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Cockney

There's probably no such thing as original Cockney; like all language, Cockney has developed over a period of time and words appear and disappear all the time. The lexicon below is based on rememberances of pre WW2 Cockney rhyming slang, where beer was 'pig's ear' long before Britney Spears was thought of. What appears on this page is an attempt to document rhyming slang which has been around for a long time and some of which has disappeared from common use. Any genuine additions would be welcome and if you can verify the source then all the better.

Cockney was supposedly started as a device for thieves to communicate with each other particularly when in the presence of the police. It would usually be used in a shortened form, using the first half of the rhyme to confuse even further. Thus I'm going down the frog for a ball first translates to I'm going down the frog and toad for a ball of chalk, and finally to I'm going down the road for a walk. The humourous appeal of the rhymes became popular and spread to more common usage, first among the people of the east end of London, then to London more generally in the working class areas.

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A Adam and Eve - Believe Almond rocks - Socks Apples and pears - Stairs Aristotle - Bottle Artful dodger - Lodger Ascot races - Braces B Baker’s dozen - Cousin Ball of chalk - Walk Barnet fair - Hair Battle cruiser - Boozer Bees and Honey - Money Bo Peep - Sleep Boat race - Face Borassic lint - Skint Bottle stopper - Copper Brass tacks - Facts Bricks and Mortar - Daughter Brown bread - Dead Bucket and float - Coat Burnt cinder - Window Bushel and peck - Neck Butcher’s Hook - Look C Cain and Able - Table Camden Town - Crown Captain Cook - Book Chalk Farm - Arm China plate - Mate Currant bun - Sun D Daisy roots - Boots Dickie Dirt - Shirt Dickie bird - Word Dirty tyke - Bike Dog and bone - Phone Duke of York - Pork E East and West - Vest Eighteen pence - Sense Elephant’s trunk - Drunk

F Frog and Toad - Road G Gold watch - Scotch (whiskey) H Hackney marshes - Glasses Half Inch - Pinch Hampstead Heath - Teeth Hard roe bloater - Motor Harry and Billy - Silly Hearts of oak - Broke I I suppose - Nose Itches and scratches - Matches J Jack and Jill - Hill Jack Horner - Corner Jack Jones - Own Jam jar - Car Jam tart - Heart Joanna - Piano K Kate Carney - Army L Loaf of Bread - Head Lion’s lair - Chair Loop the loop - Soup M Marquis Grand - Hand Mickey mouse - House Mince Pies - Eyes Mother Hubbard - Cupboard Mother of pearl - Girl Mutt and Jeff - Deaf

N Needle and pin - Gin North and South - Mouth O Oxford scholar - Dollar P Peas in the pot - Hot Peckham Rye - Tie Pen and ink - Stink Pig’s ear - Beer Plates of meat - Feet Pork pies - Lies R Rabbit and pork - Talk Rory O’More - Floor Round the houses - Trousers Rosie Lee - Tea Rub a dub - Pub S Saucepan lid Kid Scotch pegs Legs Skin and blister Sister Sky rocket Pocket Syrup of figs Wig T Taters in the Mould - Cold Tea leaf - Thief Tin tack - Sack Tit for tat - Hat Tom Foolery - Jewellery Tom Harry and Dick - Sick Trouble and Strife - Wife Turtle doves - Gloves Two and Eight - State U Uncle Ned - Bed W Whistle and flute - Suit

 

Links Cockney Rhyming Slang Dictionary The Cockney Internet

 

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