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14th Oct 2016

17 English words that have a totally different meaning in Scotland

"Everyone laughed when I said I had a big jobby on my hands."

Rich Cooper

1.

diddy

In England, ‘Diddy’ means: small, tiny, or the rapper P Diddy/Puff Daddy/Sean Combs/whatever his name currently is.

In Scotland, ‘Diddy’ means: a female breast.

“The gobshite shouted ‘Show us yer diddies’, so I kicked him in the shins.”

 

2.

ken

In England, ‘Ken’ means: a bloke’s name, usually a bloke called (wait for it) Ken.

In Scotland, ‘Ken’ means: know.

“Ma, where’s ma train set?” “I dinnae ken, and fir the last time, am no yer ma!”

 

3.

jobby

In England, ‘Jobby’ means: a small job or thing that you have to do.

In Scotland, ‘Jobby’ means: poo.

“That jobby rangs, man. Ma eyes are stingin’.”

 

4.

barry

In England, ‘Barry’ means: a bloke’s name, usually a bloke called Barry.

In Scotland, ‘Barry’ means: great, fantastic, brilliant.

“That unicycle’s pure barry, mate. Pure barry, that unicycle.”

 

5.

winch

In England, ‘Winch’ means: apparatus that uses rope or a chain to lift or pull things.

In Scotland, ‘Winch’ means: kissing with tongues.

“Did ah see ye winchin’ wi Kirsty McCullough by the bike sheds?”

 

6.

coupon

In England, ‘Coupon’ means: a voucher.

In Scotland, ‘Coupon’ means: a face.

“I wis creasin’ maself when a bird shat right on the prick’s coupon.”

 

7.

warmer

In England, ‘Warmer’ means: hotter than the previous temperature.

In Scotland, ‘Warmer’ means: a clueless idiot that no one likes.

“Did ye see that total warmer on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? Even a fuckin’ elephant wid ken it’s no bigger than the moon.”

 

8.

brief

In England, ‘Brief’ means: something that doesn’t last long, or a set of instructions for a piece of work.

In Scotland, ‘Brief’ means: a car, particularly a really nice car.

“Jimmy crashed his da’s brief, he’s no comin’ oot the nicht.”

 

9.

chum

In England, ‘Chum’ means: a friend or close companion.

In Scotland, ‘Chum’ means: to accompany someone.

“Aye, I’ll chum along wi you if yer off oot.”

 

10.

hee haw

In England, ‘Hee haw’ means: the noise a donkey would make.

In Scotland, ‘Hee haw’ means: nothing, bugger all, the absence of things.

“There wis hee haw in ma bank account, so there’ll be nae haggis this month, kids.”

 

11.

jessie

In England, ‘Jessie’ means: a girl’s name, or the character from Toy Story.

In England, ‘Jessie’ means: a wimp or a wuss.

“Ach, away ya big jessie. It’s only a wee knife that spider’s carryin’.”

 

12.

messages

In England, ‘Messages’ means: the things you get on your phone.

In Scotland, ‘Messages’ means: shopping, or shopping bags.

“I’m away fir ma messages, dinnae burn the place doon while am oot.”

 

13.

swatch

In England, ‘Swatch’ means: that brand of watch that everyone had in the ’90s.

In Scotland, ‘Swatch’ means: having a little look at something.

“Gie us a swatch at yer Times Literary Supplement, pal.”

 

14.

poke

In England, ‘Poke’ means: gently jabbing at someone with a finger.

In Scotland, ‘Poke’ means: a portion of something.

“I’ll hae a poke o’ chips please, boss. Wi extra chips.”

 

15.

greet

In England, ‘Greet’ means: welcoming or saying hello to someone.

In Scotland, ‘Greet’ means: to cry.

“There’s nae use greetin’ oer spilt Irn Bru.”

 

16.

dinghy

In England, ‘Dinghy’ means: a small boat.

In Scotland, ‘Dinghy’ means: ignore.

“I yelled ‘Billy, yer Da sells Avon’ fae across the street, but the prick dinghied me.”

 

17.

tube

In England, ‘Tube’ means: the London Underground, or a pipe of some kind.

In Scotland, ‘Tube’ means: a stupid moron.

“Get aff ma feet, ya big tube.”

 

FFL-new1

Topics:

Scotland