10 Awesome* Words and Phrases

10 Awesome* Words and Phrases

4 MINUTE READ  

*Just for the record, I hate the word Awesome. 

When you were aged about 8 did you look up Naughty Words in your school dictionary?   

Oh, ok, that was just me then.  

Anyways, I still do that – but now I use Urban Dictionary. It’s one of my FAVOURITE websites EVER and THE place to go if you want to find out what the hell rappers and everyone under 25 are on about, with their

IRL – In Real Life 

ROFL – Rolling on the floor laughing

YOLO – You Only Live Once

 And their

 BRB – Be Right Back 

TBH – To be Honest 

CREAM – Cash Rules Everything Around Me

Now, I know a lot of language purists complain about the increased use of slang and acronyms and abbreviation and swearing and the Americanisation of English-English and the Englishisation of American-English…but I love it all. Language has never been RICHER – there are so many clever and funny and brilliant new ways to expression yourself – or FASTER – thanks to social media they spread like wildfire. 

So here are my current pick of 10 Awesome Words and Phrases 

OOTD – Outfit Of The Day.  

Once you tune in you’ll see #OOTD all over the joint. Young & gorgeous bloggers love it – the idea is you take a photograph of yourself, leaning nonchalantly against a wall staring into mid-space wearing tons of makeup and all your new clothes and post it on social media channels  with #OOTD and links to where you  bought everything and then your gazillion followers will want to look like you and go buy all the clothes and you’ll get loads of money.  Sweet, eh. 

Unfortunately, for a while there, I got #OOTD confused with #OOFT (which means –  Wow this is fantastic)and was forever sharing photographs of me in horrible old tops eating cakes or drinking fancy Gin & Tonics with #OOTD when I actually meant #OOFTWhen I realised my mistake I worried that I’d have confused all my fashionista friends until I remembered I don’t have any fashionista friends. So that turned out ok then. 

Midlife woman eating cake
#OOFT not #OOTD

Oy Vey

I really wish I could speak Yiddish – it seems like such a stress-relieving language full of words, which, the minute you utter them, you feel instantly better about your troubles. My current favourite is Oy Vey, which can be used whenever something is wrong or annoying in life. It covers almost all eventualities from – We’re out of milk. Oy Vey to President Trumpety is gonna press that button any minute now. Oy Vey!

Mansplaining

If there are any guys reading this, sorry chaps but I just love this word. Mansplaining is when a man explains something that is really blindingly obvious to a woman,  in  M I N U T E  detail. For example, “So, Sally, think of it like this, in order for a car to  work it needs an engine and 4 wheels and some fuel.”  To which women might either play along and say “Really, Jeffrey, thank so much for explaining that to me”. Or shout “I know that already, you bloody Mansplainer!” and storm off in a huff (that’ll be me then).

Faceboast

C’mon we’ve all done it – taken that selfie in the Airport Departure Lounge clutching a glass of warm, over-priced Prosecco and posted it EVERYWHERE. Hard to resist the temptation I know but WE MUST!!   

It’s almost as bad as it’s annoying cousin Insta-perfect.

And following on nicely we have…

Thirsty

No, not desperate for a drink, but in modern vernacular thirsty means eager for attention and approval, especially on social media. Perfect usage might be to say  ‘”Jeez, that bloody blogger, Jill from Midlife Smarts is sooothirsty – she’s forever posting her unsolicited thoughts & advice and taking a wry look at midlife. Annoying!”

Fascinating!  

This is sarcasm at its best but it only works when written and includes the  !    

It would, for example, be ideal to say it to a Mansplainer except he wouldn’t hear the ! so much to write him a letter, along the lines of, – Dear Jeffrey, Thank you so much for taking 45 minutes of your precious time to explain to me that the black thing on my coffee table is called a Remote Control can be used to change TV channels and adjust volume. Fascinating! Yours sincerely, Sally.

 Hot Damn

I got this from the rather splendid Uptown Funk video. Hot Damn can be used whenever you approve of something (most useful when you are referring to one of your Midlife Crushes) eg Hot Damn, the butcher has a special on Barnsley Chops or I hear Ryan Goslin is awesome (grrrr) in that new movie where he takes his top off. Hot Damn.

Pesky

Scooby Doo is a great resource for some excellent words and Pesky (as in Those Pesky Kids ) is one of my particular favourites. It’s a friendly way to express your annoyance as in, I wish that pesky President Trumpety would stop threatening world peace or That Pesky Butcher is out of Barnsley Chops again. 

Unhinged

This is the perfect way to describe how you feel those times when rock back and forward and stare into space for hours on end or walk round and round in circles mumbling to yourself about your boss/partner/ex/neighbours/PPI phone calls.

So let’s finish off with a Scottish One shall we? Local words and expression are often THE BEST and Scotland has tons of awesome (grrrrr) examples but if I had to narrow it down to one it’d be… 

Taps Aff

…so to explain, the climate in Scotland is pretty rubbish BUT when temperatures rise (to the point that other countries would consider suitable for early Spring), young Scottish guys whip off their top and stoat (wander aimlessly) about bare-chested. This is commonly known as Taps Aff.    

If you live in the UK this handy (and hysterical) weather forecast website will tell you whether it’s a Taps Aff or a Taps Oan kinda day down your neck of the woods. 

Naked torso of muscular man
Gratuitious Image of a Male Torso

So what’s your favourite word or phrase? Keep it clean or I might have to look it up in Urban Dictionary. 

The End

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52 Comments

  1. 12 May 2018 / 1:27 pm

    This is an excellent list and I do love “a bit peaky” though it’s not native to my good ole USA. However, I can’t agree with not liking the word “awesome” for obvious reasons. šŸ™‚

    • Jill
      Author
      12 May 2018 / 1:53 pm

      Haha. Thanks Angela, and yes a Bit Peaky is a nice one. Jillx

  2. Sonia Boal
    12 May 2018 / 3:41 pm

    Yep, excellent list! My fav phrase is a local one too – you might well be familiar as I think itā€™s Ulster Scots

    Haul yer whist – ie stop talking/shut up, itā€™s particularly useful for whenever something is being mansolained to me

    • Jill
      Author
      12 May 2018 / 3:49 pm

      Haha. Yes Sonia I know that one well and have been known to use it on occasions šŸ˜‚šŸ˜³. Jill x

  3. 12 May 2018 / 4:43 pm

    I love the word awesome as I am kiwi born. We Kiwi’s own this slang word. My favourite would is awesome lol

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 7:24 am

      Hahaha – well, that’s fine with me Kate. I had no idea Awesome had such strong Kiwi connection – it can’t be all bad then ! Jill

  4. Stuart
    12 May 2018 / 5:37 pm

    Great blog, Jill. I learned a lot. Although I take exception to ā€œmansplainingā€ which I found a bit patronising. Thatā€™s when someone talks down to you. X

    • Jill
      Author
      12 May 2018 / 5:43 pm

      Hahaha. Good to know that. Thank you for explaining šŸ˜³šŸ˜‚ x

  5. 13 May 2018 / 7:57 am

    I love these. Never heard of Faceboast but it makes sense! I think I need to be in Scotland during one of these warm days!!

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 8:04 am

      Haha! I don’t the the Torso Guy in the pic is Scottish – but we can live in hope! Thanks for commenting. And yeah I love FACEBOAST Jill x

  6. 13 May 2018 / 7:59 am

    I love this list, especially Mansplaining! I’m sure some men just can’t help themselves!! Oh, and the gratuitous naked male torso was welcomed šŸ˜‚

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 8:06 am

      Haha – delighted you enjoyed. Mansplaining is a such a great word to describe something that’s always happened but no one put it in to words. Love it. Thanks for popping on. Jill

  7. 13 May 2018 / 8:19 am

    Love your list Jill!!! My Pops tries too . He loves LOL. But thinks it means lots of love.
    We thought that was cute so left him to it… until he sent a mass message to everyone he knew announcing some sad news. Followed by LOL!
    Had to tell him then it meant Laugh Out Loud and wasn’t quite the right thing to add to his message!

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 8:26 am

      Oh I am ROFL-ing !! At least your Pops is going for it! It is so easy to get these mixed up. I actually never know if LOL is Laugh Out Loud or Lots of Laughs. Guess it doesn’t matter. Thanks for popping on. JIll x

  8. 13 May 2018 / 8:23 am

    Well I definitely learned something! My students teach me new ones all the time too. Good fun Jill!

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 8:27 am

      Oh it must be handy having students to keep you updated!! I need to ‘get down with the kids’ more to keep up with all this. So fast moving. Thanks for commenting. JIll x

  9. 13 May 2018 / 8:25 am

    The Scottish have such descriptive words – Dreich is one of my favs – the word not the weather of course!

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 8:29 am

      Hey Fiona, yes Dreich is a great word. We have so many words for rain up here. Smirr meaning just a very light sprinkle of rain – which makes it sound nice – but it’s not! Thanks for commenting. Jill x

  10. 13 May 2018 / 8:30 am

    Such an educational list Jill! Loved it, especially canā€™t wait to see ā€˜taps affā€™ when we travel to Scotland! Have shared!!

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 8:36 am

      Thanks Debbie – great to hear. And yes hope you get to see Taps Affs while you’re up here!! Jill x

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 8:42 am

      THANX!! You’ve just made my Sunday morning. Jillx

  11. 13 May 2018 / 9:23 am

    Love this! Taps aff is a big hit with Scott Mills on his Radio 1 show whenever itā€™s hot he has people ringing in to say whether or not itā€™s taps aff weather. Very funny listen.

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 9:25 am

      Thanks Rachael. I look out for that. It’s such a big Glasgow thing. THere’s even merchandise šŸ™‚ Jill x

  12. 13 May 2018 / 9:27 am

    AWESOME list, Jill (do you see what I did there?). I love ā€œoh veyā€. I might have to start using that.

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 9:37 am

      Haha. Oy Vey is awesome!! I’ll look out for it in your posts. Don’t forget the ! for added emphasis šŸ™‚ Jx

  13. 13 May 2018 / 9:38 am

    Really enjoyed this post. Especially as Iā€™m married to a man ( as awesome šŸ˜œ as he is) will use the most incredible words in everyday sentences that I then have to look up as I donā€™t know what he means!! šŸ˜‚ Almost mansplaining (great word!) on a whole new level.
    My dad whoā€™s Scottish comes up with great words but canā€™t spell them let alone remember them at times.

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 9:44 am

      Thanks Donna. I am addicted to Urban Dictionary and look up anything I don’t understand. It’s really funny at times. Your husband sounds awesome indeed! There are some fantastic Scottish words. Would be a shame if they died out. Thanks for popping by. Jill x

  14. 13 May 2018 / 12:42 pm

    Loved this. Iā€™ve now got Bruno Mars and ā€œhot damnā€ stuck in my head šŸ˜„

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 12:44 pm

      Me too!! Such a brilliant video. Thanks for popping by. Jill

  15. 13 May 2018 / 1:33 pm

    You make me smile on my Sundays. I am so out of touch with everything but lol.

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 1:35 pm

      Hi Brenda – Me Too – that’s why I am forever on Urban Dictionary to see what people are on about !! Thanks for your comment – made my day. Jill x

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 3:55 pm

      Yeah they are worth remembering. I do have to look up almost everything!! Thanks for commenting. Jill.

  16. 13 May 2018 / 4:55 pm

    I’m cracking up over here because I was completely unaware of any new definitions of thirsty before I came up with my blog name. I thought it was just going to be a clever little thing about how my kids make me drink, oops

    • Jill
      Author
      13 May 2018 / 5:47 pm

      Oh haha. Thatā€™s so funny. I think itā€™s a bit of an obscure expression but I guess itā€™s really works as a blog name šŸ˜‚šŸ‘. Jill.

  17. 13 May 2018 / 9:18 pm

    I don’t speak Yiddish either, but I know just enough to believe that, as I’ve heard, Yiddish has words where other languages only have gestures. Which does make it hard to define a few of them.

    • Jill
      Author
      14 May 2018 / 8:38 am

      Hi Ellen, that’s so interesting. I must Google that! Thanks for popping by and commenting. JIllx

  18. 14 May 2018 / 2:01 pm

    A fun post, Jill. Thanks for leaving a live link on my blog so I could follow it. The first awesome phrase that comes to my mind is one I doubt you’ll find in your urban dictionary. It’s the South African, “Ja well no fine” spoken as one word. Ja = Afrikaans for yes; well – is well; no is English for . . . no . . ; and fine! Put together this means the equivalent to your ! but said with a splash of indignation. “Ja well no fine do it your own way, see if I care.”

    • Jill
      Author
      14 May 2018 / 4:11 pm

      What a great expression!! Love it. Thanks for popping by and commenting. Jill x

  19. 15 May 2018 / 6:08 pm

    I quite like the word humble-brag when people disguise a bit of bragging. Like “Oh no! I seemed to have been unfollowed by ten people today, I only have 20,000 followers” šŸ™

    I’m not sure I can *like* the word mansplaining though. It happens to be quite a lot!!

    • Jill
      Author
      15 May 2018 / 6:10 pm

      Haha. Thatā€™s a great one. Iā€™ll be using that. Thanx Jill x

  20. 15 May 2018 / 7:12 pm

    In reference to Americanization, a lot of those phrases or acronyms are pretty standard and I wouldn’t have thought about them not reaching English ears until now. Especially, “hot damn” which is very Southern and something older people are known for saying but was brought back into popular use by Bruno Mars through that song which is very cool and same as “Oy vey” as Yiddish is considered a dying language. It’s funny how quickly some vernacular travel and how some don’t out of their place of origin. And C.R.E.A.M. made me feel old because the song was released in 1994.

    • Jill
      Author
      16 May 2018 / 8:11 am

      Hi Trudy here in the UK we have adopted so many US words – we hear from TY, online, music etc. I don’t always understand them but I do love them and the fact language is constantly changing and moving. I had no idea Hot Damn was a long established phrase. Thanks for popping on. JIll

  21. 16 May 2018 / 12:26 pm

    Love this Jill. Will definitely use ā€˜thirstyā€™!
    I use a phrase in my latest blog you could add to your list: ā€˜all fur coat and no knickersā€™ …

    • Jill
      Author
      16 May 2018 / 12:27 pm

      Hey Pete I love that express Fur Coat…I should have included that šŸ™‚ I’ll check out your blog and thanks for commenting. JIll

  22. 19 May 2018 / 12:13 pm

    Awesome post…hahah… I love the explanations… I kind of have a thing against all these social media jargons.. they are everywhere but I do hate that I love the term ‘Bye Felicia’… I think this is used to abruptly dismiss someone who is being ridiculous Ill have to consult with urban dictionary again…

    • Jill
      Author
      20 May 2018 / 6:55 am

      Oh I a liking Bye Felicia. I am off to look that up. There are so many expressions – I am sure I use most of them in the wrong context! JIll

  23. 17 June 2018 / 12:56 pm

    I love the old ones and calling someone a bit of a berk is my favorite. Eg: “President Trump I fear is a bit of a berk”
    Where Darling Boris Johnson is a likable baffoon.
    As you pointed out pesky I have to add .. shooing away a pesky cat from the garden is a good one. Loving your posts as usual.

    • Jill
      Author
      17 June 2018 / 12:58 pm

      Hey Ellen -yes I like Berk Not heard it for a while and baffoon is perfect description for our Boris!! Thanks for your comment – great to hear you enjoy x

  24. 17 June 2018 / 4:25 pm

    A blog post that references Scooby Doo? Love!

    • Jill
      Author
      17 June 2018 / 6:36 pm

      Haha. Scotty Doo is one the main inspirations in my life šŸ˜³šŸ˜‚ x

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