Irish in the UK - what are the things that it took you ages to realise people don't say here.

[ConflictedCheetah]

Inspired by the thread about Pancake Tuesday.

That thread has cracked me up because SO many posters are insisting no one EVER calls pancake Tuesday - it's Pancake Day - and sayu it's weird and wanky to call it that. And then all the Irish people on the thread are like ' wait, we've always called it that and never noticed that no one else did.

So what else you got?

For me, and I'm here 20 years, I only found out about a year ago that no one here calls a birth certificate a 'birth cert'. My English husband thought it was proper weird that I kept saying that. I had never picked up that it wasn't a thing! I think Irish people are so used to talking about the Leaving Cert or Junior Cert etc. that the Cert but feels natural. DH says no.

What other ways have I been unknowingly embarrassing myself for 20 years?

Born in England to Irish parents. Started school with a broad Irish accent which I lost fairly quickly when I was told I was speaking double Dutch. To this day I develop a bit of an accent when I’m with other Irish people, try not to but
can’t seem to help it.

Irish parents (both Cork). Yes to most of those and others I can think of

• desperate for meaning very bad/ awful.
• will I instead of shall I
• come here to me for sort of getting the attention of someone but you don't mean they have to come to you
• he'd a be/ she'd a be/ I'd a be.

-what sounds like twadn't for "it wasn't"

• there's fear of him / her - if talking about someone that was doing well - usually a bit sarky (often there's fear of his arse which I think is the outrightly sarky version)
• disimprove for erm, well the opposite of improved. Normally referring to someone's looks
• shook. This one I've noticed the young ones are saying in England now but my parents have used it forever, shook, looks very shook (looks bad)
• sliced pan instead of loaf of bread
• would you look at the cut of it. Usually giving out about what someone is wearing.

One more!

"Would you ever" in front of every request for something so I'll say to dh would you ever pass me the remote.

he'd a be/ she'd a be/ I'd a be.

What's the rest of the sentence for these @LoinChop?

Would ya ever feck off
(not you @LoinChop)

Haha, isn't it though?

Allegedly Santa Claus is very unBritish, but I disagree.

How's your mother for sugar?

YYY to the dropping of "shall" in Ireland.

It's rarely heard in the US too.

People don't really say 'May I....?' either.
It's 'can' or 'could' mostly.

That and I heard people say if you don't stop carryin on I'm gonna hop my head of the wall. Obviously it was just a silly expression not meant just to stop it I have had enough. Another one was there was murders up the road which normally meant a small argument. And stop it I'm gonna take a pain which said while laughing at something very funny.

I love the way some Irish people ask questions.

Where I would say, "shall I get you a ..." it's more of a "Will I be getting you a ..."

Do German priests give their sermon twice?

What? No but they would probably use both forms of address (Sie and ihr) so everyone felt included and spoken to in the way they expect to be. It's usual these days to use both the feminine and masculine forms of nouns as well, so (to use your example of a sermon) you might get something DeepL and co would probably translate as 'Dear congregants and congregants, I'd like to talk to you and you about today's Bible reading'.

Its long version is "I do be" "he do be" etc. And it's used instead of "am" or "is" I would say. So if work is too much I might say "I'd a be killed from work ".

Which brings me to another one I think is Irish (possibly just Cork?). We say " killed from" to mean something is too much, too much strain- "my son is killed from all the homework they're giving at school "

Another one - saying I am / I will / I do / I did (depending on the question) to mean yes - and the opposite to mean no. I've read that in the Irish language there is no word for yes or no so apparently it comes from that.

Is sinch maybe '(a) cinch' (which I've always through of as American since I think I first learned it in the Sweet Valley Twins books but clearly isn't)?

^^*the feminine and masculine forms of nouns referring to people, obviously. (This time I missed the edit window, I think)

Used elsewhere.

Grew up in Dublin but have lived a long time in England.

In fairness......
Thanks a million...
She's a waggon
I was in work ( meaning I was at my place of work, not I have a job)
I'm going to the jacks
A glass of Guinness (ie a half pint)
You're a messer
I'm only messing/only slagging
Mitching
Delph (meaning dishes/crockery/china)
Gurrier/skanger
Hooyer/harrrier (female equivalent of above)
Scollops = scallops
Scallions = spring onions
Runners
Dodgy box

Calling someone 'pal' in a context that makes it manifestly clear that you do not regard them as such.

One of my Irish friends commented that 'eejit' was fairly affectionate- But we did agree that saying someone was an awful eejit was pretty damning.

I was just trying to find the post about cinch. I always thought of it as American as well although it sounds very familiar to me. I’ve just looked it up and it is American from a Spanish word.
’Jammy’ for lucky we used to use a lot in England as well.

@liz4change only for reading your post I was starting to wonder if I was Irish at all. Lots of this is going over my head and I have lived here all my life!

This is an interesting preservation of the original meaning of ‘cute’, short for ‘acute’ and meaning ‘shrewd’ or ‘cunning’.

My mind is boggling trying to think how to do that in Spanish: what form of the verb to use and what to use instead of one preceding direct object. The polite forms were dying in Spain even thirty-five years ago though when I lived there so I probably needn’t worry.

“Plug out” and “am’nt I”
been here nearly 30 years and only realised recently these sayings are incomprehensible to my hubby. Asked him to plug out the iron and he thought it was hilarious. Also said I’m getting a new dog amnt I and he looked bewildered.

Yy to pp saying the use of cute not being the same as cute in England. My parents use it disparagingly about people they think are sneaky. When I've used it in this context at work I get funny looks

My understanding is that the gaelic word for pretend is the same as reveal - hence its use interchangeably in Irish English. I was amazed when I worked out that it didn't work in English English!