In Ireland, two languages are prominent. Irish (or Gaelic) and English. The Irish version of English is much different to Oxford style English and even people from England find it hard to understand Irish people because of their strong accents and strange phrases.

Here is a list of words and phrases in alphabetical order to fill in some of the gaps and help you understand what they mean:

A Acting the maggot playing around Ages long time Any Use? any good? Arse backside Arseways complete mess (I did it all arseways) Artist person getting social security (drawing the dole) B Babby little child – baby Bad dose bad illness Bag of Taytos packet of potato chips/crisps Bags bad, messy job (see hames) Banjaxed broken, useless, tired Barn brack Halloween cake Belt hit, assault Be wide be careful Bird girl, girlfriend Black crowded Blackguard person that is doing no good Black Stuff Guinness Blather talk Bloody used mostly for strengthening an adjective Bog toilet, restroom Bog country area/ piece of land that once was a lake Bogey snot Bogtrotter country person Bold naughty Bollocks stupid/somebody one doesn’t like Bolloxed very drunk Bolt run fast Boozer pub Bothrin narrow lane or road Bouzzie, Bowsie young good-for-nothing person Boxin’ the fox robbing an orchard Boyo a young person Brasser prostitute Brutal terrible Bucketing raining heavily Bushed very tired Business excrete C Carry-on argument/noise Cake-hole mouth Cha tea Chancer dodgy/risky character Cheek disrespect/talk back Cheesed Off angry/annoyed Chinwag a chat Chipper fish and chip shop Chiseller

Chronic young child

terrible or awful Class great Clatter slap Cod (to) joke Colcannon Mashed potatoes & cabbage/ kale Cop on! don’t be so stupid! Cooker stove Covers blankets Craic (pronounced crack) fun time Crisps potato chips Culchie a city dweller’s name for a country person Cute hoor Untrustworthy/sly person D Da father Deadly cool, great Dear expensive Delph crockery, cups, saucers etc Desperate terrible Diabolical really terrible Diddies breasts Divil devil Dodder waste time Dodgy suspect/mechanically impaired Donkey’s Years a long time Dope idiot On the Doss playing truant Dosser lazy person Dote cute person, usually a baby Drawers underwear, usually ladies Dry Shite boring person Dummy pacifier Dump (taking a) excrete E Eat the head off Attack verbally Eejit idiot F F-word used freely, mostly for strengthening an adjective Fag cigarette Fair play! well done! Feck used instead of the other F word Fella Male person, also used for boyfriend Fib a lie Fifty stood-up (I got a fifty) Fine thing/fine bit of stuff Attractive/good looking person Fla/Flah Attractive/good looking person Flah’ed out very tired Flicks movies Flitters in tatters, shabby Fluthered very drunk Follier-upper a serial Foostering wasting time Fry fried breakfast (sausage, bacon, eggs and black & white pudding) Full shilling mentally competent (He’s not the full shilling) G Gaff house Gas funny Gawk stare Gee-Eyed very drunk Get off with (someone) make out, kiss Gift superb Git horrible person Give Out scold Gob mouth (Shut you gob!) Gobdaw idiot Gobshite idiot Gobsmacked very surprised Go-car baby’s pushchair Gollier a big, fat spit of phlegm Gone in the head mad, crazy Go way outta that! indicating scepticism Gowl idiot Grand fine, lovely Guard policeman Gurrier hooligan Gut stomach H Hames mess Hammererd very drunk Hard Neck lack of respect Hardchaw, Hardman rough, tough person Header mad, crazy person Head the ball idiotic person Heel the first or last slice of a loaf of bread Hickey a love bite High babies senior infants’ school Holliers holidays/vacations Holy show embarrassing exhibition Hooley party/celebration Hoor prostitute Hop playing truant from school Horse’s hoof embellished story Hot Press drying cupboard Howya hello- salutation Hump, the sulking Hump off go away, leave me alone I I will in me ring

I will yeah I will not!

No, that will never happen I am in me wick I am not! J Jackeen a country person’s name for somebody that lives in Dublin Jacks toilet, restroom Jaded fatigued/very tired Jammers very crowded, busy Jammy lucky Janey Mack! Gosh Jar A pint Jaysus! Jesus Juicy pretty K Kip, to have a short siesta, rest Knackered fatiguedvery tired Knick-knacking ringing a doorbell and running away Knobs breasts Knockers breasts L Langers/langered drunk Lashing raining heavily Lay off! leave me alone, stop it! Legging (it) running fast Letting on pretending Local, the the nearest pub Locked very drunk Lolly/ice lolly Popsicle Low babies junior infants’ school M Ma mother Maggot(Stop acting the maggot) Stop playing around! Manky very dirty Mary Hick old-fashioned female Mentaller crazy person Me ould segotia, me ould flower Terms of endearment Messages shopping, groceries Messing playing around Milling fighting Mitch bunk school Mortified embarrassed Mot girlfriend Motherless drunk Mouldy drunk/ rotten Murder difficult Mushies magic mushrooms N Nappy Diaper Nickser, Nixer a job done with no tax paid on wages Nip nude O Odds loose change Off the drink abstaining from drinking alcohol Off your nut mad, crazy Ole Lady/ole wan mother Ole Man/ole fella father On the never never On Hire purchase Ossified drunk P Paralytic very drunk Perishing freezing Pictures movies Piss in the Beds dandelions Pissed off angry/annoyed Piss up a night of big drinking Plastered very drunk Plonker idiot Polluted very drunk Poteen/Poitin illegal Irish spirit/drink Pram stroller/pushchair Press closet, cupboard Puck slap in the face Pull your socks up Get to work/get busy Puss Face bad-tempered person Q Queer hawk peculiar person R Rapid amazing Rashers bacon slices Reddener blush Red neck a country person Reef beat up Ride an attractive person, to have intercourse Root look for Rosie Lee tea Rubber eraser Ructions Loud arguing or commotion Runners trainers, everyday sports shoes Runs diarrhoea S Sap weak/fragile person Scab a person who constantly borrows Scab the hard outer part of a healed wound Scallion spring onion Scalped to get a short haircut Scanger ignorant female Scarlet blushing Scatter run away from something Scram! go away! Scratch social security, dole Scratcher bed Scrawbed Scratched by fingernails Scrubber female of low morals Scutters diarrhoea Shag, to to have intercourse with Shagged fatigued/ very tired Shattered fatigued/ very tired Shenanagans different things going on Shlossed very drunk Shook Pale, ill, scared Shorts liquor drinks (spirits) – shots Shower of savages a riotous crowd Slagging making fun of someone Slapper female of low morals Slash urinate Sleeveen sly person Snapper child, baby Snobby Weather! Ignoring me? Snog, Shift to make out, kiss Snug pub booth (usually fitting only 3/4 people) Sound really nice Specky Four-Eyes person who wears glasses (child’s nickname) Spuds potatoes Squealer a person who tells stories to get another in trouble Stop the lights! Really?! Stocious very drunk Strand beach Suckin’ diesel having a good time Sweets candy T Thick stupid /unintelligent Throwing Shapes Showing off Tip unclean, messy place Tool idiot Trap mouth Twisted very drunk Twistin’ hay means you’re starting trouble, usually in a playful way U Up the pole pregnant Up the yard! Go away! Up to ninety near boiling point, ready to explode W Wagon ugly female Wanker a person you don’t like Wet the tea make tea Whist keep quiet Wrecked tired Y Y-Fronts Men’s briefs Yoke

Yonks a word used to name something instead of its proper name. “pass me that yoke” (pass me that hammer)

a long time Your hole (to get) to have sexual intercourse

Watch a hilarious video of tourists in Dublin trying to say some common Irish phrases: