Top 10 Favorite British Words

As the frenzy surrounding the upcoming Royal Wedding raises to fever-pitch, so does interest in all things British. That includes renewed interest in its' culture, people, and beautiful language.

From the first time I picked up books by British authors, I had always tried to imagine how the characters would speak - so properly and elegantly. I'll have you know, I and some friends of mine sometimes launch into an affected British accent when the mood hits us - much to the consternation and bafflement of the people around us. =)

I stumbled upon an article (in Merriam-Webster.com) recently which I found quite apropos for the occasion.  Please allow me to share with you the current 10 favorite British words:

1. PRAT.  Definition: a stupid or foolish person

Example: "Everyone's feeling a bit summery this morning, with a few rays breaking out over Britain and some of you lot daring to break the 'anyone who wears sunglasses in April is a prat' rule that we just made up." – 3am.co.uk, April 6, 2011

About the word:  Prat probably comes from the 16th century slang prat meaning "buttocks." The original pratfall was a fall on the buttocks.

2.  TWEE.  Definition: affectedly or excessively dainty, delicate, cute, or quaint

Example: "Micmacs [is a] ramshackle and unbearably twee French comedy." – Chris Tookey, Daily Mail Online, February 26, 2010

About the word:  Twee is a baby-talk alteration of sweet. It first appeared in print in a 1905 issue of the British magazine Punch.

3.  KNACKERED.  Definition: tired, exhausted

Example:  "Went for a 4 miler and then when I got back from work we took the kids swimming. Nice and knackered now." – blog post at SoreLimbs.co.uk, January 18, 2011

About the word:  The slang knacker means "to kill or tire."  Etymologists can't be sure if there's a link between the adjective knackered and the knacker that means "horse-slaughterer."

4.  JIGGERY-POKERY. Definition:  dishonest or suspicious activity; nonsense

Example:  "[Greece] flouted European Union rules on the limits to budget deficits; its national accounts were a moussaka of minced statistics, topped with a cheesy sauce of jiggery-pokery." – Jeff Randall, The Telegraph, May 20, 2010

About the word:  Jiggery-pokery is an alteration of joukery-pawkery. Both joukery and pawkery are English regionalisms for "trickery."

5.  PLONK.  Definition:  cheap or inferior wine

Example:  "Fine diners are drinking premier cru wines at plonk prices as a bring-your-own booze revolution gathers pace in Britain's best restaurants." – Robert Booth, The Guardian, June 20, 2010

About the word:  Plonk is a shortening of the earlier plink-plonk, and it may be a modification of vin blanc, which means "white wine" in French.

6.  CHUNTER.  Definition:  to talk in a low inarticulate way: mutter

Example:  "Tell me about it. I was chuntering on last night about *padded* training bras." – michlan on Twitter, April 13, 2011

About the word:  Chunter is sometimes used as a synonym of "complain." The word is probably imitative in origin: when people are chuntering, it sounds a bit like they're saying "chunter chunter." (Mutter is also imitative.)

7.  WHINGE. Definition:  to complain fretfully: whine

Example:  "I shall have one pint of beer less every time I'm in the pub, and I might occasionally whinge about the rises in the cost of living outstripping my wages." – blog post on A Dull Day at Work, April 2, 2011

About the word:  Whinge (short "i" and terminal "j" sound) predates the long "i" whine. The Old English ancestor of whinge meant "to moan."

8.  GORMLESS.  Definition:  lacking intelligence: stupid

Example:  "Gormless, unhelpful and poorly trained shop staff create merry hell for customers who are simply exercising their legal rights to a repair, refund or replacement." – Sam Dunn, Two Pennies Worth blog, March 22, 2011

About the word:  The word gaum exists in some English dialects and means "attention or understanding." Someone without gaum (or gorm) lacks understanding.

9.  BOFFIN.  Definition: a scientific expert and especially one involved in technological research

Example: "Brain boffins at University College London have made a major breakthrough in the ongoing effort to bridge the gap between man and machine." – Rik Myslewski, The Register, April 11, 2011

About the word:  Boffin dates to 1945. Although its origin remains a mystery, it may have originated as a slang term for scientists engaged in wartime efforts.

10.  PUKKA.  Definition: genuine, authentic; first-class

Example:  "... the record-breaking Sri Lankan [cricket player] has always shown himself a pukka gent...." – William Langley, The Telegraph, July 24, 2010

About the word:  Chef Jamie Oliver rejuvenated pukka with his BBC series Pukka Tukka. That's fitting, since pukka comes from the Hindi and Urdu words for "cooked," "ripe," and "solid."

That's it.  No blimey, bloody, bullocks, bugger, etc.  Hmmm...seems I have a lot of catching up to do when it comes to the British language.  Lest I be thought of as a prat.

technorati tags: british, language, words, favorite

New Filipino 101

A friend forwarded this to me via email and I was so amused I just had to share...

These are Filipino words that are so unique and loaded in meaning that they will never find a direct translation in the English language. Forget traditional dictionaries. Keep this.

1. *Achuchu* (A-chu-chu).
This refers to the pointless insincerities being said during long, involved conversations about nothing at all.

2. *Ano* (A-noh).
The all-around, all-purpose word for everything.
(1) Pronoun in interrogation: Ano? (What)
(2) Noun: Where is your ano? (Where is your father/mother/ dead-uncle' s-second- cousin)
(3) Verb: Anuhin this. (Paint/kill/maim/castrate this.)
(4) Adjective: This is so ano. (This is so pretty/big/astounding.)
(5) Interjection: Ano! (What the hell!)
(6) Substitute for genitalia : Did you ano your ano?
The use of ano is quite dangerous for the untrained ear, and must be put into the proper setting. "Honey, the ano is too long, we have to cut it," must be accompanied by the proper understanding of the context, as results may be critical to a couple's future.

3. *Booba* (boo-bah).
A female blessed with larger than usual mammary glands which can be used as weapons of mass destruction.

4. *Checheboreche* (Che-che-boh- re-che)
Same as achuchu. It is interesting to ponder on the reason why there are so many words in the Filipino language that beautifully describe meaningless chatter.

5. *Epal* (Eh-pal).
An individual who believes he is God.

6. *Gigil* (gee-gil).
An uncontrollable desire to bite something.

7. *Hipon* (Hee-pon).
Literally "shrimp," whose body is eaten while its head is thrown away, this refers to a female/male whose body is to die for and whose face looks like it belongs to the dead.

8. *Kikay* (kee-kay).
Refers to individuals who carry a brush, hand wash, moisturizer, lip-gloss and various other facial enhancements in a case (aptly called a kikay kit) inside her bag. Recent inspections of various backpacks have led to the conclusion it is not a purely female trait. This breed cannot resist checking themselves out on mirrors, glass windows, bread knives, sidewalk puddles and plastic-covered notebooks.

9. *Kaek-ekan* (Ka-ek-e-kahn) .
Same as achuchu and chechebureche.

10. *Kilig* (keel-leg).
A rush of excitement due to the actions, presence or even mention of he whom you see as the future father of your children.

11. *Laglag-brip* (lag-lag-brip) .
The female counterpart of laglag-panti.

12. *Laglag-panti* (lag-lag-pan- tee).
A man so incredibly hot, so heart-stoppingly gorgeous and oozing with masculinity that female underwear (whether worn by males or females) falls to the ground without effort whatsoever.

13. *Indyanero* (In-jan-neh- ro).
An individual who fails to appear at an appointment without prior warning. Not to be confused with individuals who appear according to Filipino time (approximately 10 minutes before the meeting is to end).

14. *Japorms* (Jah-porms).
Describes an individual dressed differently from the usual (typically involves clothes that have been laundered and pant legs of roughly the same length).

15. *Lagot* (Lah-got).
A prophesy of evil things to come.

16. *Para* (Pah-rah)
A term that informs the driver of a jeep to stop and pause (usually in the middle of the road) as the individual speaking intends to leave the vehicle. Dangerous for individuals as drivers seem to believe having one foot in the air is all that is necessary for descent.

17. *Takusa* (Ta-kuh-sa).
Derived from takot sa asawa (afraid of wife), this is a term used to describe the silent (very silent) minority of males married to feminine reincarnations of Hitler.

18. *Torpe* (tore-peh).
A gentleman who is desperately attracted to a female yet by some strange compulsion is reduced to a frozen mound of stuttering male whenever that female is near.

Armed with this list and a smile, you will be sure to make the proper impression not just on your new relations, but on your loved one as well.

Now let's practice:

"Honey, when I first saw you, I made laglag brip, and was almost torpe. When I finally got the nerve to date you, I almost became indyanero, because I didn't think I had the right japorms.

When you're around, I'm kilig. When you're not, I get gigil. You may think all this is achuchu, kaek-ekan, just checheboreche, but in truth, my love, I'm so ano with you."

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