Local sayings from yesteryear!

[Edmund 222]

"teck yer ook" - go away, but not sure sure it was arrived at?

[peterinfrance 2]

Hi Athy

I think you are right about "Loov or Luv) but wasn't "Duck" as in "Eh up duck" used as frequently?

Here are a few more:-

Coil Oil - Coal House

Pull thi sox up - Sharpen/smarten up

Middle fer diddle - Bulls Eye at darts

[Edmund 222]

"get thi rags on" = get ready to go out ie clothing.  I believe it comes from the steel works when they were ready for teeming - they wrapped their legs with wet rags.

[lysandernovo 46]

"Sling thi ook"....same as " Teck yer ook"!

[MartinR 14]

On board the old sailing ships in the mess decks were provided rings or similar into which the hook of a hammock could be inserted.  You still occasionally hear the phrase "sling your hammock" meaning "stow your gear below".  Of course if you didn't like someone you might tell them to "go sling your hook elsewhere", which became shortened to "sling thi' hook".  See Mayne's "The Language of Sailing".

[lysandernovo 46]

Another possibility for this, obviously not local , saying dates back to the days of casual labour in our docks when bails of cotton were imported in vast quantities and every dock worker had a hook with which to handle this cargo....When all the jobs for the day were filled the remaining queueing men would be told to "sling your hooks"!!!

[Edmund 222]

An explanation given in Newcastle in 1894 for "sling your hook" was that it was a seafaring phrase derived from the fact that when a block has been slung (ie fastened), it is ready to be hoisted aloft.

A 1948 explanation says that "slinging the hooks" was an expression for lashing the anchors to the cat-heads (protruding beams for raising the anchor and keeping it away from the sides of the ship).  With the anchor (hook) lashed to the cat-head it could be a danger to other ships, so a master taking his vessel into a harbour with the anchor lashed could be fined.  Therefore the anchor would only be lashed (the hook slung) after putting to sea - ie leaving.

[Athy 21]

On 21/02/2021 at 18:28, peterinfrance said:

Hi Athy

I think you are right about "Loov or Luv) but wasn't "Duck" as in "Eh up duck" used as frequently?

Here are a few more:-

Coil Oil - Coal House

Pull thi sox up - Sharpen/smarten up

Middle fer diddle - Bulls Eye at darts

I think "Dook" was (and is) more Derbyshire.

I remember the others apart from the last one.

[lysandernovo 46]

I was born in Sheffield, raised in these parts but spent time in NE Derbyshire....I have always used "duck" whether here or across the border. I think two world wars with MASSIVE military service and much more regional travel has helped mix our local expressions...One from Kent I adopted was...."It's like plaiting fog trying to reason with you"...and that was very true as far as the lady in question was concerned!!😄

[Athy 21]

On 23/02/2021 at 16:08, lysandernovo said:

One from Kent I adopted was...."It's like plaiting fog trying to reason with you"...and that was very true as far as the lady in question was concerned!!😄

"Like knitting sand" was a variant, dunno where from though - I have seen it on a canal boat and asked the owner what it meant, and it was similar to what you've said.

[Paul Worrall 25]

Hi Athy,

I've not heard 'Like Knitting Sand' or 'Plaiting Fog...' before. When I worked for Derbyhire CC in the early 90's one of my colleagues used to say 'It's Like Knitting Fog!' She was usually referring to the complete nonsense which senior people came out with in meetings. Another expression which came out of those meetings was 'Purposeful Dithering'. I little later on another 'bright spark' came up with 'Bullshit Bingo'. Everytime somebody came out with a nonsense expression in a meeting he would tick a card and then when he had a straight line shout 'House'. Unfortunately none of this stopped the constant flow of 'hot air'!!!

Wazzie Worrall.....

[DaveJC 12]

There appears to be two ways of spelling ‘plaiting/platting’. however with my track record in the area of spelling I have no idea which is correct, I would have chosen the latter, which doesn’t say much for it’s chances. 😉

[MartinR 14]

According to the OED, "plait" has the principle meaning of "A single length of hair, straw, rope, etc., made up of three or more interlaced strands" and comes from the Norman-French "pleit" meaning a fold or twisting.  "Plat" on the other hand comes from the Middle English "platte" and has meaning 2 as "To braid, to intertwine; to plait".  "Plat" is however marked as "English regional (northern and midlands)" from around 1800 and then as "English regional (Yorkshire)".  It all seems to come down to whether you pronounce it with a southern long "a", or a northern short "a".

[lysandernovo 46]

The lady in question who introduced me to "plaiting fog" was a Maid of Kent!

[MartinR 14]

That would make sense, a southern long "a".  I should know, I've been living in exile amongst the heathen men of Kent for over 35 years.  The funny thing is that my son (who was born and brought up east of the Medway) will change his pronunciation of words like "castle" according to whether he is talking to me or his mother!

[peterinfrance 2]

Here are more:-

Mardy arse

Wash behind thi lug oils

Daft apeth

[Paul Worrall 25]

Hi Peter, Thanks for those x3 expressions, more stuff for the list!

My Grandmothers who both died in the 60's had loads of expressions, but I can't remember which one said what.

'You're like the Chapus who fell out of the balloon' - You're not in it, part of it... I'd never heard 'Chapus' before or since!

'Never cast a clout until May is out' - Don't get rid of your winter clothes until the beginning of June! When We were kids a clout was pants or knickers, under clothes...

Cheers,

Wazzie Worrall.....