General
vada
What does vada mean?
Polari for to look, to see, to clock. One of the most famous words in the old gay British slang, kept alive by the phrase 'bona to vada your eek', good to see your face. If you've heard Julian and Sandy on the radio or anyone camping it up in vintage Polari, you've heard vada.
"Bona to vada you, ducky, it's been an age."
Origin
Polari/Parlyaree of 19th- and 20th-century travelling players and the gay subculture; 'vada' (also varda) derives from Italian 'vedere' / Lingua Franca, per Paul Baker's research on Polari.
Frequently asked questions
What does vada mean?
It is the Polari verb for looking or seeing, as in 'bona to vada you' — good to see you.
Where did vada come from?
It comes from Italian 'vedere' (to see) through Parlyaree, the showmen's slang that fed into Polari.
How is vada used in a sentence?
Often as a nudge, 'vada that one over there', or in greeting, 'bona to vada your dolly old eek'.
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