Dictionary of Contemporary Slang

M n

morphine. A drug users’ abbreviation. mac n

1.American a term of address to a male stranger. The word often conveys a hint of provocation rather than straightforward friendliness.

2.British a mackintosh, raincoat

machismo n

assertive maleness, overt masculinity. The word evokes virility, supremacism, etc. It is not strictly speaking slang but a direct borrowing from the Spanish (and as such should be pronounced as in ‘match’ not ‘mack’).

macho adj

assertively male, aggressively masculine. The word is a direct borrowing from Spanish in which it means male, particularly in an animal context, hence virile.

‘Her experience among women rappers trying to cut it in the macho world of Hip Hop led Charlotte to look again at the girl groups from the Seventies she’d always loved.’

(Ms London magazine, 4 September 1989)

macho up vb

an alternative form of butch up (to behave more assertively, courageously or to show more masculine characteristics). Macho is Spanish for male in the assertive or dominant sense of the word.

mack n British

the penis. The word, of uncertain origin, was reported in Loaded magazine in October 1994.

macker n British

a black person. An item of racist rhyming slang based on ‘macaroon’: coon, heard in London working-class circles in the early 1990s and reported in the London Evening Standard, 9 September 1991.

mack on (someone) vb

to flirt with, try to impress. The term probably originated in the USA but by 2004 was in use among UK teenagers.

mad adj American

a large amount or great number of. In this sense the word is a key item of black American speech. Since 2000 it has been in use also among younger speakers from other ethnic backgrounds.

Mad love to all my peeps.

made-in n British

a ‘two-one’ honours degree. A students’ jocularism based on ‘made-in-Taiwan’. An alternative form is a draw: ‘two won’.

made-up adj British

content, satisfied. This regional term from the Merseyside area became widespread in the 1990s, following its use in TV soap operas such as Brookside and Coronation Street and reports such as that of the London Evening Standard, 25 November 1993, regarding the James Bulger murder case.

mad for it adj British

enthusiastic, unrestrained. The phrase was popular in Manchester during the midto late 1990s and was a favourite expression of Liam Gallagher of the Britpop band Oasis.

‘Everyone’s going, oh you’re splitting up, but we’re not splitting up. ’Cos we’re mad for it.’

(Liam Gallagher quoted in the NME, 30 September 1995)

madhead n British

a crazy, unrestrained person

‘The majority of the press we’ve had makes us out to be these madheads who only appeal to dickheads who’d stick a bottle over your head.’

(Liam Gallagher of Oasis quoted in the NME, 30 September 1995)

mad money n American

a.money set aside by a girl or woman in case she is abandoned or offended by her date. In this sense of the word mad signifies anger (on the part of the girl or her escort).

b.money set aside for frivolous, impulsive or self-indulgent purposes. In this version the sense of mad is the British ‘crazy’.

Both uses of the phrase date from before World War II. They are now dated but not quite obsolete.

mad props n American

congratulations, respect. A catchphrase since 2000, originating in hip hop parlance.

mad-up adj British

annoyed. An item of black British slang.

mady n South African

a sweetheart or wife. Recorded as an item of Sowetan slang in the Cape Sunday Times, 29 January 1995.

mag n Australian

a conversation, chat. Usually heard in the phrase to ‘have a mag with someone’. This sense of the word was first recorded in England in the 18th century and is said to be derived from ‘magpie’ as a synonym for or an evocation of chatter.

maga adj

an alternative spelling of margar

ma-gent, amagent n South African

a young male, particularly one considered dapper, alert, aware, etc. Recorded as an item of Sowetan slang in the Cape Sunday Times, 29 January 1995

maggot n

1.a despicable, dirty and/or insignificant person. In British use, the predominant idea is usually ‘beneath contempt’, whereas in Australia maggot is a generalised term of abuse.

2.British money. A rare usage, heard among petty criminals or their imitators among others. Like many obscure synonyms for money, it has been rehabilitated since the late 1980s.

I’ve got to get hold of some maggot in a hurry.

maggoted adj Australian

drunk. One of many synonyms evoking low, despicable behaviour and/or impaired movement.

magic1 adj British

superlative, excellent. An over-used colloquialism since the late 1970s which is characteristic of garrulous or overenthusiastic lower-middle-class and working-class speech. It is often heard in the context of sports such as football or darts.

‘Belfast is “magic” – local demotic for “super” or “marvellous” or whatever high superlative leaps instinctively off the tongue.’

(The Crack: a Belfast Year, Sally Belfrage, 1987)

magic2, magic dust, magic mist n American

the drug PCP (also known as angel dust)

magic mushrooms n pl

any hallucinogenic mushrooms such as psilocybin or the native British ‘liberty caps’. In the later 1980s users began to refer to them as shrooms.

Compare rooms

Mahatma (Gandhi) adj British

randy. The rhyming slang term, borrowing the name and title of the late Indian spiritual and political leader, was first recorded in 1998 but may be older.

feeling a bit Mahatma tonight

maiden n

an unattractive woman. This pejorative use of the word has been recorded among US college students and London teenagers since 2000.

main drag n

the main or central street. An American phrase from the early years of the 20th century, heard elsewhere since the 1970s. (Drag was also used to mean street in Victorian cockney speech.)

mainline vb

to inject (an illicit drug) directly into a vein. The term is one of the most persistent pieces of addicts’ jargon, contrasted with skin-popping (injecting subcutaneously or intramuscularly). The meaning is sometimes extended to denote the regular ingestion of anything in large quantities.

main man n American

a.a boss, leader

He’s the main man around here.

b.(a woman’s) partner, boyfriend, husband or protector

He’s my main man.

c.one’s best friend, buddy, bosom pal

Yo, Billy, my main man! How’re they hanging?

main squeeze n American

a.(one’s) boyfriend or girlfriend, sweetheart

b.the most important person, a boss, leader

major adj

excellent, exceptional, admirable. A vogue adjective in adolescent usage in the 1990s. The appropriation of the standard term probably occurred first in American speech. Like mega and totally it was initially used to qualify another word before being allowed to stand alone.

‘… the sixties were mega, the seventies were major, and what you are going to see now is going to be totally massive!’

(Scratchy & Co., children’s TV show, 8 March 1997)

make1 n

1a. American an identification or instance of recognition (of a suspect) 1b. American a check in official records on the identity of a suspect or on another piece of evidence

Run a make on this guy, will you?

Can we have a make on the license number?

2. a sex partner. The term is a back-for- mation from the sexual sense of the verb make, on the same principle as lay.

make2 vb American

1. to identify, recognise (a suspect or adversary). A piece of police and criminal jargon well known from its use in fiction, TV and films.

‘Can you make him?’

(The French Connection, US film, 1971)

2. to have sex with, seduce. This euphemism from the turn of the 20th century, although understood, has never caught on in Britain or Australia. It has occasionally been adopted by individuals, including the philosopher Bertrand Russell.

make babies vb

to have sex, make love. A coy or jocular euphemism used by adults.

make ends vb American

to win, achieve success. The term, used by rappers and hip hop aficionados, is a triple pun: in slang ends denotes money, to ‘make ends’ is, in the game of dominoes, to win, and the colloquial to ‘make ends meet’ is sometimes a euphemism for to become wealthy.

make out vb American

a.to indulge in necking or heavy petting

b.to succeed in having sex.

See also make-out artist

Both are teenagers’ extensions of the colloquial sense of the phrase; to be successful. The usage is probably influenced by the verb make as a euphemism for seduce or have sex with.

make-out artist n American

a successful seducer, stud. The term is invariably applied to males. It is from the verb make out, meaning to achieve sexual satisfaction or success.

malco n British

an unpleasant and/or obnoxious person. In playground usage since 2000 and also used by adults in the Liverpool area. It derives from ‘mal-coordinated’.

mallie, mall rat n American

a (usually female) teenager who hangs around shopping malls in order to meet friends, misbehave and/or otherwise have a ‘good time’. A phenomenon and expression in existence since the early 1980s.

malteser n

1.an old or middle-aged male. This item of rhyming slang for geezer was quoted in Private Eye magazine, 6 May 1994, ascribed to Essex girls at Tramp nightclub who were referring derisively to the newspaper editor Andrew Neil.

2.a black person who adopts or accepts white culture

‘What’s wrong? This one’s a racist and this one’s a malteser.’

(Grange Hill, BBC TV series, February 1997)

mampy1, manpy adj

1.British ugly. This term, originating in black usage, was adopted as a vogue word by London schoolchildren from the 1990s, along with near-synonyms mashup, bruck(ers) and uggers. Its precise etymology is uncertain.

2.ruined, destroyed

mampy2 n British

defined by a user in 2002 as ‘a mashed(- up) or fat person’

mams n pl British

female breasts. A shortening of mammaries. The word has been used by adolescents of both sexes since 2000.

Man, the n American

1a. the police, the government, the (white) establishment or any other

authority, or person in authority. A usage coined by underdogs which was taken up by the black power and hippy movements of the late 1960s.

‘Looking for a job in the city/ Working for the Man ev’ry night and day.’

(‘Proud Mary’ by John Fogerty, recorded by Creedence Clearwater Revival, 1969)

1b. a sports champion, pop singer, etc. considered by the speaker to be the top practitioner of his craft

There were a lot of good heavyweights around in the ’60s, but Ali was the Man.

2. a supplier of illicit drugs, a pusher, dealer or connection

‘I’m waiting for my man/ Twenty-six dollars in my hand.’

(‘I’m Waiting for my Man’ written by Lou Reed, recorded by The Velvet Underground, 1967)

man at C&A n British

a male wearing embarrassingly unfashionable clothes. The derisive phrase borrows the name of a range of massmarket casual wear from the C&A clothing chain. An item of student slang in use in London and elsewhere since around 2000.

mandie, mandy n British

a tablet of Mandrax (the British trademark name of methaqualone, a potentially addictive ‘hypnotic’ sleeping preparation). These drugs, like their American counterparts, Quaaludes or ’ludes, were taken by drug abusers for their relaxant, disinhibiting and supposedly aphrodisiac effects.

‘The staff and editors of Oz wish to protest against the flippant attitude of our art director towards Mandrax in the caption above [‘Mandies make you randy’]. Mandies are both addictive and dangerous.’

(Oz magazine, July 1972)

M and M’s n pl British

tedious and/or unpleasant people. The disguised term of abuse (the letters stand for ‘muppets and morons’) has been used in office slang and in call centres, etc. since 2003. M and Ms are chocolatecovered sweets.

Mandy n British

an alternative for Sharon

Did you see all the Mandies vamping around their handbags?

mangled adj British, Irish drunk

mangoes n pl American

female breasts. One of many terms employing the metaphor of round fruit.

man in the boat n See little man/boy in the boat

mank n, adj British

(something) unpleasant. In playground usage since 2000, the term is probably a shortening of the earlier adjective manky.

manky adj British

grotty, disgusting or distasteful. A 1960s vogue word, mainly in middle-class usage. The word had existed previously in working-class speech: it may be an invention influenced by ‘mangy’, ‘cranky’, ‘wonky’, etc., or a corruption of the French manqué (lacking, failed). It is still used in northern England where its usual sense is naughty or spoilt.

man-like … combining form British

in the fashionable language of teenage gangs of the mid-1990s, the phrase is affixed to a proper name, e.g., ‘man-like Toby’, when addressing or referring to a friend. The term was recorded in use among North London schoolboys in the 1990s.

manners n pl Caribbean

situation, moral ambience. Usually heard in the phrase under heavy manners, meaning oppressed, behaving under the threat of discipline. The term was employed in the context of the Rastafarian and reggae subculture in the early 1970s and was briefly adopted by young whites, especially in the world of rock music.

mano-a-mano adj, adv, n American

(engaged in) a physical confrontation or face-to-face encounter. The term, which refers literally to grappling or wrestling, is the Spanish for ‘hand to hand’.

He remembered his mano-a-mano with Palma.

manor n British

one’s own district or area of jurisdiction. A word used by both police and criminals since before World War II.

mans n Caribbean

a group of men. The term has been adopted by some UK teenagers since 2000.

mansdem n Caribbean

a group of close friends. The term has been adopted by some UK teenagers since 2000.

man upstairs, the n

a humorous euphemism for God map of France/Ireland/America etc. n

a.a stain on a sheet

b.a patch of vomit

The use of the phrase map of Ireland to describe semen stains on bedsheets is said to originate among chambermaids, many of whom were themselves Irish.

mapping n British

tracing the contours of a partner’s body with the fingers. The term is usually heard among adolescents describing petting, and was included in Just Seventeen magazine’s ‘lingo of lurve’ in August 1996.

maps n pl British

male breasts. The word, heard since 2000, was probably coined by analogy with baps.

maracas n pl

a.female breasts. A mainly American usage.

b.the testicles. In British speech the (rare) term is reinforced by the rhyme with knackers.

maratata n South African a gun

marbles n pl

1.the testicles. A predictable drawing of a literal parallel (rather than, as some have claimed, an example of rhyming slang on ‘marble halls’). Pills, balls, stones and nuts are similar metaphors.

2.common sense, sanity, mental faculties. This use of the word was originally American, perhaps deriving from a folk tale.

See also lose one’s marbles

mardarse, mardie n British

a ‘softie’, a weak person. A schoolchildren’s word heard from the 1930s onwards, particularly in the north of England. It is now rare, but not quite archaic, and comes from a dialect form of ‘marred’ which has the specific sense of spoilt or sulky. Anthony Burgess mentions that the word was used of him by tormentors during his childhood. Mardie has also been heard in use as an adjective.

‘Go out with your Dad. Don’t be such a bloody mardie.’

(Recorded, Leicester, 1990)

mare n British

1. a woman. A derogatory working-class usage on the lines of cow, bitch or sow.

Mare usually has overtones of ‘nag’ in both its senses and hence denotes a drab, wearisome woman. The word was given a wider currency by its use as a strong but acceptable term of abuse in TV comedies.

‘It was a mare of a game.’

(Comedian Bob Mills in ITV Heroes and Villains, 1994)

2. See have a mare

margar1, maga adj

skinny, slender. An item of Caribbean patois, also heard in the UK.

margar2 n

a thin man or woman. A term from Caribbean speech, also heard in the UK since 2000, especially among younger speakers.

marinate vb American

1.to hang out

2.to relax, chill out

mark n

a dupe or target chosen by a conman, pickpocket, etc. An old term, recorded as long ago as 1885 and still in use all over the English-speaking world

‘She is drawn into an underworld of cons, scams, “marks” (suckers) and “tells” (their involuntary give-away gestures).’

(Review of David Mamet’s US film, House of Games, Independent, 19 November 1987)

mark someone’s card vb British

to tip someone off, give someone a warning. This phrase from the jargon of horse-racing has been adopted by London working-class speakers, in particular in police and underworld circles. The usual implication is a firm but gentle (or menacing) taking aside and ‘putting in the picture’.

You can leave it to me, I’ll mark his card for him.

marmalize, marmelise vb British

to destroy, utterly defeat. This invented word, suggesting, like spifflicate, some unspecified but comprehensive punishment, is probably a children’s invention, perhaps based on marmalade. It has been used by adults for comic effect, particularly on radio and television (by Ken Dodd’s ‘Diddymen’ and the scriptwriters of Coronation Street among others).

I’ll marmalize you!

marmite-driller n British

a male homosexual. The term, one of a set of synonyms including chutney-ferret, fudge-nudger and turd burglar, was used, e.g., by the British stand-up comedian Ben Elton in a monologue in January 1994. The reference is to contact with excrement in the course of sodomy.

Marmite motorway n British

the anus. A synonym is Bourneville boulevard; the American equivalent is Hershey highway.

marp n British

an erection. The usage was recorded among middle class adolescent males in 2000.

married alive adj British

in a steady or long-term relationship. The pun, on ‘buried alive’, evokes a person trapped in a sterile partnership. The phrase was popularised by the UK journalist Julie Burchill.

mary ann n British

a male homosexual, effeminate man. One of several usages of common Victorian or Edwardian female forenames (Nancy, as part of nancy boy, and jessie are others which have survived) to refer derisively to effeminate men.

Mary Jane, Mary Warner, Mary Jane Warner n

marihuana. These are English puns or hobson-jobson versions of the Spanish name for cannabis. One spelling of the word, marijuana, is a literal translation of Mary-Jane, although the original Mexican form, marihuana, is a familiarising prefix (from ‘Maria’) added to a native Amerindian word meaning something like ‘herbal substance’.

Marzipan set, the n British

a yuppie coinage, defined by George Pitcher in the Observer as ‘Those city flyers who are above the rich cake but below the icing’

mash1, mash-up, mashed(-up) adj British

1a. destroyed or damaged

1b. ugly

2a. exhausted, worn out

2b. intoxicated by drugs, high

‘After secretly munching her pills my mates watched in confusion as I sweated my way through lasers and flamethrowers. I was totally mashed; Christmas had definitely come early.’

(Independent, 24 January 1995)

2c. extremely drunk

‘Let’s go and get mash-up.’

(Recorded, Kent schoolgirl, 2003)

All the senses of the words arose in black speech and derive from the image of destruction and damage. In the later 1990s the expression crossed over into the fashionable slang of white teenagers and young adults.

mash2 n, vb British

(to make) tea. From the use of the term in the beer-brewing process.

mash-up n British

a disaster, mess. From the earlier adjectival usage.

a real total mash-up

mass n British

a gang or group of friends. A fashionable synonym for crew, set and posse in the mid-1990s. The term was recorded in use among North London schoolboys in 1993 and 1994.

massive1 adj

excellent. This sense of the word probably arose from its use in the music and film industries in such formulations as ‘massive hit’, extended to ‘this band are going to be massive’.

‘… the sixties were mega, the seventies were major, and what you are going to see now is going to be totally massive!’

(Scratchy & Co., children’s TV show, 8 March 1997)

‘We had a really good time. the whole experience was massive.’

(Celebrity Love Island contestant, The Sun, 21 June 2005)

massive2 n

a group, clique or gang. The vogue term, heard since the end of the 1990s and popularised by the comedian Ali G among others, may be in origin an elaborated form of mass, or influenced by massive in the sense of overwhelming, impressive, etc.

Shout goin’ out to the Dundee massive.

Masters of the Universe n pl American yuppies, high-fliers, senior or influential figures. In the early 1990s the phrase was adopted from video games and children’s toys to refer only partly ironically to the most successful Wall Street traders, brokers, etc.

matelot n British

a. a sailor, referred to patronisingly by soldiers, policemen, etc.

b. a member of the river police, as referred to by other sections of the police force

The word matelot is French for sailor.

mattress-muncher n Australian

a (passive) male homosexual. A rarer and probably later version of pillow-biter.

maulers n pl British

hands. A mainly middle-class schoolchildren’s usage, popular in the 1950s and early 1960s.

Keep your maulers off my things, will you.

maungy adj

miserable, grumpy, disaffected

MAW n American

a glamorous and/or idle woman of uncertain profession. An abbreviation of ‘model, actress, whatever …’, it was an ironic social categorisation originating in the later 1980s and heard in showbusiness and media circles. (It is pronounced as a word rather than letter by letter.)

max adv

at most, to the maximum extent

I swear he only earns £25k, max.

See also to the max

mazooma, mazuma n

money. An American term heard since the early years of the 20th century. Like many other picturesque but dated synonyms it was revived in British speech in the late 1980s. The word is originally Hebrew, entering American slang via Yiddish.

McDonald n British

the sum of £250 or, more usually, £250,000 in the argot of City of London financial traders in the 1990s. The reference is to the McDonald’s ‘quarterpounder’ hamburger.

McJob n American

a menial and/or temporary job. The term arose in connection with the slacker generation/Generation X and was based on the notion of educated middle-class youngsters taking temporary jobs at, e.g., McDonald’s burger restaurants.

‘People with short attention spans and no work ethic … barely surviving in … low status, short-term McJobs.’

(Independent, 24 April 1997)

MCP n

a sexist man. An abbreviation of ‘male chauvinist pig’, a feminist vogue term

which appeared in 1970. It was often used in this shortened form both in writing and, less often, in speech. If used, the expression is now usually truncated to ‘chauvinist’ or even ‘chauve’.

‘He’d ordered a Heineken from a waitress who was a real throwback, an MCP’s delight.’

(The Serial, Cyra McFadden, 1976)

MDA n

methyldiamphetamine, a synthetic drug which is chemically related to the stimulant amphetamines, but which in some users elicits hallucinogenic experiences supposedly similar to those associated with LSD. The drug was first popular in the early 1970s in the USA, and came once again into vogue in the late 1980s in the UK, where it was known as adam or, more usually, ecstasy, and became the drug of choice among young club-goers and dancers.

mean adj

wonderful, impressive, excellent. A typical reversal of the standard (American) meaning in black code and later teenage usage, like the more recent bad and wicked.

meat and two veg n British

the male genitals. A working-class vulgarism dating from the days when these components constituted the standard British meal, as advertised in cafés, boarding houses, etc. (Veg is short for vegetables and is spoken with a soft ‘g’.) Meat has been a slang synonym for the penis, as well as for human sexuality in general, since at least the 16th century.

meatball n

a clod or fool; a brawny but unintelligent male. The word may be used as a variation of meathead, or less pejoratively to denote an attractive male, a hunk (albeit patronisingly).

‘My Swedish Meatball.’

(Title of an American softcore movie)

meathead, meat head n

a stupid person, dullard. This word was first popularised in the USA. The image evoked is either based on meat signifying solid muscle (instead of brains) or perhaps on the sexual sense of meat as the penis, in which case the expression is a precursor of the popular term dickhead.

‘A man of patient indulgence, apparently capable of putting up with every bozo and meathead who comes his way.’

(Jonathan Keates reviewing Malcolm Bradbury’s Unsent Letter, Observer, 5 June 1988)

meat injection n British

an act of sexual intercourse. The vulgar euphemism is invariably used by male speakers.

meat market n

a place where people congregate in the search for sexual partners; a singles bar. The phrase is usually used dismissively of dance halls, clubs, etc. by non-par- ticipants or ex-participants.

meat rack n

a place where, or occasion when available sexual partners are on display. The phrase is specifically used in a gay context to describe public places and events such as bars, discos, parties, etc. at which homosexuals gather.

meat wagon n

a.a police van, black maria

b.an ambulance

c.a hearse

All the senses of the phrase were first heard between the world wars.

mega adj

enormous, hugely successful, great, wonderful. A popular teenage buzzword since the mid-1980s, by the end of the decade mega had penetrated adult speech, in particular journalese. In origin it was an adaptation by black American youth of the fashionable late1970s prefix ‘mega-’ into an independent adjective.

This band is going to be mega, mark my words!

We had this real mega thrash.

megabucks n

an enormous amount of money. An Americanism of the 1970s which is now heard elsewhere, including Britain, where ‘-bucks’ remains the suffix although not strictly appropriate. (‘Mega-’ was a fashionable prefix of the late 1970s.)

He’s making megabucks in the City.

mellow out vb

to become relaxed, serene; to free oneself from tension and inhibition. The phrase is a cliché of the hippy era, taken from the jargon of jazz and, later, rock

musicians. It is still heard, largely in American speech.

melon n American

the head. The humorous usage featured in the cult 1992 film, Wayne’s World.

Use your melon, guy!

melon(-head) n British

a stupid person. The word was recorded in use among younger teenagers in the late 1980s.

melons n pl

female breasts. An obvious metaphor which exists in other languages, notably Spanish. The word was employed as a nickname by the British tabloid press in 1986 to refer to the supposedly buxom figure of Lady Helen Windsor.

melvin vb American

to grab by the testicles

‘I don’t believe we just melvined death.’ (Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey, US comedy film, 1991)

Melvin n American

a boring person, nonentity. The Christian name was thought in the 1950s to be quintessentially mundane, personifying a suburban dullard. More recently it has been a term of abuse among college students.

Melvyn (Bragg) n

1.a sexual encounter, shag

2.a cigarette, fag

The rhyming slang uses the name of the British TV arts programme presenter and novelist.

memsahib n British

a.one’s wife

b.a dignified, domineering or redoubtable woman

The word, now usually employed facetiously, is a form of madame-sahib (sahib is Hindi for master or lord), a form of address used by Indian servants in the colonial era. (The usual pronunciation is ‘memsaab’.)

meneer n South African

a teacher. The term is Afrikaans for ‘sir’. Recorded as an item of Sowetan slang in the Cape Sunday Times, 29 January 1995.

mensch, mensh n

a. a reputable, admirable or dependable person (usually, but not invariably, a male). An approving term from Yiddish and German in which its literal meaning is man, woman, person or humankind.

b. an exclamation of surprise or alarm from Yiddish or German

mental1 n See throw a mental

mental2 adj

1. British mentally ill, subnormal or deranged, crazy. A widespread colloquialism which showed signs of losing popularity in the 1970s, perhaps due to increased sensitivity; this tendency was reversed by punks, fans of heavy metal and others who enthusiastically adopted the term to refer to their characteristic frenzies, headbanging, etc. In these circles the word may be used to express admiration.

See also chicken oriental; radio rentals 2a. exciting, dynamic

2b. excellent, good

mentalist n British

a crazy, eccentric or obsessive person. A common pejorative term among younger speakers since the late 1990s. In standard English the word denotes a mind-reader.

me ’n’ you n

a menu. A time-honoured pun heard in all English-speaking areas.

merchant banker n British

a contemptible person, a wanker. This rhyming slang, coined in the late 1980s like its synonym ‘Kuwaiti tanker’, highlights a contemporary concern (in this case the spectacular mid-1980s developments in the financial centres of the City of London) to revitalise a familiar epithet.

mereng n South African money

merkin n

a.the female pubic area or female sex organs

b.an artificial vagina, used as a sex aid

Merkin is a late medieval word for a wig designed to be worn on the female pubis, usually in order to disguise the effects of syphilis. It probably originates as an affectionate diminutive form of Mary. From the 1960s the word was better known in the USA than Britain.

mersh adj

commercial. A word used in the 1980s in fashionable youth circles and rock journalism, usually at least slightly pejoratively.

mersh tendencies.

Meryl (Streep) adj British

cheap. The rhyming slang term, in use since around 2000, uses the name of the Hollywood actress.

messed up adj

intoxicated by or suffering the aftereffects of alcohol or drugs

messy adj

excellent. A term from the lexicon of dance music and hip hop.

mestern n South African

fashionable clothing. Recorded as an item of Sowetan slang in the Cape Sunday Times, 29 January 1995.

Met, the n British

the London Metropolitan Police force. The abbreviation by which they refer both to themselves and their district or area of jurisdiction (which covers most of central and suburban London but excludes the City).

meth n

Methedrine (the trademark name for methamphetamine). A drug user’s abbreviation for the powerful ampheta- mine-based stimulant (speed) which has been widely abused, particularly in the midand late 1960s.

meths n British

methylated spirits, as drunk for its intoxicating effects by alcoholics, vagrants, etc.

metrosexual n

a stylish, narcissistic male. The term combines metropolitan and heterosexual and denotes a straight man with gay tastes or attitudes. It was coined in the USA in 2002 and became a vogue term in most English-speaking areas in 2003.

Compare stray; stromo

Mexican breakfast n

a cigarette and a glass of water. A witticism originating in the USA, where the Mexican reference is supposed to evoke poverty and lack of sophistication or competence. There have been other, probably later, variations on this pattern, among which are dingo’s breakfast and ‘pelican’s breakfast’ (a glass of water).

mezoomas n pl

female breasts. One of many similar invented terms probably based on the archaic bazumas, a corruption of bosom.

Michael Jackson n British

an amount or quantity under ten. The term was used by City of London financial traders in the 1990s and the refer-

ence was to the celebrity singer’s supposed attachments to young children.

mick n

1a. an Irish person. This shortening of one of the most common Irish Christian names (along with Patrick or Paddy) was first used in the USA and Australia to personify the Irishman or a person of Irish descent. The usage had spread to Britain by the early years of the 20th century.

1b. a Roman Catholic, by extension from the first sense

In both senses, the word is usually used unaffectionately or pejoratively.

2. See take the mick/mickey/michael

mickey (finn) n

a soporific or stupefying drug administered to a person without their knowledge. The word was first recorded in the USA in the early 20th century. It may derive from the name of a real individual or from a generic (probably seafarers’) term for a cudgel or thug.

Mickey (Bliss) See take the mick/mickey/ michael

Mickey Mouse adj

amateurish, unworthy of consideration or respect. A contemptuous description beloved of the business world in the 1970s and 1980s, Mickey Mouse has in fact been used in this way since before World War II when the phrase was applied for instance to childish or simplistic music or the bands which played it. It subsequently denoted any institution or venture which did not deserve to be taken seriously.

It’s strictly a Mickey Mouse operation they’re running there.

middle leg n

the penis. Third leg is an alternative form of the euphemism.

mighty greens n South African

dagga. The term, referring to the colour of the herbal cannabis, was recorded as an item of Sowetan slang in the Cape Sunday Times, 29 January 1995.

milf n American

a desirable older female. The designation, typically used by young males in conversation or Internet chats, derives from the phrase ‘(A) Mom I’d like to fuck’.

militant adj

1. an all-purpose term of approval. A usage originating in Jamaican yardie

speech, which has now been taken up by adolescents in the US and Britain.

2.violent or ‘known as being hard’

3.angry

A term used by young street-gang members in London since around 2000.

milkshake n American

female allure, sexiness. The quality, referred to in a song by Kelis, is the feminine counterpart of pimp-juice.

She got milkshake. milly n British

a.a disreputable young female

b.a chav of either gender

The term, of uncertain origin, was recorded in 2005.

milned-up adj British

incarcerated. The term, from the jargon of prisoners, now often refers to temporary imprisonment in, e.g., an observation cell. In the form ‘milned-in’ the phrase dates back at least to the 1940s: Milne were the makers of doorlocks used in prisons.

milquetoast, milktoast n American

an un-macho, meek man; a wimp. Reminiscent of the food given to invalids, milquetoast derives from the name of the fictional character Caspar Milquetoast, created by the American cartoonist H. T. Webster. Zsa Zsa Gabor used the term, to the puzzlement of many British viewers, when interviewed during her trial for assault in California in 1989.

‘Asked why she resisted, she said: “I’m a Hungarian woman … not a milquetoast”.’

(Agency report on Zsa Zsa Gabor during trial)

mincer n British

a male homosexual, effeminate or effete male. In armed-forces’ usage, from the notion of a ‘mincing gait’.

minces n pl British

the eyes. From the cockney rhyming phrase, ‘mince pies’. The expression is still used today by working-class Londoners; it is now invariably heard in the shortened, one-word form.

OK then, feast your minces on this!

minder n

a bodyguard. A word which emerged from the obscurity of working-class and criminal slang into general usage in the early 1970s, mainly due to the fashion for quasi-realist crime drama on British television. This trend culminated in the