Curses you don't hear anymore

enfield

You cur.
You Louser.
And my personal favourite, used all the time by a Clare neighbour way back when God were a lad...
"May you beel, boil, and fester!'
She was really a lovely woman, I have to say.
Can you add any more?
Cheers.
Tom.

Jellybaby1

I don't think this one could be called a 'curse' but definitely a negative description of someone's character.

"He's a right bowsie" or 'Yuh bowsie yuh!'

Unsure how to explain 'bowsie' pronounced 'bow' as in 'bow to the audience' - bow-zee. A bit of a 'messer' maybe, but definitely male, a troublemaker, and best not to associate with him.

that could also describe, 'he's a right pup', or 'yuh little pup yuh!'

a 'pup' always male, and young, - and an upstart

And

"She's a right targe, that one"

Always female, and one quick to start a fight, with anyone.

One I love, and rarely hear is the British 'dirty little oik'. No idea where that comes from but it always makes me laugh.

enfield

Go on ya Blaggard...

clappyhappy

Talking to a friend a few days ago about this local person with whom was a few years ahead of us in school.
As we continued to go on about him my friend said " god he is an awful ape, a bit of a meeah (spl?).
Pronounced mee - ah. Usually used to describe someone who isn't the full shilling and full of the sorrows of the world.
Hadn't heard that word in years, think its a great description.

Layinghen

Have often heard the phrase meeah (don't know how to spell it either:)) but in our house it was used in the context of "there is an awful meeah on them" i.e. they are cursed, everything they touch turns to lead. My thinking is it comes from the Irish language - obviously with the proper spelling:D

Qualitymark

Bowsie is in the Oxford English Dictionary, origin unknown:

http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/bowsie?q=bowsie

So is blackguard (pronounced blaggard):

http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/blackguard?q=blackguard

Origin: "early 16th century (originally as two words): from black + guard. The term originally denoted a body of attendants or servants, especially the menials who had charge of kitchen utensils, but the exact significance of the epithet 'black' is uncertain. The sense 'scoundrel, villain' dates from the mid 18th century, and was formerly considered highly offensive"

Mee-ah is Irish - mí-ádh or ill-luck; an unlucky person.

Gurrier is also in the OED:

http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/gurrier?q=gurrier

Word on the streets is that it comes from the 17th- and 18th-century Catholics who were run out of the country after their land was stolen; they joined up to European armies, and years later streeled back, wounded, ill, impoverished and angry, and hung around the streets of Irish towns, often falling into crime.

Layinghen

Mee-ah is Irish - mí-ádh or ill-luck; an unlucky person.


Well I am delighted to hear that. Just goes to prove part of the old brain is still working

clappyhappy

Layinghen wrote: »

Mee-ah is Irish - mí-ádh or ill-luck; an unlucky person.


Well I am delighted to hear that. Just goes to prove part of the old brain is still working

Good to hear the explanation of it, it brings me right back to listening to my grandmother going on about people and calling some meeah's. descriptive but not vulgar terminology.

Aglomerado

Qualitymark wrote: »

Bowsie is in the Oxford English Dictionary, origin unknown:

http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/bowsie?q=bowsie

Ha brilliant. There was a man (a settled traveller) in Clare years ago who went by the name Bowsie Casey. He had a shop in the Market Square in Ennis which sold what seemed like mountains of fabric for curtains etc., all piled up on huge tables for customers to rummage through. Have not heard that word in years since he died.

jos28

Diddies - nobody says that anymore.

Jellybaby1

Didn't take long! :rolleyes:

Besides, are we still talking about 'curses', or just rude words? If its the latter, the OP has come to the right place as its full of bold boys and girls. 'Cept me. I'm the good girl, and teacher's pet! Mmm?

jos28

My Mammy heard me saying 'diddies' and told me not to say it again cos it was a curse

Mind you, according to my Dad, tights were a curse (I had no idea what he was on about )

Eeden

Layinghen wrote: »

Mee-ah is Irish - mí-ádh or ill-luck; an unlucky person.


Well I am delighted to hear that. Just goes to prove part of the old brain is still working

To put the mí ádh on something - used in the sense of to jinx something. Still hear it the odd time. Sounded more like mee-aw than mee-ah though.

delaad

This is possibly a phonetic version of one I haven't heard for years...

"Bad cess to you, ya hoor's melt"

Qualitymark

delaad wrote: »

This is possibly a phonetic version of one I haven't heard for years...

"Bad cess to you, ya hoor's melt"

A 'melt' was the offspring of a rat, so a whore's melt or a peeler's melt (or peeler's git) was a pejorative term for the child of a prostitute or RIC man.

Banjoxed

The older generation ones can be good:

A lady that I used to work with, who's tongue was as sharp as her features was described by my father, who met her one day, as a "right pierty wee cow".

I don't rightly know what it means but it sounds right..

delaad

Qualitymark wrote: »

A 'melt' was the offspring of a rat, so a whore's melt or a peeler's melt (or peeler's git) was a pejorative term for the child of a prostitute or RIC man.

Thanks Qualitymark.The "cess" bit still has me puzzled though. I know what a cesspit is, but I would have thought that all cess was "bad". How and ever, i suppose some cess.........., but we won't go there.

Qualitymark

delaad wrote: »

Thanks Qualitymark.The "cess" bit still has me puzzled though. I know what a cesspit is, but I would have thought that all cess was "bad". How and ever, i suppose some cess.........., but we won't go there.

Cess is rent. Bad cess means an unlucky rent day to you. We all know these days what *that* means.

Edit: after posting this (which is what I was told as a kid, back in the days of the brontosaurus), it occurred to me to google it and see if any word maniac had blogged about it, and sure enough: http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-bad1.htm http://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/2011/04/cess.html

Also a good comment on the discussion here http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cess

Rubecula

The post by Delaad reminded me that my gran used to call me a "little swine's melt" when I had done something wrong, or more commonly totally bloody stupid.

Jellybaby1

Rubecula wrote: »

The post by Delaad reminded me that my gran used to call me a "little swine's melt" when I had done something wrong, or more commonly totally bloody stupid.

Never! :eek:

uch

Used to be called a "Little Shítehawk" in the 70's by an elderly woman on the street I grew up

Jellybaby1

uch wrote: »

Used to be called a "Little Shítehawk" in the 70's by an elderly woman on the street I grew up

In my childhood I actually heard it said as 'Shyhawk'. Considering my upbringing, and my innocence, I never knew your version! See, I'm still sweet!

BrensBenz

Qualitymark wrote: »

Bowsie is in the Oxford English Dictionary, origin unknown:

I can still remember watching the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Maken on a tiny black and white screen when the camera focussed on Makem's smirking face. "He's very good, isn't he, but I'd say he's a right bold bowsie" said my dad. "What's a bowsie, dad?" I asked. "Don't ever let me hear you use that word again" boomed the reply.

My grannie used to call me a gnat, pronounced g'nat. No time for silent letters in the Liberties. No booming reply if she heard me say g'nat but, God, she was deadly with the teatowel whip to the luggole.

Where was Childline when I needed it?

Jellybaby1

My mum also pronounced the 'g' in 'g-nat! The Liberties? You were just a stone's throw away from me there! Sometimes she'd say 'g-nu' as well, just for fun!

Rubecula

Jellybaby1 wrote: »

My mum also pronounced the 'g' in 'g-nat! The Liberties? You were just a stone's throw away from me there! Sometimes she'd say 'g-nu' as well, just for fun!

I say Wildebeest

Jellybaby1

Rubecula wrote: »

I say Wildebeest

OT - reminds me of Billy Connolly's story about wildebeests, Agnes and Betty! :D

DeBurca

Often used by my dear father may he rest in peace

"May they die roaring like Doran's ass" (and back then ass ment donkey)

Jellybaby1

DeBurca wrote: »

....(and back then ass ment donkey)

Ah, God be with the days!

Banjoxed

One I haven't heard in a long time: "What would you expect to hear from a pig, but a grunt"

Aglomerado

Banjoxed wrote: »

One I haven't heard in a long time: "What would you expect to hear from a pig, but a grunt"

My dad says that when someone farts!

Rubecula

One of my favourites from the football matches I attended.

"Jaysus he couldn't hit a cow's arse with a banjo"

or from my gran:

"He couldn't stop a greasy pig in a jigger" (Jigger being an old Scouse slang word for an alley)

Howard Juneau

I do like the mild Irish curses.
Amadáin & óinseach, male & female fool/idiot
When someone annoyed me a little i'd say, May your arse fester and boil.

Layinghen

Or how about "may the fleas of a thousand camels infest your armpits"?

Howard Juneau

Layinghen wrote: »

Or how about "may the fleas of a thousand camels infest your armpits"?

Swap "armpits" for "balls", and add "and may your arms be too short to scratch them"

Layinghen

:eek:

Rubecula

Howard Juneau wrote: »

Swap "armpits" for "balls", and add "and may your arms be too short to scratch them"

Not sure that would be much good to a lady unless she plays in the ladies football team

Howard Juneau

Rubecula wrote: »

Not sure that would be much good to a lady unless she plays in the ladies football team

I'm sure it's not gender specific, you could perhaps swap "balls" for...something else!

uch

You ScutterPullitt

Red Hare

' Guttersnipe" - I havent heard this for years! ( but I read it tonight over in the Teaching & Lecturing Forum - as you can imagine things are very heated there in relation to teaching unions at the mo).
Guttersnipe is a good old fashioned name!

I am pie

My ma used to say "I'll have your guts for garters" or "Your head's a marley"

A marley being one of those marble balls kids used to play with.

Dtp1979

Rube

Ted_YNWA

There's a smell of benji off ya

Jellybaby1

Dtp1979 wrote: »

Rube

:eek:

Dtp1979

Jellybaby1 wrote: »

:eek:

What does it mean?

Howard Juneau

Dtp1979 wrote: »

What does it mean?

It's been used in the Simpsons a bit. Country bumkin type insult I think

Jellybaby1

It means....how shocking that anyone could use our ould friend Rube's name as a curse! Utterly shocking! I can't tell you how shocked I was! I was so shocked, it was shocking! Actually, that's a word you don't hear anymore 'shocking'........I usually hear........ 'like, I was just freaked out, man' and suchlike.

Red Hare

Dtp1979 wrote: »

What does it mean?

It means a lovely person from across the pond!:cool:

Dtp1979

Wow little did I know a word Bart Simpson used years ago would stir so much

Qualitymark

Dtp1979 wrote: »

What does it mean?

It's an Americanism, kind of old-fashioned, meaning a culchie:

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=rube

deise08

Stuchain. Pronounced stookawn. Was a fool.
Bibe not a nice word for a woman.
Malogen. When something was bad
Cat malogen. Something was awful
Hardchaw. A quarefellow
Gougher. a hardchaw from dub.
Daw. Stupid person.
Galoot. A big dope.
Scut or pup.
and my favourite
SPARROWFART

Qualitymark

deise08 wrote: »

Stuchain. Pronounced stookawn. Was a fool.
Bibe not a nice word for a woman.

Pronunciation, please? Also of Malogen?

Malogen. When something was bad
Cat malogen. Something was awful
Hardchaw. A quarefellow
Gougher. a hardchaw from dub.

Gouger, one who would gouge out eyes in fights originally.

Daw. Stupid person.
Galoot. A big dope.
Scut or pup.
and my favourite
SPARROWFART

I only heard 'daw' from the 1980s; don't know why it should mean a stupid person, unless it comes from "D'oh!"