English Slang-What's Bollocks? (1 Viewer)

[Ike]

I always took bollocks to mean shit. Take the Sex Pistols Album-Never Mind The Bollocks, It's The Sex Pistols!

But while watching Eddie Izzard do stand up, he was using it in place of testicles. (It was a sketch about the Heimlech (sp?) manuever.)

What's correct? What do english people use bollocks for? Is it a curse word they we just think sounds funny? (Also, is it true that shag is the equivelant to fuck for the Brits? Is fuck a bad word in Britan, also?)

 

[Henry Gale]

Ike,

I always understood it to be British slang for balls.

Jim

Please don't ask about bugger. :b

 

[Ike]

Well,

Now I gotta ask-what's bugger?

And what does that mean? Never Mind the Balls-It's the Sex Pistols? That doesn't make sense. Is it like our fuck, which can be used for many things outside of it's real meaning?

 

[Artur Meinild]

Bollocks = balls or crap, depending on the situation.
Kick in the bollocks = kick in the nuts.
Talking bollocks = talking out of your ass.
Hope that makes sense! Anyway, watch Lock, Stock... and Snatch for lessons in english slang, it's all there: Muppet, tart, blagged etc...

 

[Steve Christou]

Ike, bollocks is balls but can also mean nonsense or rubbish.
Like "What a load of bollocks!"
Bugger is an exclamation of annoyance, "oh bugger!".
Bugger is also short for buggery which is slang for anal intercourse.
Next word.

 

[Cees Alons]

Now I gotta ask-what's bugger?

That's a regular rhyme word in limericks.

Cees

 

[Nigel McN]

ooh, don't forget

great= 'the dog's bollocks'

I love the way norman says that on hale & pace

 

[Mark Dubbelboer]

Bollocks to the rules!

 

[EugeneR]

Bugger is also short for buggery which is slang for anal intercourse.

Actually, it is not slang at all, it is a legal term! I believe "buggery" is still a criminal offense here in the U.S. in some states. f:alldocssmiley_sex.gif

 

[Ike]

I've never heard that term used in the US.

 

[andrew markworthy]

Buggery also means sex with an animal.

Bugger can also mean a male homosexual, though it is these days more often used as a relatively mild reproach, as in 'you stupid bugger'. 'Playing silly buggers' means messing around rather than getting on with the task at hand.

None of these words/phrases is totally polite, so be *very* careful about using them.

Incidentally, the reason why 'bollocks' can mean 'garbage' but 'the dog's bollocks' refers to something which is clearly the best is due to part of the latter phrase which has been forgotten. Originally it was 'it's as clear as a dog's bollocks' (think of what a dog presents to you when it rolls on its back).

 

[Ike]

Incidentally, the reason why 'bollocks' can mean 'garbage' but 'the dog's bollocks' refers to something which is clearly the best is due to part of the latter phrase which has been forgotten. Originally it was 'it's as clear as a dog's bollocks' (think of what a dog presents to you when it rolls on its back).

Okay, here's where it becomes a little murky to me, and may require some explanation.

In the US, there is a ranking system of curse words. (Butt probably being the least offensive, and the most would probably get me kicked.) Is Bollocks a minor curse, or considered a more serious curse? (If it's used in a phrase like "the dog's bollocks", it'd leave me to believe it's minor).

Is our slang as cryptic to you as yours is to, well at least me, or is the American influence so great that it's well understood?

You Brits have funny slang, I'll give you that.

 

[Iain Lambert]

Its really difficult to judge offensiveness with these three in particular. I know that I won't be typing any of these from my work account, if that helps.

On the other hand, the Dog's Bo***cks isn't much more rude than the Mutt's Nuts or the Dog's Cogs. Both are more rude than the equivalent Bee's Knees however. Feel free to allude to other not even necessarily rhyming areas of animals for similiar effect. I've even heard the anatomically incorrect phrase "the Giraffe's Elbows" a few times.

 

[Neil Joseph]

That's term I haven't heard since I left England. When I saw the post title, I assume someone used the term on you or something.

 

[Mark C Sherman]

Hello All.
I Have had two Folks from the UK in my office for the past week now and they will be here for another 2 weeks. Let me just say it has been a blast learning there slang and also teaching them mine. Some times I feel as If I need an English to English Dictionary.

 

[andrew markworthy]

Okay, here goes (if this doesn't get the thread closed down, nothing will!). The hierarchy of Brit swear words:

The 'c' word is perhaps the most taboo. I'd never use it, full stop.

Next down the list is the 'f' word - I think the same rules apply as over your side of the Pond. Certain social groups use the word in just about every grammatical form possible. The classic of this (cited in many a linguistics book) is the man complaining about a broken-down car - 'the f***ing f***er's f***ed'.

'Wank' and 'wanker' are probably next down the list, followed by 'shite' (means the same as 'shit' but is marginally worse, for some reason). Then follows 'shit', 'piss', 'bollocks' and practically all other swear words.

The mildest are things like 'bloody hell' (or variants like 'bloody Norah'), which, whilst not being something you'd encourage your kids to shout out in the street, is pretty mild.

The very mild cusses such as 'crumbs' or 'streuth' (curiously, both of which were at one time very blasphemous - they're short for 'God's truth' and 'crumbs of the bread of Christ') are fairly harmless and could be used in polite society without raising comment.

 

[Artur Meinild]

Thanx Andrew, now that's been settled!
You listed swear words, now if we're talking about name calling, isn't "tart" pretty high in the hierarchy?

 

[Brian Womble]

What about Paaawang? I saw this on a english independent film, the Paaawang was accompanyed by palvic thrusts?!! I was puzzled.

 

[Brad Porter]

So is "crikey" somewhat similar to "dang" and "heck" - a completely benign word used in place of a more offensive word? Any other words like that?

Brad

 

[Nigel McN]

yeah crikey is waaay down the list a bit lower than cripes I would imagine.