For many people, navigating the constantly evolving London slang can be hard. We are a city with great cultures, an array of attractions and perhaps most important of all, we take the English language to a whole other level. This is why we’ve decided to list 8 phrases that people from London use consistently.
This one is usually used when a situation is complicated or hard to explain. Maybe, you’re in a sticky situation and are lost on how to explain it. This is probably a clear sign that someone grew up in London.
‘People often mistake this for something positive because they think it means the peak of something. Peak actually means that something is unfortunate, so ‘that’s peak’ would roughly translate to ‘that’s sad to hear.’
If you find yourself listening to London Grime artists, you are probably well acquainted with this phrase. If something is mad and a thing, it’s a madting. Simple as.
If you hear someone saying you’re peng, congratulations you are now certifiably attractive. This one can be used for all things. Do you like the look of your new pair of trainers? You can call them peng. Maybe you’re having a good hair day and your hair is looking peng.
If you’re a Londoner telling someone a story and you need to emphasise that what happened was real, chance’s are you’ll either be saying BMT or swear down. The conversation may possibly go as follows.
Person A: Swear down, you said that?
Person B: Big Man Ting, I’m not even lying!
Roll safe is the equivalent of stay safe or in other words, bidding someone farewell. This is one of those phrases that can also be used if you’re threatening someone: ‘you better roll safe.”
Most Londoners tend to use this phrase out of habit. It’s an abbreviation of, isn’t it? And can be used at the end of a lot of sentences.
Example: “she was a pengting, innit?”
This one is quite common and doesn’t really help British stereotypes. If something is not your cup of tea then it’s not to your liking or if you’re referring to a person, then you might not necessarily get on with each other because they aren’t your cup of tea.
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