Appendix:Glossary of Scottish slang and jargon

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This is a glossary of Scots, Scots English dialect and jargon with their meanings and, where appropriate, an example of their use. It's worth noting that Scotland has 3 languages (English/Scots/Scottish Gaelic) and a collection of different dialects.


Contents: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

A[edit]

  • Ae - To agree with someone, or often used at the end of a question (“He’s coming wi’ us, ae?”)
  • Ah - I.
  • a' - all.
  • a'body / aabody / abidy - everybody.
  • aboot - about.
  • aff - off ("Ye're aff yer heid!")
  • Ah ken - I know.
  • Ah wisna(e) - I was not.
  • Ah wiz like - I said. (So the boss says tae me that Ah was lazy, an' Ah wiz like, "Naw, Ah am'nae!")
  • Ah'm ur - I am.
  • Ah'm urny / Ah'm no - I am not.
  • an' aw - as well.
  • and but - suffix indicating that the speaker has now finished talking. ("We went doon tae Largs for fish an' chips, and but.")
  • Anno - I know.
  • auld - old (as in "auld yin").
  • awfy - awfully or very
  • aye - yes

B[edit]

  • baccy - tobacco ("Can you lend me some baccy?")
  • baffies - slippers.
  • bahoochie / behouchie - bottom.
  • bairn - baby (jist a wee bairn!) or small child (Eastern Scottish dialect).
  • baltic - freezing cold ("Christ man, put the heating oan, it's baltic in here!").
  • bam - a fool or simpleton (from acronym BAM i.e. "below-average mentality")
  • bampot - an idiot, unhinged person.
  • banana boat - used in an expression of disbelief when told a tall story or blatant untruth ("Dae ye think Ah came up the Clyde on a banana boat(?)")
  • banger - a firework. ("Away you 'n' chew mah banger(!)")
  • Barkit - dirty/unclean. ("Oaft, ma shirt is pure barkit")
  • barra - a small child. Also, an affectionate term for a younger person (A wee barra.)
  • Barras - a market, started by Margaret McIver, joined for the initial use of wheel barrows/"barras" to sell things from, at the Barrowland in the east end of Glasgow.
  • barry - excellent / fantastic ("That's pure barry!")
  • bastart - bastard. Also, rarely, a peculiar term of endearment ("Awright Ted, ya wee bastart.")
  • batter - to beat up ("I'll batter ye! 'mon then, ya dick!")
  • bawbag - scrotum, pejorative ("That guy's a bawbag.")
  • bawhair - a unit of measurement denoted by the thickness of a pubic hair.
  • bawheid - ballhead, bald, empty-headed, stupid ("Oi, you, ya bawheid!")
  • baws - testicles.
  • bawsack - scrotum (ballsack in English.)
  • beast - to engage in sexual intercourse, particularly in an illicit context; to sexually assault ("Word's been going around that the priest's been beasting weans.")
  • belter - to be excellent, great, fantastic.
  • ben - down or through, or a mountain.
  • bevvy - alcoholic beverage ("Ye havin' a bevvy the nite?")
  • bez - beer.
  • bide - stay/live.
  • Big Yin - Big One, used as a term of endearment towards older relatives or friends. Also, the affectionate nickname for Scottish comedian Billy Connolly.
  • birl/burl - spin.
  • bit - a place; usually referring to somebody's house ("Meet me at ma bit." "Ah'll come round tae your bit." "Am stayin' o'er at my da's bit the night.")
  • bits - boots, steel-capped or rigger, worn on construction sites ("You'll hae te wear ya bits on site")
  • bizzo - business (from an episode of TV series "Minder".)
  • blootered - very drunk.
  • bobby - police
  • boak - dry heave/expression of disgust ("Pure gie'in' me the boak!")
  • bob - a shilling, or 12 old pennies pre-decimilisation; 5 new pence.
  • bobee, bawbee - one half-penny in auld money.
  • boggin' - smelly, dirty ("That's boggin'!")
  • bolt - go away ("Wanty bolt!")
  • bonnie - handsome, pretty, beautiful.(Come follow the bonnet of Bonnie Dundee)
  • boot - slatternly or ugly woman.
  • bosie - cuddle.
  • bowfin' - sick-making.
  • The box - television set ("Whit's oan the box the night?")
  • brae - a hill.
  • brammer - term of endearment ("Aw, he's a wee brammer, so he is.")
  • brand new - really good, can be used to refer to a person. ("See him? Aye he's brand new")
  • braw - good looking, beautiful; really nice.
  • breeks - trousers.
  • brief - car.
  • broon - brown.
  • Bucky - short for "Buckfast", a tonic wine popular in the West of Scotland.
  • buits - boots.
  • bunker - table top / kitchen counter ("Make sure yeez clean aw along the bunker when yer finished!")
  • burd - Girlfriend, or girls in general (huv ye seen the state ae thae burds!)
  • burn - small river or stream ("Let's awa' up that burn.")
  • but - conjunction sometimes used to end sentences, commonly in Inverclyde ("Ahm naw gaun, but!")

C[edit]

  • cannae - can not.
  • canny - smart ("He's a canny lad.") or to be wary, or careful ("Ca' canny, lassie!")
  • chankin - cold ("It's chankin' the day!")
  • chebs - tits.
  • chib - to stab with a knife, or to headbutt.
  • chief - alternative for 'mate', 'dude', 'fella', 'big yin'. ("Awrite chief, wur ye aff tae the night?")
  • choochter - see teuchter.
  • chookie - bird.
  • choon - song (from "tune")
  • chug - to masturbate ("He was having a chug on the bus.")
  • chum - to accompany someone ("Goan chum me to the shop.")
  • claes - clothes.
  • clart - to apply too much of something.
  • clarted - covered in (mud).
  • clarty / clatty - dirty ("He picked his nose and ate it, the clarty bastard!")
  • class - Something that is really good ("That's pure class min!")
  • cauld - cold ("It's awfy cauld in here.")
  • close - an alleyway or passage at the rear of houses. The passageway leading into a tenement building. Humid weather.
  • cludgie - toilet, or lavatory, originally outdoors. ("Ah'm oan the cludgie!")
  • clype - a tell-tale, a grass. Also, to hit someone or something.
  • coarse / coorse - to bully or torment, or to be bad. To handle in a rough fashion.
  • cooncil juice / cooncil pop - tap water
  • coupon - face. ("Some coupon on him, eh?")
  • cowk - to heave or throw up.
  • cowp - to knock over. Also, a skip or landfill.
  • craic (crack) - chat ("What's the craic?")
  • cripple- to make someone fall over or do something clumsy ("Did you see me cripple Andrew yesterday?")
  • crivens - an exclamation. (See also "Jings, crivens, and help mah boab!")
  • cuddy - horse.
  • cummoan - let's go,~~ please talk sense ~~ (vamos,. sp)
  • cundie - drain.
  • cuttin' - hanging out in a directionless manner. Not necessarily standing still. ("I've been cuttin' aboot the toon aa day!")

D[edit]

  • da - father. (Yer da sells Avon)
  • dafty - silly, foolish person.
  • dancin' - discotheque, nightclub (Ur ye gaun tae the dancin' the night?)
  • dangleberry - small piece of stool hanging from the hair around the bum hole.
  • dander/daunder/daunner - a walk ("Comin' fur a wee daunner doon yonder?")
  • deh - don't (deh dae that.)
  • deid - very; usually used with "pure" in front to describe something (That's pure deid brilliant!!!) or if someone has died (" The big yin is deid")
  • di - word used for grandad
  • diddy - did he? Also means an idiot ("Diddy go tae school?" "Wait! Ye left yur keys, ya diddy!")
  • didnae - didn't ("Ah didnae dae that!")
  • dingy - to ignore, abandon ("He's dingied us.")
  • dinnae - don't ("Dinnae dae that!")
  • dircht - to wipe or clean ("Dinnae dircht ya grunzy on yer heshin!")
  • diteit - stupid.
  • div - idiot.
  • dobber - a fool/stupid person. Also means "dickhead" ("Whit ye daein', ya dobber?!")
  • Dodo Manson - needing a poop.
  • doggin' - Having sexual intercourse in the back of a car, usually with spectators ("Oh my God. They were doggin'!"). Also, skipping school ("I couldn't be bothered so ended up just doggin' it.")
  • dolton - an idiot.
  • doo - a pigeon.
  • doon - down. ("Turn that doon! Wiv got a fuckin' can thief! TURN THAT DOON!")
  • doonhamer - Someone from Dumfries. Got its name from towns more North than Dumfries because people from Dumfries would say, "Ah'm gaun doon hame."
  • Doric - Scots dialect spoken in the North East.
  • dowp - backside, bottom.
  • dreich - damp, overcast, wet.
  • drookit - soaking wet, drenched.
  • dug - a dog.
  • dunderheid - an idiot, a fool.
  • dunno / dinnae ken - I don't know.
  • dunt - nudge.

E[edit]

  • Eccie/Eccies - Ecstasy (the drugs).
  • Edina / Embra - Edinburgh.
  • eejit - idiot.
  • een - eyes.
  • eh - what? Or, can also mean 'yes' and 'me' and 'eye'.
  • empty - the residents who live in the house are not present and people take advantage by having a party in the "empty" house. ("Ma granny's got an empty, 'moan up fur a swallae."). Normally teenagers having a party in their own house when parents are away involves drinking, which they would not be able to do with their friends if parents were around.
  • erse - arse (doric)

F[edit]

  • fae - from ("Far aboots you fae?")
  • fag - a cigarette.
  • fandan - (short for "Fancy Dan") an overconfident, fandango, pretentious idiot ("That guy's a pure fandan, by the way.")
  • fanny - idiot, vagina, pejorative ("He's a wee fanny.")
  • fannybaws - a term of ridicule, in some cases of endearment ("Ho, here fannybaws, geis a chip.")
  • fash - fuss, worry ("Dinnae fash yersel'.")
  • feart - to be scared, afeared (Ah'm feart o' the dark.")
  • feck - fuck, ("In the name of feck, ser.")
  • fer / fir / fur - for.
  • fitba' - football.
  • fit like? - how are you? (Dorric)
  • fir wye? - why?
  • flamer - a homosexual, from flaming homosexual.
  • flap - to become overly upset or worked up about something, beyond what others see as necessary (" Dinnae flap! We'll find yer wellies!")
  • fleg - fright, flag reference to over-exuberant British nationalism ("He's a dirty Flegger.")
  • flit - move house.
  • foond / fund/fin - found.
  • footer - to twiddle and mess about with something (courtesy of Mrs A. A Munro).
  • forrit - forward.
  • fu' - full (of alcohol), drunk.
  • fud - vagina (Ah booted her right in the fud, man!) usually used as a derogatory term ("What fud publishes on Wikipedia?"). The tail of a rabbit.
  • funt - slightly less offensive merging of fuck and cunt, which you can say in front of older relatives and get away with. ("That funt pushed in front of me in the chip shop.")
  • fuck up - shut up.
  • fuck all - nothing

G[edit]

  • gadge / gadgie - East coast term for a bloke (That gadge is mental.)
  • gads - exclamation of disgust. Used in the South West (predominantly Ayrshire and North of Aberdeen.)
  • gaff - house, or a house party (she's havin' a gaff the night.).
  • gallus - gallous, bold, cheeky, or flashy.
  • gammie - an injured body part (Cannae play, Ah've got a gammie leg.)
  • gan - go.
  • gaun yersel' - congratulations.
  • gaun - going (Ah'm gaun hame), or, go on and (gaun shut the fuck up.)
  • gantin' / gaggin' fer it - begging for (See her, she's pure gantin' fer sex.)
  • gash - vagina, or poor (Hibs are gash at football.)
  • gie's / geez - give me - (geez it.)
  • geggy - mouth - (Shut yer geggy.)
  • geks - glasses.
  • gem - game/up for (Pronounced by properly enunciating the G ((Hard G)), unlike the term Gem meaning jewel)
  • gey - very
  • ginger - pop/fizzy drink/soda (typically referring to Irn-Bru.)
  • gingin' (pronounced "ging-in") - disgusting (He wis spewin' his guts up (being sick), it was heavy gingin'!)
  • glaikit - stupid looking (get that glakit look aff yer fizzog.)
  • Glesgae - Glasgow, if not a local (typically East coast Scots) "Glesga" is more often used by West coast Scots.
  • goat - got (Ah goat it right!)
  • gonnae no dae that - please don't do that!
  • gobble - blowjob, or to eat as if starving.
  • gob - mouth (shut yer gob), or spit.
  • gowpin' / lowpin' - sore body part/infested with lice - (My knee is gowpin'.) - (Her heid was pure lowpin'.)
  • goon - idiot (You're a pure goon, man!)
  • graftin' - to like someone (“are you graftin' Ben?”)
  • grannied - didn't score a single point (I was grannied at pool tonight.)
  • granda - grandfather.
  • greet - to cry.
  • groond / grund - ground.
  • grunzy - your nose.
  • gutties - rubber soled sand shoes or gym shoes, from Gutta-percha, the tree from which latex and rubber are derived.
  • gunt - Hibs fan, portmanteau of Easter Road and Cunt.

H[edit]

  • hackit - ugly.
  • hame - home (am away hame.)
  • Harry hoofter- rhyming slang for "poofter" a derogatory term for a homosexual man.
  • hauf - half; a measure of whisky.
  • hauf 'n' a hauf - a measure of whisky and a half pint of beer
  • haver - silly talk, nonsense/gibberish (stap yer haverin'.)
  • havnae - have not.
  • haun - hand (watch ma haun.)
  • haud / hud - hold, stop "wanty haud that?", "haud the bus" (stop right there.)
  • haud yer wheesht - stop talking.
  • haw - a quick saying to get someones attention, quicker than saying "hello". (Haw, stop ya bawbag!)
  • heavy - used to emphasise, "heavy shite" = awful.
  • hemmin - term to get someones attention, equivalent "excuse me sir" (Hemmin, fit like the day?)
  • hen - term of endearment for a woman, equivalent to "love" or "darling" (How ye daein' the day, hen?)
  • heid - head (Ah've got a sair heid.)
  • hee haw - nothing/empty.
  • heid-the-baw - an idiot.
  • heshin / heshun - your sleeves.
  • heavin' (hee-vin) - very busy (This pub is heavin', ye cannae get movin'.)
  • hingway - thing. Often used interchangeably with any noun (Gee tha hingway back)
  • hirplin - to walk with a limp. (She hirpled across to answer the door.)
  • hoachin' - full.
  • hochmagandy - fornication, sex.
  • hole - sex/vagina (She's gettin' her hole the night fer definite.)
  • honkin' - smelly/dirty (Your breath is honkin' by the way.)
  • hoore - whore.
  • hoora - slang term for "very" (That Buckfast was hoora good.)
  • Hoarse - a horse (“get aff ur high hoarse”)
  • hoose - house.
  • hoot - what (Hoot are you talkin' aboot?)
  • howfin' / howlin'/ hummin' - smelly.
  • how? - why?
  • how no'? - why not?
  • howzitgoan - greetings (Howzitgoan pal? Huvnae seen ye in ages.)
  • huddy - idiot, stupid, lame brain.

I[edit]

  • Inna -As well (Are you gan ti the boozer inna?)
  • Isna(e) - Is not
  • Int it/Int it no? - Isn't it? (This place is brilliant, int it no?)

J[edit]

  • jag/jab - injection/punch
  • jaggies - stinging nettles. (Mind the jaggies dinnae git ya!)
  • jaked - being in a state of drunkenness (I was jaked last night)
  • jake(y) - a person who is addicted to class A drugs or alcohol, and lives a poor quality of life as consequence / A down-and-out, a tramp.
  • Jambo - a supporter of Heart of Midlothian F.C., from Jam Tarts, as rhyming slang for Hearts.
  • jamp - past tense of jump (used mostly in the Highlands, especially the Black Isle).
  • janny - janitor.
  • jessie/jessy - wimp/big girl's blouse/effeminate or cowardly man (he's a big jessie)
  • Jim Delahunt - sports pundit and former presenter of Scotsport, rhyming slang for "cunt", female genitalia
  • Jings! - Wow!
  • Jings, crivens, and help mah boab! - expression of surprise or admiration, from the internationally famous comics "Oor Wullie" and "The Broons" by Scottish publisher D.C. Thompson
  • jobby - poo; plural form "jobbies"
  • jobby catchers - tracksuit bottoms
  • jobby jabber - a gay man (derogatory slur)
  • jump in - children usually ask an adult to go into a shop and buy them (children, under 18) alcohol, term is commonly used in Ayrshire (Ask him for a jump in)

K[edit]

  • kelpie - a mythical water creature resembling a horse. Also a set of twin sculptures called "The Kelpies".
  • ken - to know
  • kip - a nap
  • knob - slang for penis, in particular knob-end; an irritating or contemptible person (Whit a knob man!)
  • knapdarloch - a piece of faeces hanging from an animal's fur
  • kimon - slang for cunt
  • kip - sleep/nap (If yur tired, try fur a kip." "am away fir a kip man, shattered)
  • kippy - left (He's kippy-handed.)
  • kirk - church (I can't get pished? Is this some kind of kurk?)
  • Keech - Scottish for faeces. Can be used in a sentence for someone who you think is talking rubbish or nonsense (Listen ya bam awa an' stop talkin keech.)
  • Keek - to peep or look
  • ket - An alternate term for Ketamine

L[edit]

  • laddie - A boy or young man (Aye, laddie!)
  • laldy - Attitude/Effort of great volume (ah gave it Laldy!)
  • lamped - To be struck soundly with a fist (eg. Boab wiz gettin' on ma tits, so I lamped him)
  • lassie - A girl or young woman
  • lavvy - A lavatory (toilet) (Am gaun' tae the lavvy.)
  • lecky - electricity - often used in reference to bills (she didn't pay her lecky this month)
  • lifted - to be arrested by the police. (e.g. He wiz totally pished an' the polis lifted him)
  • lip - cheek (Ony mair o' yer lip an ah’ll skelp yer dowp)
  • Li'ah' - like that (An' ah wis li'ah'​)
  • loon - boy (Aberdeen dialect), idiot (elsewhere)
  • loupin - very sore/infested with lice (My heid is loupin.) also means smelly.
  • loused - Finished, tired or shattered (I'm loused)
  • lugs - ears

M[edit]

  • Mare's meat - A vigorous and forward act (He's in there like a marr's meat)
  • Ma Kelly-Ann - term for the Mrs, me and Kelly-Ann did this, my Kelly-Ann said that, me and Kelly Ann had a good pumpin' last night etc etc.
  • mad wae it (MWI) - comprehensively drunk
  • magic - great/excellent (That's pure magic)
  • mair - more
  • maist - most
  • malkied - (from Malky Fraser - Glaswegian rhyming slang for "razor") Initially to have been hit hard, or chibbed... blootered/drunk/wrecked (Heavy malkied last night, pal)
  • maw - mum (Aye yer maw)
  • mauchit/manky - very dirty (Your trousers are mauchit!! Ya manky bastard!)
  • meltit/melted - to be off one's face, usually on drugs - (Ah was pure melted man!)
  • mense - Great or other words, a shorter form of "immense"
  • messages - shopping (Maw sent me fur messages last night)
  • mental - Insane, wild (that party last night was pure mental.)
  • mibay/mibbe - maybe.
  • midden - Outdoors rubbish pile, tip "this room's a midden!"
  • min/mannie - mate (aw'right, min?), or any adult male (That's the mannie I wis thinkin' of.)
  • mince - rubbish/nonsense - (Dinnae talk mince)
  • minger - A dirty/smelly/horrible person or ugly person
  • mingin - horrible/dirty (Your bathroom is mingin, this drink tastes mingin)
  • mink - an unhygienic person (You wee mink.)
  • minted - rich/wealthy (Look at his motor, he must be minted.)
  • minter - pejorative for an unattractive female ("She's a minter")
  • Mokit - dirty
  • Mon then - A challenge to fight (Fuckin' mon' then ya wee dick)
  • the morn - tomorrow
  • the morn's morn - tomorrow morning
  • motor - a car (originates from "motor car") "his motor's pure minted man!", "jump in my motor, I'll gie ye a lift hame".
  • muckle - large (I caught this muckle fish doon the burn the ither day).
  • munter - ugly person (That lassy you were winchin' last night was a proper munter.)

N[edit]

  • naebidy / nae cunt - no one
  • nae danger - no chance / no way / no bother
  • knackered - tired/exhausted
  • napper - head
  • Nat King - another word for intercourse getting your hole (from nat king cole)
  • Nat King Cole - intercourse, commonly nat king cole, hole (rhyming slang)
  • naw - no
  • naw he didnae - No he didn't. Some credit Scottish TV sitcom Still Game as the origin of this expression, but it's a lot older than Still Game has been on TV.
  • ned - backronym for 'non-educated delinquent', hooligan, troublemaker. Derived from Edward, as in Teddy Boys.
  • neebur- Neighbour
  • nip - kiss (gonae give us a nip) or a single measure of an alcoholic spirit, often whisky (geez a nip wi' that pint will ye darlin' )
  • neeps - Turnips (neeps an' tatties)
  • nippin - stinging
  • nippy - curt or sharp-tongued person; spicy or peppery food
  • noggin - head
  • nugget - a less than valuable lump of matter, may be something hanging off your shoe or your backside, may be a person (Who's that nugget?)
  • numpty - an endearing term/lovable idiot. Shows friendly banter (Och, Jonathan! You're a right numpty)
  • nut - head, or another term used for the word 'not'

O[edit]

  • Och awa' an' dinna talk pish - You're talking a load of rubbish
  • oan yer bike - go away
  • oan yer trolley - go away
  • Onit - term used when drinking alcoholic beverages
  • Onybody or A'body - Anybody
  • oose - dust ball, dust bunnie, cobweb
  • oot - out
  • ory or orey or oary - Vulgar, common, lacking in social graces. Perhaps from "ore" i.e. unrefined material. Word may be peculiar to Dundee.
  • outwith Outside or beyond (he lives outwith the catchment area for the school. That is outwith the remit of the report.)
  • oot yer nut - really drunk (mate, get hame yer oot yer nut.), off your head.
  • oxters - armpits

P[edit]

  • Pan - break or disfigure (pan the windaes in) Also a name for the toilet.
  • Para - paranoid.
  • Patter - Banter (yer patter's sweet pal)
  • Panbread - dead
  • Pap - a breast
  • Paps - plural form for breast
  • Papa - grandfather
  • Park - field
  • Patch - to ignore someone, stand them up, or not respond to their texts, calls etc. ("he's pure bin patchin me aw week")
  • Pedro - Amazing (Aww sur, that is Pedro)
  • Peebrusht - rectum (from an episode of Minder) Surely derived from 'Pibroch' for pipe?
  • Peedie - small (yer nae haf peedie ya ken)
  • Peely wally - looking pale and unwell
  • Pie - a Scottish version of a chav, also used as a general derogatory word ("Yer a pie")
  • Piece - a sandwich (A had a cheese an' tomata piece this efternoon)
  • Pimps - easy (That exam was pure pimps)
  • Pish - piss. Often used to mean "bad"
  • Pished - drunk
  • Pizza Crunch - a pizza deep-fried in batter. Popular delicacy.
  • Plastered - drunk
  • Poke - a paper bag, or to prod someone with your finger
  • Polis - the police
  • Poon/Poond/Poonds - Pound/Pounds (either coins or weight)
  • Pooched - broken, fucked, useless. (I pooched my bird up the closie last night) used in anger or expression, mainly used by people from Angus or Fife
  • Poptae - An alternative for knob goblin
  • Puckle - a few of something (not necessarily 2)
  • Pucklie - a small amount
  • Puddock - a frog
  • Pumped - sex
  • Punny eccy (or simply "punny") - punishment exercises at school
  • Pure - very, totally (she's pure no right.) used to emphasise something.
  • Plab - The name for a large soft and watery pile of faeces probably most akin to cattle dung.

Q[edit]

  • quality - great/excellent (That film was quality.)
  • quine or quinie - girl, young woman, (Aberdeen dialect)

R[edit]

  • radge - Crazy, angry (he went totally radge)
  • rat-arsed - Drunk (Lets get rat-arsed!)
  • rank - disgusting
  • Rebrov - Man of stature (that guy is pure Rebrov man)
  • reekbeek - horrible, disgusting (That lassie is pure reekbeek)
  • reid/reed - Red
  • Reprobate - Unprincipled person, (Shut it, ya reprobate)
  • roamin - Taking a walk (gone on the piss, no told the mrs an got lost)
  • roaster - Someone who is making a complete cunt of themselves (Here, did ye see that roaster oan the X-Factor the other night?)
  • rocket - a crazy or annoying person. General insult. ("bolt ya rocket")
  • raging - Extremely angry; in a rage (you're pure raging, mate)

S[edit]

  • Salt 'n' Sauce - what Edinburgh people put on their chips.
  • Sannies - a pair of shoes , typically for sports. (sandshoe)
  • sassenach - often used for an English person, Southerner, but more accurately it is someone born below the Highland Line.
  • scaffies - bin men. Scavengers
  • scheme - residential area, usually a council estate
  • schule - school (pronounced "skull") (Ye no gaun' tae the schule the day?)
  • scooby - clue, (no clue) From the 1970s American cartoon series "Scooby Doo" involving student detectives and a gormless Great Dane.
  • scoobie - This spelling meaning is used instead of Subaru (Have ye seen Mikes new scoobie?)As above.
  • score - Twenty pounds (currency)
  • scanty - to pull doon some cunt's troosers
  • scramble - Scottish tradition at weddings where the groom throws small change out of the wedding car for local children to pick up.
  • scran - food
  • script - Plan, idea (What's the script?)
  • scunnered - bored, fed up, exhausted
  • scunner - one who pisses ye aff, also used when hurt yourself (oh ye scunner that hurt)
  • session / sesh - a night out drinking (Me and the boys had a hoora session the other night) - This is also a term used in some parts of England and Northern Ireland.
  • shan - a shame (that's shan as fuck, shan times) From Cant
  • Shereen Nanjiani - a former newsreader and also rhyming slang for fanny, female genitalia (Ah booted her right in the Shereen Nanjiani).
  • shin - shoes. Germanic, schoen
  • shite - faeces.
  • shitebag - a coward, someone who refuses a dare. ("You no gauny jump aff that bridge? Ahahah shitebag")
  • shneeb - smoke.
  • simmer - Calm down (That kant needs to simmer before he gets leathered)
  • sink the link - engage in intercourse (Jim was sinkin' the link last night.) Link sausages as metaphor for male member.
  • skelp - to smack or hit someone/thing (He telt me tae get ma tits oot so I skelped him) (I skelped ma heed oaf the heedboard)
  • skelf - splinter (a just goat a skelf aff that piece o wood)
  • skiddies - gentleman's undergarments with traces of last night's dinner
  • skud - naked (Did ye see Jimmy? He was in the skud!)
  • skyrocket - a particularly crazy person ("he's aff his nut, pure skyrocket man")
  • sleekit - sly or untrustworthy (I widnae buy a car frae that sleekit bastard!)
  • slitter - To dribble whilst eating (You better no slitter soup aw doon yer new jumper.)
  • smash - lots of change (coins)
  • solid - hard, tough (I wouldnae say nowt tae him man, he's solid)
  • sook - big softie (ya wee sook)
  • snashters - sweets or goodies to eat.
  • sneck/snecky, also shneck/shnecky (from the Gaelic Sneagaidh) - Inverness.
  • snout - cigarette (example, "after this drink, you up for a snout?" "aye mate")
  • sound - nice, cool or has a tendency to keep secrets well. Usually used in teens and preteens. ‘You’re proper sound, mate.’
  • speccy - used to describe someone who wears glasses. ("Scuse me, mate! Is it true Glasgow's full of speccy bams?")
  • spondoolyitis - a medical condition for talking shit
  • spondoolies - money (as in, "Ye gaun tae the gemme the night?" "Naw." "Naw? How no'?" "Nae spondoolies")
  • squint - not straight
  • Squinty Bridge - colloquial name for a bridge in Glasgow between Finnieston and Govan, officially named the Clyde Arc so named as it is on a diagonal
  • square go - a fair fight, one to one fight
  • stay - live, as in to live in a geographical location.
  • steamin - drunk
  • Stoater - a beauty, the best of type
  • stoor - dust. (Look at aw that stoor on the telly.)
  • stovies - a Scottish delicacy usually made from stewed potatoes, fat, onions, meat and occasionally gravy.
  • sup - small amount of liquid
  • swally - to swallow, also means alcohol (Dae ye fancy gon fur a wee swally doon the pub?)
  • swatch - Look (Gae us a swatch o yur fanny)
  • swadge, swadging - To sit at a table, after eating, waiting for your 'second wind' so you can eat more (Nae more fir me, A'hm swadging)
  • sweltering - roasting / boiling / very warm (it's absolutely sweltering today)
  • swick - cheat

T[edit]

  • tad - tiny bit (it's a tad small)
  • tadger - yet another word for the male member (Next thing we knew, he'd whipped oot his tadger.)
  • tae - to or, too (Going tae the game/ aye, and Stevie's coming tae)
  • tait - a small amount of something (I'll only take a wee tait salt oan ma chips, no too much.)
  • tak - to take
  • talking oot yer fanny flaps - lying
  • tam o'shanter - old term for a wooly hat, still heard sometimes, from the Rabbie Burns poem "Tam O'Shanter"
  • tan - smash windows (I'm gonny tan yer windaes), or also a drink (Gonnae gies a tan ae yur juice?)
  • tanned - to drink/drunk (I tant ten pints last night!) to vandalise (That hoose is gettin tanned)
  • tap - to borrow money from someone (Can ah tap a tenner aff ye?)
  • taps aff - (tops off) Sunbathing weather. In reality, any day when it isn't raining, particularly if the climate is suitable for outdoor Buckfast drinking.
  • tassie - cup (especially one for whisky)
  • tatties - potatoes
  • tekul - good
  • techt - tight, broke, as in no money
  • teuchter - someone that lives in the countryside, especially from the Highlands or Isles of Scotland
  • that's a sin - what a shame
  • toalie - jobby, shite, turd, crap, keech
  • toaty - small/tiny
  • toonser - someone from the city
  • tube - an idiot/fool
  • Turkish - a faeces (Gies the paper, ah'm away fur a turkish) from rhyming slang: 'Turkish Delight' - Shite
  • twa - two
  • twally - A person of lesser intellect
  • Toorie - The purple head of the Spear Thistle (Scotland's national flower/emblem). This is also what the Highlanders call a penis.
  • Tadger - Scottish name for a penis or can be used as a name for someone who behaves in an annoying manner (Get oot ma face ya tadger.)
  • Troosers - trousers.

W[edit]

  • wabbit - tired (I'm feeling awfy wabbit).
  • wallap (pronounced "wa-lup") - to hit someone/something (Am gonnae wallap ye wan!) Can also mean to bang a body part (Ah pure wallaped ma heid aff that table!)
  • wallaper (pronounced "wa-la-pur") - an insult, meaning idiot/moron/dick (He's a pure wallaper.) // Large (tha's ah wallaper ye goat there!)
  • wan / ane - one (number or referring to an object person) "Wan table please." "Wit wan de ye want?" "Geez ane."
  • wan - won (I wan the race.) Or referring to having 'one' (I'm having 'wan' of them days).
  • wank - to masturbate or short for wanker (he's a wank)
  • warmer - (pronounced "wahrmehr") another name for a fool, idiot.
  • weapon - General insult. An annoying, disliked or foolish person. (he's a fuckin' weapon)
  • wean - (pronounced "Wayne") the youngest of the family, sometimes the youngest sibling. Truncation of "wee ane" or little one. (give that to the wean!).
  • wee - small
  • wee yin- a person shorter or younger than you
  • wee barra - Literally "Small fair haired child". Used as a term of endearment (generally boys)
  • weegie - someone from Glasgow; from "Glaswegian"
  • well - very "This band's well good." "Bed's well comfy."
  • wench - A woman/female/girlfriend/wife. Derogatory term.
  • We're a' Jock Tamson's bairns - we're all the same, we're all God's children.
  • wha(e) - who
  • wheesht - be quiet (haud yer wheesht)
  • Whit - It means the same as 'what'.
  • whit like? / Fit like? - How are you?
  • Whitey - Throw up/be sick, usually from drinking too much alcohol (Am gonnae whitey)
  • wifey - woman (usually referring to an older woman)
  • winch - to French kiss someone (geez a winch.)
  • Windae - Window.
  • wit - what
  • wur - our as in We took wur taps aff (took our tops off)
  • wull - will
  • winna/winnae/wouldnae - Will not / Would not. ("Wanna jump aff 'is roof lad?" "No, I winna dee at! Fuck yerself min!")

Y[edit]

  • yaks - eyes/ mouth
  • yaldi - an expression of deep joy
  • ye - all you / you
  • yeez - you / you'se
  • yellae - yellow
  • yer - your
  • yer maw - your mother
  • yer da - your father (yer da sells avon)
  • yin - one (the number, or referring to a person or object) "The big yin is oan his way." "Ye want the big yin aff the shelf?" "yin ir twa")
  • yocker - a large, but still throwable, stone.
  • yonks - years, a long time ago. (A havnae been there for yonks.)
  • yuptae - What are you up to? (yuptae th' night ya bawbag?)

Z[edit]

  • zany - outstanding/crazy