called batterymates.

battle

General

A head-to-head in the ballroom — two performers go at it in the same category, trading runs until the judges (or the crowd) decide who served harder. It's competitive, theatrical and personal: you're not just dancing, you're proving you're better than the body standing across from you.

battle cruiser

Street

Cockney rhyming slang meaning a boozer, i.e. a pub.

battle rattle

General

The complete set of combat equipment a service member wears, including helmet, body armor, ammunition and weapon, named for the rattling sound it makes on the move.

battler

General

Someone who works hard and perseveres despite limited means; the 'Aussie battler' is admired.

battling

General

Battling is the direct duel. Two performers, same category, going at each other until the judges (or the crowd) decide who took it. No teamwork, no hiding — it's you against them, move for move. The tension is half the show.

batts

Street

Cigarettes, especially ready-rolled or manufactured ones.