Describing Things
Words for people, situations, and quality
Introduction
The British have an instinct for the perfect descriptive word—a single term that captures a complex judgment. Something isn't just "bad" or "suspicious"; it's "dodgy"—a wonderfully versatile word that suggests untrustworthiness without requiring you to specify exactly what's wrong.
These descriptive words often carry moral or practical judgments wrapped in casual packaging. Calling something "dodgy" is gentler than calling it "corrupt," but the meaning is clear. This indirectness is very British—delivering verdicts without making accusations.
This chapter covers the vocabulary you need to describe people, situations, and things with the nuance and understatement that characterises British English. You'll learn to say a lot with a little.
Themes
Quality & ReliabilityCharacter & BehaviourModern SlangRegional VariationsUnderstatement & Praise
Most Popular
All British Slang & Idioms in This Chapter (84)
- Dodgy Suspicious, unreliable, or of poor quality
- Grotty Dirty, unpleasant, or of poor quality
- Minging Extremely ugly, smelly, or disgusting
- Rank Disgusting, foul
- Rubbish Bad, worthless, nonsense (British)
- Wicked Excellent, cool
- Dope Excellent, cool
- Lit Exciting, excellent, intoxicated
- Grim Unpleasant, harsh, depressing
- Grand Fine, okay, good (Irish)
- Cheeky Impudent in an endearing way; playfully rude
- Legit Legitimate, real, genuine
- Mental Crazy, wild, extreme
- Well Very, really (British intensifier)
- Dead Very, really (Liverpool intensifier)
- Buff Attractive, muscular (British slang)
- Random Strange, unexpected, out of place
- Sketchy Suspicious, questionable, untrustworthy
- Sus Suspicious, not trustworthy, questionable
- Basic Unoriginal, mainstream, lacking individuality
- Extra Over the top, dramatic, excessive
- Savage Brutal, cutting, impressively ruthless
- Low-key Subtly, kind of, secretly
- Bang On Exactly right, precisely correct
- Rough Unwell, difficult, or shabby
- Handy Useful, convenient, skilled with hands
- Shocking Terrible, appalling, very bad
- Class Excellent, top quality
- Deadly Excellent, brilliant, amazing
- Ripper Excellent, fantastic, great
- Beaut Excellent, beautiful, wonderful
- Fair Dinkum Genuine, real, honest, true
- Chronic Terrible, awful, very bad
- Half-decent Reasonably good, acceptable
- Not Half Bad Actually quite good
- Two-bit Cheap, worthless, inferior
- Janky Poor quality, broken, unreliable
- Boujee Pretentiously upscale, fancy, high-class
- Wonky Crooked, unstable, not quite right
- naff unfashionable or tacky
- bog standard completely ordinary
- Run of the mill Ordinary, average, nothing special.
- Jammy Lucky, especially undeservedly so
- Mingy Mean, stingy, or inadequately small
- Manky Dirty, unpleasant, or of poor quality
- Dicey Risky, uncertain, potentially dangerous
- Potty Slightly crazy or obsessed
- Ace Excellent, fantastic
- Cushy Easy and comfortable, requiring little effort
- Lush Gorgeous, lovely, or luxurious
- Shattered Extremely tired, exhausted
- Minted Very rich, wealthy
- Bog-standard Basic, ordinary, with no special features
- Bonkers Crazy, mad, insane
- Shambolic Completely disorganized, chaotic
- Doddle Something very easy to do
- Shoddy Of poor quality, badly made
- Tatty Worn, shabby, or in poor condition
- Cracking Excellent, very good
- Dishy Very attractive, especially of a man
- Nippy Unpleasantly cold; also quick and agile
- Twee Excessively or affectedly quaint, pretty, or sentimental
- Grubby Dirty, grimy, or unpleasant
- Dinky Small and cute; in US, disappointingly small
- Gammy Bad, injured, or not working properly (of a limb)
- Swish Impressively stylish, smart, or luxurious
- Poky Small and cramped (of a room or space)
- Gobby Loud-mouthed, talking too much
- Rough Around the Edges Unpolished but fundamentally good
- Diamond in the Rough Hidden potential beneath unpolished exterior
- Down to Earth Practical, sensible, unpretentious
- Straight Shooter Honest, direct person
- No-Nonsense Practical and serious
- Happy-Go-Lucky Carefree and cheerful
- Wet Blanket Killjoy, spoils others' fun
- Old Hand Experienced and skilled person
- High Maintenance Requires lots of attention
- Shrinking Violet Excessively shy person
- Tough Cookie Resilient, determined person
- Loose Cannon Unpredictable person who may cause damage
- Jack of All Trades Skilled in many different tasks
- People Person Good at interacting with others
- Go-Getter Ambitious, energetic person
- Stick in the Mud Resists change or new ideas
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