And hipsters in particular, as this song proves:Īs distinct from the American asshole. On the other, uh, hand, being a tosser is somehow a little bit more acceptable, despite the two words having exactly the same meaning.Ī glorious catch-all term of abuse (slightly less friendly than bellend), aimed at any man, woman and child from any ethnic background and of any sexual persuasion. Even the most enlightened Sex-Ed teacher would balk at being called a wanker. They are therefore alone, obsessive, and probably not too hygienic. The word refers to masturbation, but a wanker is someone whose defining characteristic is that they masturbate. If you've seen The Inbetweeners you'll know this one from Jay's infamous "bus wankers" moment, and as you'll have noticed, people don't really like being called it. Less affectionate, and most commonly thrown with some venom. And in my fulsome apology to the host, I'd be calling myself it too. If I'd been to a party, say, and drunk most of the punch, then got a bit fighty, then a bit shouty, then a bit sicky, I would full expect to wake up the following afternoon to a barrage of texts calling me a twat. And it's not an insult that is reserved for girls either. Where there are hideously offensive insults derived from the female genitalia, twat is at the milder end of the scale, and as far as the British are concerned, the link between the thing the word is named after and the insult it carries is becoming fuzzier every day. Sometimes the words are the same on either side of the Atlantic but their meaning and use is different. Bellend is on a par with the American asshole in terms of being not safe for visiting dignitaries but perfectly fine salty talk among friends. It'll get you into a fight if you say it nastily enough, but it generally tends to be used in either affection or exasperation, depending on the situation. You can probably work out what it refers to, but what you may not realize is that bellend is actually quite an affectionate term. Bellend comes from a fine line of penis-related insults which are probably as old as language itself. This is a universal constant of swearing. When it comes to thinking up new insults, the genitals are always a good place to start. I would also advise extreme caution before testing out any of these words on your British friends, although a perfectly placed twat is a very satisfying thing indeed. So, because language reflects society, and this list is about language, it's pretty sexist in places. (struggles to think of a single woman in the public eye that has never been called a slut). You can call a man a slut from here to kingdom come, and it won't be anywhere near as damning as it will be for a woman, even if the man is Hugh Hefner and the woman is. The problem is, there's a very specific line of insult which, as far as society at large is concerned, only works when aimed at women, and it's to do with sexual intent. What I hadn't really taken into account was, when it comes to insulting language, as in so many areas of life, women have it tougher than men. When compiling this list, I assumed it would be a gadabout stone-skim along the top of the English language, each new bounce a perfectly formed (but firmly NSFW) gem.
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