It’s no secret that in Liverpool we have a huge collection of popular sayings that you wouldn’t hear anywhere else.
And while you will find some of the friendliest people in the world on Merseyside, get on the wrong side of a scouser and a perfectly-timed put-down will come flying your way.
However, you may not always understand exactly what the insult means. It seems those who live further out from the city just can’t understand some aspects of our favourite slang words when they're thrown into the mix.
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Here are 12 of the best scouse insults you’re guaranteed to hear on any night out in town:
Do one
Usage: “Do one soft lad.”
A well used put-down and a variation on ‘get lost’. More generally used when you want someone to stop doing something, rather than when you want them to actually go away.
Divvy
Usage: “You absolute divvy.”
Made famous by Brookside, this was Jimmy Corkhill’s put-down of choice. The word has two possible origins – one theory is that it’s an abbreviation of the 1950s Unemployment Dividend and was used to describe someone who didn’t have a job.
Another is that it comes from the use of the Scotch Davy (‘Divvy’) lamp, which had a tendency to explode. Miners were therefore called a ‘divvy’, if they used this type of lamp down the pits.
Biff
Usage: “Shut up yer biff.”
Not to be confused with bifters (ciggies) this is a variation on ‘div’. It is basically used to describe someone who’s acting a clown.
Beaut
Usage: “He’s a beaut, he can do one.”
Whereas biff has a slightly affectionate tone, beaut tends to be reserved for those who really act like an idiot. Mates that let you down, colleagues that constantly wind you up, football players that can’t kick a ball – all beauts.
Whopper
Usage: “He’s an absolute whopper for doing that.”
Nothing to do with Burger King, this put-down is for someone who has amazed their friends with their ridiculous behaviour. If someone’s made a huge, daft mistake, they’ve been a whopper. More of an affectionate dig, than a full on insult.
Yer ma
Usage: “Yeah well, yer ma…”
This one has likely come from the football terraces. “Tell me ma, me ma…” has been sung at the match for years and soon ‘yer ma’ became the ultimate way to wind up your mates. Got nothing left in an argument? Just say “yer ma” and that’s come back enough.
Geg out
Usage: “Just geg out will ya.”
Thought to have evolved into slang from the word ‘get’, people can try to “geg in on” something – or in other words, get involved despite having not been asked – but if they’re not wanted they’ll be told to “geg out”.
Woolyback behaviour
Usage: “That’s pure woolyback behaviour.”
This is thought to originate from the time when people would travel into Liverpool from other towns to work in the docks as scab labour. Some of the jobs involved carrying woollen bales and workers would end up with it on their clothing, hence the term ‘woolyback’.
If you live somewhere like Wirral, Knowsley, Runcorn, Warrington, or Lancashire, expect anything you do to be described as ‘woolyback behaviour’.
Muppet
Usage: “Give it a rest you muppet.”
Similar to biff, this describes anyone who has been a bit of an idiot, from your kid sister to the old fella in the pub who can’t handle his ale.
Are you messin?
Usage: “Are you messin?”
Simply translated as ‘are you having a laugh?’ If someone has done something particularly stupid, they will be asked this question in a particularly insulting tone.
Blert
Usage: “He’s a bad blert.”
This is simply used to refer to someone who's irritating or has acted like a fool.
Soft lad
Usage: "What are you doin soft lad?"
While this is commonly used by scouse nans – usually when asking their granddaughter what their fella's been up to – it can also be thrown about as an insult, with varying degrees of malice depending on the situation.
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