Understanding the Yorkshire Dialect

Eeh by gum, a glossary fer tha. Yes, it's a Yorkshire dialect glossary brought to all by Yorkshire Trike Tours. Enjoy and very soon you'll be chelpin' like a local.

GLOSSARY: A

Yorkshire Term           Definition

allus                             always

'appen                          maybe, possibly e.g. "I'll 'appen that's it" for "that's possibly true"

aye                               yes

 

GLOSSARY: B

Yorkshire Term           Definition

backend                       autumn

bad 'un                         no good

badly                           not in a good state of health, i.e.'How's Martha?', 'She's badly.'

Baggin                         packed lunch

Bagsey                        childhood term, i.e. 'bagsey my turn!'

Bairn                           child

bait/ bait box                snack/ packed lunch

bap                              bread bun

bazzerking                   relaxing/ telling off (?)

beck                            brook

beefin(g), blubberin(g)    crying

be reight                      it'll be alright

berg                            mountain

best y' do                    see that you do

black bright                  very dirty

bog                             toilet

bonce                          head

bonny                          pretty

brant                           steep e.g. "'tis a brant hill"

bracken                       ferns

bray/braying                 beating e.g. "you'll get a good braying" or "I'll bray you"

breadcake                    bread roll or bap

butty                            sandwich

 

GLOSSARY: C

Yorkshire Term          Definition

cack-handed                left-handed, clumsy

carr                             marsh

chat                             fir cone

chelpin'                        talking

childer                         children

chippy, chip 'ole            fish and chip shop

chuckin your guts up    being sick

chuddy                        chewing gum

chuffed                        pleased, excited

clarty                           dirty, muddy, sticky

clammy                       stone (of a size you might throw)

clout                            cloth or slap

cludger                        toilet (in Knaresborough)

coal 'ole, coyle oyle     coal cellar Listen to our Yorkshire dialect expert's poem 'Down in't coyle oyle' - coit/cooat    coat

croggy                         riding on the cross-bar of a bicycle

 

GLOSSARY: D

Yorkshire term            Definition

daft as a brush             stupid

dale                             valley

delve                            dig

dowly                           dull, gloomy, misty day

down't (road)                 down the (road)

drinkings                      mid-morning snack farm workers took to work

dursn't                         daren't

 

GLOSSARY: E

Yorkshire Term           Definition

'ead                              head

eeh by gum                  oh my God

 

GLOSSARY: F

Yorkshire Term           Definition

Faffing                          messing about

fair t' middlin                 fair, in the middle

famished                      hungry, starving

fast                              stuck

fell                               moor

fettle                            to tidy/mend

flaggin(g)                      tired, worn out

flayed                           scary

flippin 'eck                    (flipping heck) exclamation of shock and surprise

flitin'                             oving house

flower                           term of endearment

flummoxed                   confused

foss/ force                    waterfall

fowl                              bird

friggin'                          a curse

frozzed                         referring to face or fingers being very cold

 

GLOSSARY: G

Yorkshire term            Definition

gaffer                            the boss

gander                          look at

garth                             yard

gear                              items, things

gill                                 stream

ginnell                           alleyway

gi' over                          give over, stop it

giz, gizza, gizzyer         give, give us, give your

goffs                             smells horrible

goodies /spice              sweets

good 'un                       good one

goosegog                     gooseberry

gormless                      stupid

gripe                             garden rake

guff                               fart

gunna, gonna               going to

 

GLOSSARY: H

Yorkshire Term            Definition

hell fire!                         goodness me!

 

GLOSSARY: I

Yorkshire Term            Definition

in a bit                           bye

in't                                 in the

 

GLOSSARY: J

Yorkshire Term            Definition

Jammy                          very lucky

Jiggered                        very tired

 

GLOSSARY: K

Yorkshire Term            Definition

Khali                             sherbert

Kegs                             trousers/underwear

kiddin(g)                        telling a fib, joking

 

GLOSSARY: L

Yorkshire Term            Definition

lake, laikin(g), larking     play (i.e. "Is your Lesley coming out to lake?"), playing

lass                              girl/young woman/wife

lavvy                             toilet

leg                                throw

v. (to have a) lem on       to be angry, moody (like having a 'monk on')

lowence                        snack whilst working, especially for farmers

lug, lug'ole                    ear

 

GLOSSARY: M

Yorkshire Term           Definition

maffin'                          hot and clammy weather

(I'm) mafted                 (I'm) hot

manky                         not nice, unpleasant

mardy                          moody, sulky, stroppy

mester                         mister

middin'                         muck heap

middlin(g)                     ok, average

minging                        horrible, unpleasant

mithered, mitherin(g)     irritated with something, as in "stop mitherin' me" is "stop bothering/irritating me".

v. (to have a) monk on    to be grumpy, to have a sulky face

missen                         My self e.g. "I'll do it missen"

 

GLOSSARY: N

Yorkshire Term           Definition

Narky                           Moody, sulky, stroppy, (mardy)

n'arn                             now then

neb                               nose

nesh                             cold. Often exclaimation that an individual is 'soft' for feeling the cold or term of mild abuse e.g. "nesh southerners!"

nithered                        very cold

not back'ard                  

at comin' for'ard             (not backward at coming forward) pushy person

nouse                           sense

nowt/ nout                     nothing

now then                       hello

 

GLOSSARY: O

Yorkshire Term            Definition

oh aye?!                        oh really?!

'ow do                           how are you, hello

owt                                anything

 

GLOSSARY: P

Yorkshire Term            Definition

pack it in                      stop it

paggered                      knackered e.g. "I'm completely paggered" or "I've just paggered my dad's car"

parkin                           ginger cake made with oats

pikelet                          crumpet

playin(g) pop                 to tell of/ get angry with

plother                          mud

pop                               fizzy drink

pot washin'                    washing up

pudgy                           fat or chubby person

put wood in'th oyle         shut the door

 

GLOSSARY: Q

Yorkshire term             Definition

 

GLOSSARY: R

Yorkshire term             Definition

radged                          Angry

ratty                             grumpy/gross

(it) reeks                       (it) smells horrible

reet                              right

rum'n                           Cheeky/bit of a character e.g. "He's a rum'n"

 

GLOSSARY: S

Yorkshire term             Definition

sam/ sam up                 collect together/ tidy away

sarnies                          sandwiches

scotch yows                  ewes

scran                             food

seethe                           do you see? (often used at the end of a sentence)

sh' in't in                        she isn't in

shoon, shooin                shoes

side/ side the pots         clear/ clear the table

siling down                    raining heavily

sithee                           goodbye (see thee)

(have a) skeg                (have a) look

skell over                      fall over, tip over

skip                             ship

skrike                           cry, scream

slape                            slippery

snap                             food

snicket                          small alleyway or footpath

Spanish                        licqourice - apparently because Spanish monks bought a licquorice tree to Rievaulx Abbey

spelk, spell                   splinter

spice                            sweets

spoggs                         sweets

sprog                            child

spuggy                         sparrow

starved/starves              really cold (not 'hungry' as you might expect) or makes cold eg: "Milk starves                                    my tea"                    

sten                              stone

stor                               great

strand                           shore

summat                        something

sup                               drink

 

GLOSSARY: T

Yorkshire Term           Definition

ta                                thanks

tarra                             bye

tek                               take

thee, tha                      you

thissen                         yourself

thorpe                          hamlet

threp                            a blow or a kick

thwaite                         clearing

tyke                             yorkshire person

 

GLOSSARY: U

Yorkshire Term           Definition

Un                              one

up-skelled                   upset, knocked over, spilled

 

GLOSSARY: V

Yorkshire Term           Definition

vexed                          angry

 

GLOSSARY: W

Yorkshire term           Definition

waint                           won't

watter                          water

while                            until e.g. "I'm working while seven"

wick                             alive or lively

 

GLOSSARY: X

Yorkshire Term           Definition

 

GLOSSARY: Y

Yorkshire Term           Definition

ya, yan                        one

yam                             home

yat                               hot

yonder                          over there

yune                             oven

 

GLOSSARY: Z

Yorkshire Term            Definition

 

 

OTHER YORKSHIRE PHRASES

Yorkshire phrase and their Definition

 

'appy as a pig in muck - very happy, content with oneself

 

arse over tit - head over tail

 

couldn't organise a p*** up in a brewery/ couldn't organise a set of fat bobbies - badly organised, can't do anything right

 

look frinint ye - look in front of you (i.e. when walking)

 

more brass na brains - more money than sense

 

near as makes n'matter - close enough

 

neither use nor ornament - expression of disapproval; useless

 

not enough room to swing a cat - very small room, cramped

 

a Scarborough Warning - bad behaviour that will result in a punishment, i.e. "You better watch it, you're on a Scarborough warning young lady".

 

s*** with sugar on - over-elaborate, posh food

 

that ladgin buewer chored me pack up - that unattractive girl I don't like very much has stolen my packed lunch

 

that's a threp in't steans - that's a blow/ kick in the... (shins?)

 

well, I'll go to't foot of't stairs/ I'll go to our house - expression of amazement

 

were ya born in a barn? - you've left the door open: close it!

 

where's it at? - where is it?