An Irish Country Love Story Read online

  beat Bannagher: Wildly exceed expectations.

  bee in the bonnet: Obsessed with something.

  bee on a hot brick: Rushing round at great speed.

  been here before: Your wisdom is attributable to the fact that you have already lived a full life and have been reincarnated.

  beezer: First rate.

  bettered myself: I rose in the world by my own exertions.

  between the jigs and reels: To cut a long story short.

  biscakes: Biscuits (cookies).

  bisticks: Biscuits (cookies).

  bit the head off: Gave someone a severe verbal chastisement.

  blether/och, blether: Talk, often inconsequential/expression of annoyance or disgust.

  bletherskite: One who continually talks trivial rubbish.

  blow out: End a romantic affair, or a feast.

  boke: Vomit.

  bollix: Testicles. (Impolite.)

  bollixed: Wrecked.

  bonnet: Hood of a car.

  bookie: Bookmaker.

  boot: Trunk of a car.

  bore: Of a shotgun. Gauge.

  both legs the same length: Standing around uselessly.

  boys-a-dear or boys-a-boys: Expression of amazement.

  brave: Very.

  British Legion: Fraternal organisation for ex-servicemen (veterans).

  brogue: a) A kind of low-heeled shoe (from the Irish bróg) with decorative perforations on the uppers, originally to allow water to drain out. b) The musical inflection given to English when spoken by an Irish person.

  bull in a china shop/at a gate: Thrashing about violently without forethought and causing damage/charging headlong at something.

  bye: Counties Cork and Antrim pronunciation of boy.

  cailin: Irish. Pronounced “colleen.” Girl.

  camogie: A stick-and-ball team game akin to hurling, but played by women.

  candy apples: Apples dipped in caramel glaze.

  candy floss: Cotton candy.

  can’t for toffee: Is totally inept.

  casualty: ER department of a hospital.

  champ: A dish of potatoes, buttermilk, butter, and chives.

  chemist: Pharmacist.

  chips: French fries.

  chissler: Child.

  chuntering: From the Scots. Waffling on interminably.

  clap: Cow shit.

  clatter: Indeterminate number. See also wheen. The size of the number can be enhanced by adding brave or powerful as a precedent to either. As an exercise, try to imagine the numerical difference between a brave clatter and a powerful wheen of spuds.

  cobbler topping: A circle of scones (see recipes) placed on top of a stew or a dish of fruit and baked in the oven. Those used on a stew are made savoury with the addition of herbs and cheese.

  cod/codding: To fool/fooling.

  collogue: Chat about trivia.

  collywobbles: Vague feeling of being unwell.

  come on on in: The second “on” is deliberate, not a typographical error.

  comeuppance: Served right.

  Cookstown sausage: Thin pork sausages made in the Cookstown, County Tyrone.

  corker: Very special.

  course: From the ancient sport of coursing, where quarry is started by dogs and pursued by the hunters who run after the dogs.

  cowlick: Hair hanging diagonally across the forehead.

  cowped: Capsized.

  cracker: Exceptional.

  crayture: Creature, critter.

  crick: Sprain.

  cross/cross as two sticks: Angry/very angry.

  cruibín: Pickled pig’s trotter eaten cold with vinegar.

  cup of tea/scald in your hand: An informal cup of tea, as opposed to tea that was synonymous with the main evening meal (dinner).

  currency: Prior to decimalization, sterling was the currency of the United Kingdom, of which Northern Ireland was a part. The unit was the pound (quid), which contained twenty shillings (bob), each made of twelve pennies (pence), thus there were 240 pennies in a pound. Coins and notes of combined or lesser or greater denominations were in circulation, often referred to by slang or archaic terms: farthing (four to the penny), halfpenny (two to the penny), threepenny piece (thruppeny bit), sixpenny piece (tanner), two-shillings piece (florin), two-shillings-and-sixpence piece (half a crown), ten-shilling note (ten-bob note), guinea coin worth one pound and one shilling, five-pound note (fiver). In 1967 one pound bought nearly three U.S. dollars.

  dab hand at: Very skilled.

  dander: Short walk, or literally, horse dandruff.

  dar dar: Noise made by little Ulster boys in imitation of handgun fire.

  dead/dead on: Very/absolutely right or perfectly.

  decked: Knocked down.

  desperate: Terrible.

  didn’t come down the Lagan on a soap bubble: Used to indicate that the subject is worldly wise.

  dig in the gub: Smack or punch in the mouth.

  dig with the left (foot): A pejorative remark made about Catholics by Protestants.

  donkey fringe: Bangs.

  do-re-mi: Tonic sol-fa scale, but meaning “dough” as in money.

  dosh: Money.

  dote: (v.) To adore. (n.) Something adorable.

  dozer/no dozer: Stupid person/clever person.

  drumlin: From the Irish dromín (little ridge). Small rounded hills caused by the last ice age. There are so many in County Down that the place has been described as looking like a basket of green eggs.

  dulse: A seaweed that when dried is used like chewing gum.

  duncher: Cloth cap, usually tweed.

  eejit/buck eejit: Idiot/complete idiot.

  fair play/fair play to you: Fair enough/Good for you.

  feck (and variations): Corruption of “fuck.” For a full discussion of its usage see author’s note in A Dublin Student Doctor. It is not so much sprinkled into Dublin conversations as shovelled in wholesale, and also used in Ulster. Its scatalogical shock value is now so debased that it is no more offensive than “like” larded into teenagers’ chat. Now available at reputable bookstores is the Feckin’ Book of Irish—a series of ten books by Murphy and O’Dea.

  ferocious: Extreme.

  fillet steak: Beef tenderloin.

  fillums: Ordinarily I avoid using phonetic spelling, but there is no way round it if I am to render the Ulster propensity for inserting the extra syllable “um” into films, movies.

  Finn McCool: Fionn (blonde) mac (son of) Cumhail Cumhal), a mythical Irish hunter and warrior. His deeds and those of his followers, the Fianna, are the basis of the Finian cycle of Irish legend.

  flex: Electrical plug-in cord.

  footer: Fiddle about with.

  for all the marleys: Everything riding on a desired outcome. See also Losing one’s marleys.

  foundered: Frozen.

  gag: Joke or funny situation. Applied to a person, humorist.

  gander: Look-see.

  git: Corruption of begotten. Frequently with hoor’s (whore’s). Derogatory term for an unpleasant person.

  glipe/great glipe: Stupid/very stupid person.

  go away with you: Don’t be silly.

  gobshite: Literally, dried nasal mucus. Used pejoratively about a person.

  go for corn: Have no idea what to do.

  going spare: Losing it.

  good man-ma-da: Literally, “good man my father.” Good for you. A term of approval.

  grilled: Broiled.

  gurning: Whingeing. Whining

  gurrier: Street urchin, but often used pejoratively about anyone.

  guttees: Canvas-topped gym shoes with rubber (originally gutta percha) soles. Known in England as plimsols.

  half-un (hot): Small measure of spirits. (Irish whiskey, lemon juice, sugar, cloves, diluted with boiling water.)

  hames: Literally, “testicles.” To make a hames of is to mess up.

  ham-fisted: Clumsy.

  hammer and tongs: Fighting fiercely.

  heart of corn: Very good-nat
ured.

  headsplitter: Hangover.

  heel(s) of the hunt: When all’s said and done.

  headstaggers: Take leave of one’s senses.

  heifer: Young cow before her first breeding.

  higheejin: Very important person, often only in the subject’s own mind.

  hirstle: Wheeze in chest.

  hirple: Stagger.

  HMS: His Majesty’s Ship.

  hobbyhorse shite: Literally, sawdust. To have a head full is to be extremely obtuse.

  hoovering: Generic use of the name of a brand of vacuum cleaner, to denote using any vacuum cleaner.

  hot press: Warming cupboard with shelves over the hot water tank.

  hold your horses: Wait a minute.

  hould your peace: Keep your mouth shut.

  houl’ your wheest: Hold your tongue.

  how’s about you?: How are you?

  humdinger: Something exceptional.

  I doubt: I believe, if accompanied by a negative. “I doubt we’ll no’ see him the night” means “I believe we’ll not see him.” Otherwise, standard English meaning.

  I’m yer man: I agree and will cooperate fully.

  in the stable: Of a drink in a pub, paid for but not yet poured.

  jag: Jab by an injection needle.

  Jezebel: A scheming, promiscuous, fallen woman, named after the biblical (II Kings) wife of Ahab.

  Job’s comforter: Biblical. Someone whose well-meaning advice in time of adversity makes matters worse.

  juked: Dodged.

  kick for touch: Tactic of putting the ball out of play in rugby football to slow the play and possibly gain field advantage. In other usage prevaricate, compromise.

  kilter: Alignment.

  knackered: Exhausted like a worn-out horse on its way to the knacker’s yard where it would be destroyed.

  laugh like a drain: Be consumed with mirth.

  learned: Ulsterese is peculiar in often reversing the meanings of words. “The teacher learned the child,” or “She borrowed [meaning loaned] me a cup of sugar.” “Reach [meaning pass] me thon yoke.”

  length and breadth of it: All the details.

  let the hare sit: Let sleeping dogs lie.

  liltie: Irish whirling dervish.

  lip: Cheekiness.

  losing your marleys: Losing your (marbles) mind. See also For all the marleys.

  madder than a wet hen: Very angry.

  marmalize: Cause great physical damage and pain.

  midder: Colloquial medical term for midwifery, the art and science of dealing with pregnancy and childbirth, now superseded medically by the term “obstetrics.”

  mitch: Either play truant or steal.

  more meat on a hammer/wren’s shin. Descriptions of a skinny person.

  more power to your wheel: Words of encouragement akin to “the very best of luck.”

  muffler: Long woollen scarf.

  muirnín: Irish. Pronounced “moornyeen.” Darling.

  my/your/his shout: My/your/his turn to pay for the drinks.

  neat: Of a drink of spirits, straight up.

  no harm til you, but: I do not mean to cause you any offence, usually followed by, but you are absolutely wrong.

  no slouch: Very good at, a “slouch” being a useless person.

  no flies on: An astute person.

  no goat’s toe: One who has a very high and often erroneous impression of one’s self.

  no sweat: Nothing to worry about.

  not a bad head: A decent person.

  not at yourself: Unwell.

  och: Exclamation to register whatever emotion you wish. “Och, isn’t she lovely?” “Och, he’s dead?” “Och, damn it.” Pronounced like clearing your throat.

  off side: Out of the line of fire or out of sight.

  on the pour: Of a pint of Guinness. There is an art to building a good pint of Guinness and it can take several minutes.

  on the QT: Privately.

  ould hand: Old friend.

  oxter/oxtercog: Armpit/help walk by draping an individual’s arm over one’s shoulder.

  paddy hat: Soft-crowned, narrow-brimmed, Donegal tweed hat.

  Paddy’s market: Disorganised crowd.

  peely-wally: Scots, but used in Ulster. Under the weather. Feeling unwell.

  petrol: Gasoline.

  piece: Bread and spread, as in “jam piece.”

  playing gooseberry: An unwanted third person during a romantic encounter.

  ploughed: Of an exam. Failed.

  power/powerful: A lot, very strong.

  punter: Bettor on horses or dogs.

  pupil: In Ireland and Britain “student” was reserved for those attending university. Schoolchildren were referred to as “pupils,” nor did graduation occur until after the granting of a university degree.

  quare: Ulster and Dublin pronunciation of “queer,” meaning “very” or “strange.”

  rag order: Dublin slang for untidily dressed and coiffed.

  rapscallion: Mischief maker.

  rates: Municipal taxes.

  rear: Of a child. Bring up.

  rear up: Take great offence. Become angry and pugnacious.

  restful on the eye: Usually of a woman. Good-looking.

  right enough?: Is that a fact?

  rightly: Very well.

  RMS: Royal Mail Ship.

  rook: Black bird of the crow family.

  rooked: Cheated out of money or paying too much.

  rozzer: Policeman.

  rubbernecking: Being unduly curious.

  ructions: Violent argument.

  said a mouthful: Hit the nail on the head. Are absolutely right.

  Sassenach: Gaelic term originally applied to Saxons, now used, usually in a bantering fashion, by the Scots and Irish to mean “English.”

  saving your presence: I am about to insult you, but please don’t be offended.

  scared skinny: Terrified.

  scrip’: Script, short for “prescription.”

  see him/her?: Emphatic way of drawing attention to the person in question even if they are not physically present.

  shenanigans: Carryings-on.

  sheugh: A muddy place often fouled with cow clap.

  shufti: Military slang, from the Arabic. Look-see.

  sick line: Medical certificate of illness allowing a patient to collect sickness benefit.

  sidhe: Irish. Pronounced “shee.” The fairies.

  skelly: Take a quick look at.

  skinful: One of the 2,660 synonyms or expressions for “drunk.” (Dickson’s Word Treasury, 1982)

  skitters: Diahorrea.

  skivers: Probably derived from “scurvy.” No-good wastrels.

  sláinte: Irish. Pronounced “slawntuh.” Cheers, your health.

  so I am/he is/it’s not: An addition at the end of a sentence for emphasis.

  sparks: Electrician.

  spirits: Of drink, any distilled liquor.

  spud: Potato. Also a nickname for anyone called Murphy.

  stew in your own juice: Worry and be bothered about something with no hope of resolving the situation by your own efforts. Often you have been the cause of the situation in the first place.

  sticking the pace: Showing no signs of aging, fatigue, or decay.

  sticking out/a mile: Good/excellent.

  sting: Hurt.

  stocious: See skinful.

  stone: All measurements in Ireland until decimalision were Imperial. One stone = fourteen pounds, 20 fluid ounces = one pint.

  stoon: Sudden shooting pain.

  sound/sound man: Good/good, trustworthy man.

  surgery: Where a GP saw ambulatory patients. The equivalent of a North American “office.” Specialists worked in “rooms.”

  swinging the lead: Malingering.

  take a scunner: Really have it in for someone.

  take yourself off: Leave me alone.

  take someone out of themselves: Get their mind off their troubles for a while.

  take the
rickets: Have a great shock.

  take the strunts: Become angry or sulk.

  take yourself off by the hand: Don’t be ridiculous.

  tanned: Spanked. As in “getting his arse tanned.”

  targe: Woman with a very sharp tongue. A scold.

  tear away: Get on with it.

  terrace: Row housing, but not just for the working class. Some of the most expensive accommodation in Dublin is found in terraces in Merrion Square, akin to low-rise rows of attached town houses.

  tetchy: Irritable. Bad-tempered.

  that there/them there: That/them with emphasis.

  the day: Today.

  the hat: Foreman, so called because his badge of office was a bowler (derby) hat.

  the wee man: The devil.

  thole: Put up with. A reader, Miss D. Williams, wrote to me to say it was etymologically from the Old English tholian, to suffer. She remarked that her first encounter with the word was in a fourteenth-century prayer.

  thon/thonder: That/over there.

  thran: Bloody-minded.

  throughother: Slovenly. Carelessly untidy.

  throw another spud in the pot: Add more ingredients to the upcoming meal because of the arrival of an unexpected extra guest.

  til: To.

  ’til: Until.

  to beat Bannagher: Explanation unknown, but means exceptionally.

  tongue’s hanging out: Very thirsty.

  tousling: Beating up, either verbally or physically.

  townland: Mediaeval administrative district encompassing a village and the surrounding farms and wasteland.

  turd: Piece of faeces.

  Ulster overcoat: Heavy-duty double-breasted overcoat.

  up one side and down the other: A severe chewing-out.

  warm: Well-off.

  wasters: No-good wastrels.

  wean: Pronounced “wane.” Little one.

  wee turn: Sudden illness, usually not serious, or used euphemistically to pretend it wasn’t serious.

  wet the baby’s head: Have a drink to celebrate a birth.

  wheeker: Terrific.

  wheen: An indeterminate but reasonably large number.

  where to go for corn: Completely at a loss as to what to do.

  yellow man: A crunchy honeycomb toffee associated with Ballycastle, Northern Ireland.

  yoke: Thing. Often used if the speaker is unsure of the exact nature of the object in question.

  you know: Verbal punctuation often used when the person being addressed could not possibly be in possession of the information.

  you me and the wall: In strictest confidence.

  your man: Someone either whose name is not known, “Your man over there? Who is he?” or someone known to all, “Your man, Van Morrison.”