Here is your guide to the language of Scouse
The Scouse accent is one of Liverpool’s most distinctive assets. It is among the country’s most recognisable accents and it has a dialect all of its own.
The ECHO has recently looked at how the accent has changed in recent years, with Liverpool’s pride and status meaning some academics believe it is spreading and getting stronger. There is also a common view of where that accent comes from – predominately Ireland – but we’ve also looked at how that supposed truth may be wide of the mark.
Regardless of where Scouse comes from, however, if you’re not from Liverpool, there will be many words you might catch on our streets which you’ve probably never heard before. Try telling a Southerner that their trabs are jarg and they will look at you with a rather confused expression.
READ MORE: How Liverpool’s pride and status meant the Scouse accent spread and became ‘stronger’READ MORE: The Scouse and wool debate could be put to bed by an alternative name for people in this region
Additionally, most of the country would associate something being ‘minty’ with freshness. Not here, however. There are so many of these phrases that you can fill a full alphabet. Here is a Scouse version of your ‘Ey, B C’s’ which will prove exactly what we mean.
A – Antwacky – meaning old fashioned or of a kind that is no longer in style. Use: ‘Our kid’s clobber is proper antwacky.’
B – Bevvy – meaning an alcoholic drink Use: ‘Ye coming for a bevvy?’.
C – Chewie – meaning chewing gum. Use: ‘Giz a chewie’.
D- Divvy – meaning an insult which usually refers to someone having done something stupid/silly. Use: ‘As if you’ve done that you divvy’.
E – Eeee – meaning disgust or disapproval. Use: ‘Eee look at that’.
F – Frabs – meaning freezing / cold. Use: It is frabs in here’.
G – Go ed / G’wed – meaning go ahead or congratulating someone. Use: G’wed lad nice one’.
H – Heavy – meaning serious / bad news but can be good news. Use: ‘Ahh lad that’s heavy. Sorry to hear” or use: ‘I am rough, last night was heavy’. Could also be used: ‘That scran was heavy’.
I – Is right – meaning correct or deserved. Use: ‘I heard about your promotion – is right, lad’.
J – Jarg – meaning fake. Use: ‘That trackie is jarg’.
K – Kecks – meaning trousers. Use: ‘I’ve only gone and ripped me kecks lad’.
L- Lad – meaning lad, can be boy/man/hero. Use: ‘Yes lad’.
M- Minty – meaning dirty. Use: ‘Eeee that is proper minty’.
N – Naa – meaning no. Use: ‘Naa I’m not having that’.
O- Ooer – expressing surprise or alarm. Use: ‘Ooer look how nice that weather is outside’.
P – Prinny – meaning princess. Use: ‘Look at her acting like a right little prinny’.
Q – Queen – a term of endearment. Use: ‘Come here Queen how are you?’.
R – R’s – meaning ours/home. Use: ‘Are you coming round r’s?.
S – Swerve – meaning avoid. Use: ‘Definitely swerve that’.
T – Trabs – meaning trainers. Use: ‘Look at these new trabs i’ve just bought’.
U – Undies – meaning underwear.
V- Vom – meaning to vomit. Use: ‘Eee that is gonna make me vom’.
W – Wool – meaning someone from the surrounding areas of Liverpool. Use: ‘He likes to pretend he is from Liverpool but he is a wool’.
X – X in the City – a strip club in Liverpool. Use: ‘didn’t I see yer down the x last night?’.
Y – Youse – the plural of you. Use: ‘Are youse all coming to r’s?.
Z- Z Cars – the theme from Z Cars is the music Everton walk out to at Goodison Park.
