Read Dictionary of Contemporary Slang Online
Authors: Tony Thorne
b.
British
a bun or (thick) slice of bread
-wad
combining form American
a termination (denoting a despicable and/or disgusting person) seen in such compounds as
jerkwad
,
dick-wad
and
butt-wad
. The wad in question originally referred to tissues used as a receptacle for bodily excrescences.
-weed
is a disguised version of the same suffix.
wadge
n British
a variant spelling of
wodge 1
wafty
adj British
the term formed part of âLamby's lingo', the slang promoted by BBC6 radio presenter George Lamb in 2009. It was defined by him as âsecond-rate or lame'.
Have you heard the new Manics single? It's well wafty.
wag
vb Australian
to play truant. A variant of the older British form âhop the wag', in which the wag in question is a shortening of waggon.
âAnd don't you go wagging school this afternoon either â I might be bringing Frank round.'
(
Richmond Hill
, Australian TV series, 1988)
WAG
n British
a spendthrift, vacuous, glamorous young female. The term is formed from the initials of âwives and girlfriends' and was inspired by the behaviour of the England football team's partners during the 2006 World Cup. A media invention, the word subsequently passed into colloquial speech.
waggler
n British
a lecherous adult male, âdirty old man', paedophile. A playground term, this may be a new coinage or a variant form of the older North American
weenie-wagger
or
weenie-waggler
, meaning an exhibitionist or flasher.
wag it
vb British
to play truant. A modern version of the phrase âhop the wag', in which the wag in question is a shortening of waggon. The Australian term
wag
and its extension
wag off
are other modern derivations.
â“All these kids,” says Marjorie disapprovingly. “Wagging it, I suppose.”'
(David Lodge,
Nice Work
, 1988)
wag off
vb
to bunk off, play truant. This 1980s variant on the old phrases âhop the wag' and âon the wag', used by schoolchildren, is heard in Britain and Australia. (The word was defined for viewers in a report on
News-round
, a BBC TV children's programme, in June 1988.)
Compare
wag
;
wag it
wa' gwan?
exclamation See
whagwan?
wake
adj
an alternative spelling of
wayk
waldo
n American
a fool. An American personification, similar to the British
wally
, in use among teenagers and college students.
walk
vb
1.
to go free. A term popularised by its use in US TV crime dramas and the like.
Just give us the names we want and we'll let you walk.
2.
to escape, leave, disappear
âAnd the guy walked. (He walked with twenty million dollars but he walked.)'
(
Serious Money
, play by Caryl Churchill, 1987)
a walk in the park
n
a very easy task, painless experience. The phrase probably originated in American usage.
walk of shame
n
a journey home after a night of supposed debauchery. The phrase, popular on US campuses, has been in UK use since around 2000. It typically describes someone sneaking back to their room after surreptitiously spending the night with a sexual partner.
wallad
n British
a foolish and/or despicable male
There are plenty of UK teen slang terms that originate in Afro-Caribbean speech, one or two from Bengali, a couple possibly from French, but at the time of writing just one significant example that comes from Arabic.
Bint
, the Arabic translation of girl, and the more recent
binta
, have been used by an older generation as a less-than-complimentary nickname and may still occasionally be uttered in provincial school playgrounds. However, the term currently favoured in London is
wallad
, from the Arabic (
walad
) for boy, son or kid, and it's very far from complimentary. For some young users of the word it just signifies an idiot: they don't seem to realise that it started out in street-gang terminology where it can be a trigger for serious interracial violence. Could it be that they're, consciously or unconsciously, confusing the new word with the cosy old cockney insult of the 1970s,
wally
?
Your gang are all wallads.
Ya messed up big, ya wallad.
wallop
n
strong alcoholic drink. A light-hearted term inspired by the supposed effect of alcohol (although, until recently, the word more often denoted beer than spirits).
a pint of wallop
wally, wallie
n British
1.
a pickled gherkin. This old working-class name for a bottled delicacy is still heard in London. It may be a variation of âolly', a corruption of âolives', to which the gherkins were likened by earlier unsophisticated eaters.
âWant a gherkin, Doll?⦠Charlie calls them Wallys, I call them gherkins.'
(East Ender,
Sunday Times
colour supplement, 2 June 1968)
2.
a foolish, ridiculous, clumsy and/or unsophisticated person. This word emerged from obscurity into great popularity between 1976 and 1978 and many theories as to its origin have since been advanced. What seems certain is that the word originated in working-class London usage. The word began to be used in the school playground and in the media from about 1978 (with a meaning very similar to its almost contemporary American counterpart,
nerd
). The term may derive from the earlier sense of a pickled gherkin (
dill
is a synonym in both senses) or from an obscure dialect origin (the archaic Scottish dialect
waly draigle
, meaning a weakling, has been proposed).
Punks
, who helped to popularise the expression, cited an eponymous Wally, a friend and fan of the Sex Pistols and other coevals; it also seems possible that the usage simply arose because of what was felt to be the inherent comicality of the Christian name.
âThe George Formby Appreciation Society in plenary session. Until you have seen this herd of wallies, all long past their sell-by dates and playing their ukeleles in time to a film of their
diminutive hero, you haven't lived.'
(John Naughton,
Observer
, 15 January 1989)
3.
a cry or chant, heard e.g. at rock concerts (particularly of the
punk
, post-punk,
hardcore
variety). This phenomenon recalls the street and playground cry âollie, ollie, ollie!' heard in London in the 1950s and 1960s and recorded in cockney use as long ago as the 1870s as a shout of recognition or derision.
wamba, womba
n British
money. A vogue word in 1988 and 1989, emerging from London working-class argot into more general usage. Wamba, like many other obscure or dated synonyms (
rhino
,
moolah
,
spondulicks
, etc.), came into use in the financially-oriented atmosphere of the later 1980s. The word is most probably an alteration or mis-hearing of
wonga
, perhaps in imitation of an exotic âtribal-sounding' word such as the archaic Amerindian âwampum'.
wand-waver
n American
a male sexual exhibitionist, a
flasher
. A term in use among police officers, prostitutes, etc.
Wienie-wagger
is an alternative.
wang, wanger
n
the penis. These are more recent spellings of
whang
and
whanger
; words which emerged around the turn of the 20th century. They probably derive from an echoic British dialect word meaning beat, hit or slap, with a secondary meaning of strike in the figurative sense of impress or surprise. Although a vulgarism, wang is often considered less offensive than
prick
(but probably more offensive than synonyms such as
dong
,
willie
, etc.). Unlike many similar terms, wang does not have the additional sense of a fool.
wanger, wanga
n British
a schoolchildren's euphemism for
wanker
. This expression from the late 1980s is apparently sufficiently disguised to allow its use in the presence of adults or even on broadcasts such as the British children's TV series
Grange Hill
.
wank
vb British
1.
to masturbate. This very widespread vulgarism (with some recent exceptions, still taboo in the printed and broadcast media) is, perhaps surprisingly, of obscure origin. It seems to have entered the spoken language in the late 19th century, significantly at a time when the word
whang
was emerging as a vulgar term for the penis. Wank (earlier spelled âwhank') is probably derived from the same source; âwhang' as a dialect word first meaning hit, beat or slap. Wank may simply be a variant pronunciation or a development of the earlier word, influenced by âwhack' and âyank'. Since the 1960s the word has been used of and by women as well as men.
2.
to behave in an ostentatious, self-indulgent and/or futile manner. A usage deriving from the interpretation of masturbation as purposeless and/or offensive.
wanker
n British
1.
a masturbator. For the probable etymology of the word see
wank
.
2.
an inconsequential, feeble, self-indulgent or otherwise offensive person. The term of abuse or disapproval (most frequently applied to males) has been in use since the early 20th century, but became extremely common in the 1970s. In the USA the word is known, but its force as a taboo term in Britain is often underestimated by American speakers.
wankered
adj British
extremely drunk. A popular word with students and other adolescents since the 1990s.
wank off
vb British
to masturbate. A longer version of the more widespread term
wank
.
wankshaft
n
,
adj British
(something or someone) unpleasant, obnoxious. In playground usage.
wanksta
n
a would-be
gangsta
. The insult, used in the USA but based on an Anglicism, typically refers to someone considered an inauthentic imitator of street or
hip hop
style and attitude.
wank stain
n British
a tedious, insignificant and/or obnoxious person. This vulgarism seems to have arisen in the 1970s among adolescents; in the 1980s it became a popular term of abuse, particularly among students. The less offensive shortening,
stain
, was a vogue term from the late 1980s.
wanky
adj British
meagre, inadequate, disappointing. A popular term amongst schoolchildren, also used in the TV comedy
Men Behaving Badly
in 1995, formed from
wank(er)
and possibly influenced by
manky
.
wannabe
n
an aspirant or imitator. A fashionable Americanism of 1986 and 1987 which was quickly adopted in the UK The wannabe, typically a teenager or young adult, exhibits an envious or ambitious
desire, characterised by phrases such as âI wannabe like Madonna', âI wannabe thin', âI wannabe in the Seychelles', etc.
âThere are two types of Wannabee. The first kind are the clones â the stagedoor Georges, the Cindy Lauperettes, the Apple scruffs, the Madonna Wannabees (aka Wannabes) â the devoted fans who ape their idols as closely as possible. The other kind are the young urban upstarts with a desperate lust for fame.'
(
I-D
magazine, November 1987)
wap
vb American
to masturbate. The term, generally referring to males and often in the context of visual stimulus obtained online or by phone, may be an imitation or suggestion of the sound of rhythmic exertion.
Fap
is a synonym.
waps
n pl British
female breasts. A term popular among younger speakers since 2000.
warby
n
,
adj Australian
(something or someone) filthy, inferior or defective, coarse. This Australianism is a survival of a Scottish dialect term for a maggot, archaic in Britain since the 19th century.
warehouse
vb British
to hold or attend an
acid house
party
âThe philologically inclined will note that in Tony's world the word “warehouse” has turned into a verb. “Yea,” says Tony, “I warehouse, you warehouseâ¦we was warehoused⦔ Essentially what it means is this: to overwhelmingly swamp with people.'
(
Evening Standard
, 9 October 1989)