Cockney Rhyming Slang

Cockney Rhyming Slang is a specialised form of slang used in the East of London. It is a kind of antilanguage where words are replaced by phrases that rhyme (sound the same): North and south = mouth Adam and Eve = believe Sometimes, the last word is dropped.

Why is Cockney Rhyming Slang called so?

A Cockney is a Londoner; the original definition was someone born near enough to hear the bells of Bow, which meant people in the east of the city. The word Cockney means the egg of a cockerel (male hen) and was meant as an insult, implying dishonesty in business deals by trying to sell non-existent or low quality goods, or so the story goes. The term is now used happily and proudly by the people of the east and north of London, who regard themselves as the 'real' Londoners in a very cosmopolitan city where a lot of the population have come in from other areas of the country or abroad.

As well as having a distinctive pronunciation and many grammatical features, the language of London is most notable for its Rhyming Slang. This consists of using a phrase that rhymes, sounds the same, as the word you want to say, so 'telephone' becomes 'dog and bone'. Unfortunately, many of the phrases then lose the second word, making it very hard for the outsider to guess the original meaning; 'rabbit' for 'talk' comes from the phrase 'rabbit and pork', but few would be able to guess it.

A lot of the original rhyming slang appeared among the market traders in the east end of London in the 19th century, but it is still used and new words and phrases are being invented all the time. At the moment, it is very fashionable to use famous people's names, so the DJ Pete Tong is used meaning 'wrong'- 'thing's have gone Pete Tong'.

Here is The List of Cockney Rhyming Slangs beginning with
C.


Cab rank: (UK) Cab rank = bank


Cabin cruiser: (UK) Cabin cruiser = boozer (pub- 'booze' is a colloquial term for alcohol)


Calvin Klein: (UK) Calvin Klein = wine


Camilla Parker Bowles: (UK) Camilla Parker Bowles = Rolls (Royce)Camilla Parker Bowles is married to Prince Charles


Canterbury Tales: (UK) Canterbury Tales = Wales


Cape Horn: (UK) Cape Horn = gay porn (Pornography)


Car and scooter: (UK) Car and scooter = computer


Casablanca: (UK) Casablanca = wanker


Cattle truck: (UK) Cattle truck = fuck It is often used as a past participle to mean that something is broken or doesn't work: The photocopier is cattled again.


Chairman Mao: (UK) Chairman Mao = cow


Chalfont St Giles: (UK) Chalfont St Giles = piles (haemorrhoids/hemorrhoids) Usually shortened to 'Chalfonts'


Chalk Farm: (UK) Chalk Farm = arm


Chamois leather: (UK) Chamois leather = weather


Chas and Dave: (UK) Chas and Dave = shave Chas and Dave were singers in the 1970s


Cheese bap: (UK) Cheese bap = Jap (Japanese person)


Cherie Blair: (UK) Cherie Blair = penalty fare Cherie Blair is the wife of a British politician and was asked to pay a fine for not having a ticket on a train.


Cherry pie: (UK) Cherry pie = lie (noun) 'It ain't a cherry pie.'


Chicken and rice: (UK) Chicken and rice = nice


Chicken Curry: (UK) Chicken Curry = worry (often used as a verb) 'Don't chicken curry about it.'


Chicken Jalfrezi: (UK) Chicken Jalfrezi = crazy Chicken Jalfrezi is a popular dish served in Indian restaurants- many items on Indian restaurant menus have become rhyming slang.


Chicken Oriental: (UK) Chicken Oriental = mental (crazy)


China plate: (UK) China plate = mate (friend) Normally used in the phrase 'me ol' China' (my old friend) 'Dutch' can be used as a substitute for China, but is less common


Choc ice: (UK) Choc ice = dice


Christian Slater: (UK) Christian Slater = later Christian Slater is an actor.


Claire Rayners: (UK) Claire Rayners = trainers (training shoes) Claire Rayner is an agony aunt in the UK.


Cobbler's awls: (UK) Cobbler's awls = balls (testicles- meaning rubbish, nonsense) - A loads of cobblers.


Cockney rhyme:(UK) Cockney rhyme = time "What's the Cockney?"


Colonel Gadaffi: (UK) Colonel Gadaffi = cafe (often pronounced 'cafee' in Cockney)


Council gritter: (UK) Council gritter = shitter (anus)


Cousin Kyle: (UK) Cousin Kyle = paedophile (pedophile) Cousin Kyle is a character in the South Park cartoon.


Cream crackered: (UK) Cream crackered = knackered (very tired)

This is The List of Cockney Rhyming Slangs beginning with
C.

Cockney Rhyming Slang Index




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