Word(s)Description
a The word of often comes out like this    'A packet a cheese an onion'.

act it Someone who is acting it is pretending to be innocent, trying to make another person believe that he knows nothing about what is going on: Don't act it, pal. Ah left a full pint standin oan the bar when Ah went tae the lavvy.

after When a person has recently done something he may describe himself as being just after it: Naw, Ah couldny go a sweetie hen; Ah'm just after ma dinner.' 'Thats him got his books an he's just after buying a new motor'.
What are you after? is a question that might be addressed to you in a pub. This is not a hostile or nosy enquiry but a reuqest as to what you would like to drink.

bachleA relatively mild insult aimed at anyone considered old or odd-shaped or slovenly   Ah'm no walking up the road wi a wee bachle like you

backie If you help a friend climb a wall by bending over and allowing him to stand on your back you are giving him a backie. The same term is used when a cyclists lets someone climb on behind him on his bicycle: 'Moan Ah'll gie ye a backie up the road.'

backs The area behind a block of tenements is known as the backs: 'There's a pack a dugs runnin through aw the backs.' Individually, each close will have its own back court or back green: 'Aw naw, here's the rain on an Ah've got a washin oot on the back green.'
The two terms can be interchangeable but as tenements are refurbished the actual green or plot of grass is often replaced by a paved area.

Cally Nicknames for Carlsberg Special, a proprietary brand of strong lager:    'Thats three heavies, two Callies, an a vodka an Irn Bru.

canny This means can't: Ye canny shover yer granny aff a bus

cargo A slang word for carry-out: Ye should a seen the size a the cargo they turnt up wi!'

daFather: Is that your da waiting at the bus-stoap? ;want a wee hand wi they messages, Da?

dabbity A transfer, that is, a design printed on glosy paper that when licked and applied to the back of a child's hand will leave an image on the skin: 'Call that a tattott? ah've seen better dabbities.'

dale At a swimming pool, the dale is the high diving board or platform: 'Gaun! Ye're feart tae dive the dale!'

eachy peachyA slang expression meaning a fair division, equal shares: Two tae me, two tae you, that's eachy peachy, intit?'

eat-the-breid A nickname, usually more affectionate than disparaging, for a person considered fond of eating: 'C'mon you an me'll have the last two snowballs before Big Eat-the-breid comes in.'

eejit An idiot: the daft eejit but a pie straight oot the oven an burnt aw his mooth.' A variation if this is eejit-heid.

faceGlaswegians must be great aficionados of facial beauty judging by the number of ways they have of describing an unattractive face:
a face like a chewed caramel'
a face like a bullgod chown a wasp
a face like a burst couch
a face like a burst tomato
a face like a camel eatin sherbet
a face like a Halloween cake
a face like a melted welly
a face like a wee hard disease
a face like a welder's binch(i.e. bench)
a face like a well-skelped arse
a face like it went on fire and somebody put the flames out with a shovel
a face like somebody sat on it before it was set/while it was still wet
a face like you gat at Tam Shepherd's(Glasgow's famous trick & joke shop)

gallusIn Glasgow this is a general term of approval for anything considered excellent:     Gallus waistcoat, wee man!' When applied to people it's more about attitude and includes elements of toughness, cheek, self-assurance and boldness:He jist stoats right inty the place as gallus as anything. Ye'd never get me gaun oot wi wan a these wee guys that think they're gallus'

gaun Go on: 'Gaun doon tae the chippy an get us a pakora supper.' The word is often used to tell someone to go away: 'Ah'm fed up looking at ye. Beat it! Gaun!' On the other hand, the phrase gaun yersel is intended to encourage someone in what he is doing or to show approval: 'Gaun yersel, Da! You tell the wee bampot.' This probably comes from a football fan's cry in support of a player perfoming some individual magic. Gaun can also mean going: We're aw gaun on wur summer holidays'

gauny Literally this means going to: You're gauny get yer backsid skelpt!' When part of a request or question it means are you going to, but the idea is really a firm suggestion rather than a tentative query: 'Gauny see's ower that screwdriver?' 'Gauny shut yer face, you?' One step further, gauny no introduces a request not to do something: Gauny no keep bumping inty us pal?'

hackit An unflattering description, meaning ugly, that seems to be more often applied to women than men.:    That yin fancies hersel an she's pure hackit an aw

hairy A wee hairy is an abusive name for a young woman considered sluttish: The only ones that go to that club are neds and wee hairies. To 'take a hairy fit'(sometimes shortened to 'take a hairy') means to go crazy with anger: 'Your brother'll take a hairy when he sees the state you've got his Armani jacky inty'

haufers When two individuals agree to buy some things between them, sharing the price equally, this is to get haufers: 'Ah'l go haufers wi ye on a new video'.

Ibrox ParkThe home ground of Rangers F.C.:    His faither stopped gaun tae the gemme efter the Ibrox Disaster in seventy-wan.

icey Short for ice cream van: 'That tune sounds dead like the one the icey plays'

intit no? This literally means 'isn't it not?' and is a common double negative, frequently used by a speaker seeking confirmation of some negative statement: Its nae use gaun up north in this weather, intit no?'

jagA jag is an instance of being pricked by something, especially an injection:    Ah hate it when the dentist gies ye a jag in the mooth   To jag is to prick:    She jagged her finger on the barbed wire.' Put yer shoes on - somethin on the greass might jag yer foot.'

jaiket A jacket. To 'haud the jaikets' means to be in attendance at some event without taking part, be an onlooker: 'Don't ask me what's gaun on pal. Ah'm only haudin the jaikets here.' This comes from the ceremony of a playground fight in which the two combatants have theit square go while a supposedly neutral third party takes custody of their jackets and any other restictive accoutrements. If someone's jaiket's on a shoogly nail this means that his position is not secure, that there is a threat oflosing his job. The literal meaning is, of course, that the nail on which the person is accustomed to hang his jacket has become loose and the next time the person tries to hang up the said jacket it may, along with the nail, fall to the floor: Late again, eh? You better screw the nut, sonny boy, cause yer jaiket's on a shoogly nail.'

keechRhyming with 'dreich', this is a term for any kind of filth, but especially excrement:Mind yer feet oan that dug's keech. Like other similar words this can be used to mean a disliked person: Whats that wee keech sayin noo?'

keekaboo A local name for the game of peekaboo as played to amuse very young children.

keeker A black eye: Thats a right keeker ye've got.

LaldyAn odd word, meaning punishment or enthusiastic participation. To give it laldy means to give one's utmost enthusiasm and effort to whatever it is one is doing: The boy wi the Lambeg drum wasny hauf giein it laldy. To give someone laldy is to give the person a severe chastisement, whether physically or verbally:Aye, yer granda used tae gie us laldy wi a slipper for the likes of that

lamp To 'lamp' someone is to hit him: He just walked up tae the big diddy an lampt him right in the mooth.' It can also mean to throw something: 'Thats the guy that lamped a hauf-brick at the polis'

Lanny A nickname for Lanliq, a proprietory brand of inexpensive fortified wine: Gie um a boatle a Lanny an that'll be him happy.

maMy:Ma maw's a millionaire!

malky A cutting or stabbing weapon, especially (and originally) a cut-throat razor. To get the malky is to be physically attacked: 'You're gauny get the malky if ye don't get aff yer mark'. To malky a person is to attack him, especially using a bladed weapon: Tell the crapbag Big Ronnie's on his way roon tae malky him'. To get malked in is to do something with great vigour and enthusiasm

naebodyTwo local variants of 'nobody':'Naebdy came tae the door.''Is there noabdy wantin spiced onions?

nae nae kiddin Definetly no kidding, an emphatic insistence that you are telling the truth used especially by children. It can also be a question, meaning you're not having me on, are you?: 'Look, Ah'll definetly get ye in for nothin.' Nae Nae kiddin?' 'Nae nae kiddin.'

naw A local variant of no: 'Aw naw, ma galluses've snapped!.

offThe phrase 'for the off' has several meanings: 1 about to leave, departing:Is that you fur the off? Ah'll see ya doon the road
2: Being dismissed from a job:Ah hear theres five ae us fur the off
3: about to die:Wan merr fright like yon an Ah'll be for the off.

offski A slang way of saying off, as in departing: 'Wan merr cup a coffee an Ah'm offski'

old Used in various combinations meaning father. old boy, old man, old fellah. Old yin can be mother or father. Old dear, old doll, old girl all mean mother: 'tell yer old dear wee Mrs Brannigan was askin for her'.

pa or pawBoth used locally to mean 'father':Tell yer pa his tea's oot.''Could ye go another wee goldie, Paw?'

Paddy's Market The well-known street market, just off The Briggait, which gained its name through being frequented by impecunious Irish immigrants. Its rough-and-ready appearance and the miscellaneousness of the goods on offer(everything from a secondhand weans cardigan to a genuine Charles Rennie Mackintosh fireplace) ensured its use in comparisons with any untidy place: 'Hes got the hoose lik Paddy's market since she went inty the hospital'.

queerIn the prase 'a queer difference' the word means great, not strange: Theres a queer difference between the top line and whit ye come away wi in your hand.

queued out A term used to describe any place or event that is very busy or crowded: We tried tae get inty the Odeon tae see that Braveheart II, but when we seen it wis queued oot we just came away'

quoted This term comes from the world of betting and refers to the odds quoted by the bookies for certain racehorses or other competitors. In everyday speech well-quoted means highly thought of or respected: 'Ah hear that councillor you've got's well-quoted.'

raIn broad Glaswegian the word 'the' often comes out as 'ra':Whit d'ye make a ra boays the day?

rag Someone who loses his temper is sometimes said to lose the rag: The boay said it wis an accident...there nae need tae lose the rag

raging Extremley angry: Ah knew she'd be ragin, so Ah didny bother phonin'.

Saltmarketthe phrase all the comforts of the Saltmarker is a piece of irony meaning no comforts at all, no mod cons: Aw we're needing is a bit a carpet doon, the watter oan, an somethin tae sit oan an we'll have aw the comforts a the Saltmarket!

sangwidge An odd version of sandwich: 'The french fancies do look nice but I think I'll just have a wee cheese sangwidge'

sanny This can mean a sandshow; 'Don't forget yer sannies for gym tomorrow.' It can also be a sandwich: 'Ah've et nuthing aw day but a packet a British Rail sannies.'

tackety books Hobnailed boots, studded with tackets: aw the young lassies are gaun aboot wi big tackety boots on

tail The phrase on your tail means on your person, in your possession, and is usually used in referring to cash: 'Ah'm no gauny get very far wi wan-fifty oan ma tail, uh Ah?'

tallyman A slang word for a moneylender or loanshark: 'Ah'm inty the tallyman fur a hunner.' Presumably the name comes from the moneylender keeping a tally of how much he is owed by whom.

umin broad Glaswegian speech, a version of him:If Ah get um Ah'm gauny stiffen um.

up In the field of gambling, to describe something as up means that it has won: 'Maybe we'll have the coupon up this week.' 'Thats me got a line up'

ur A local version of are: 'Ye're a great wee soul, so ye ur!'.

verseThis means to play against someone in a game:Away in an get yer baw an Ah'll verse ye at heidies. This odd expression comes from the term versus (as in Pollok versus Rob Roy) being understood as if it was a verb verses.

vicky The vickey is the rude two-fingered V-sign: He got sent off for givin the fans the vicky.' The term is probably shortened from victory, as in the V-sign popularised during the Second World War by Winston Churchill

voddy Vodka: Shes tanned a hale boatle a voddy hersel.' 'Gies two voddies...wan wi lime in it.'

waccy baccyA slang term for marijuana:What are you gigglin at? Been at the waccy baccy or something?

wallies (Prounounced to ryhme with valleys) This means false teeth: 'If Ah've tae spend any mair on fillins Ah'm gauny get that dentist tae rip the hale jing-bang oot an gie us a set a wallies' The term suggests that the false teeth might be made of china, or wally.

walloper A slang term for the penis.

yThe word 'of' in broad Glasgow speech often comes out soundling like a y added to the end of the word it follows:Gie us somey they crisps.Ah'm fed up wi' the pairy yeez.

yap An extremely talkative or gossipy person: 'That wee yap would talk the hind legs off a donkey.'

ye A form of you which is often appended to an insult, magnifying and focussing its strength: 'Ya stupit-looking monkey, ye!' .

zedTo 'have a few zeds' and 'stack up some zeds' are slang expressions meaning to have a sleep. 'Big zeds' means a long deep sleep, as opposed to forty winks:Ah'm definately needin big zeds the night. Ma eyes are hingin oot ma heid.