S

Saft: 1. Sentimental, sensitive.
'Ach, he's awful saft, he takes it all ti' heart'

2. Dim, unworldly.
'Ye must think I'm quare 'n' saft if ye think I'd fall for that.'

Scaldy: Close-cropped.
'Ye've left that hedge all scaldy y'eejit ye!'

'I'm not goin' back to that barber; he left me all scaldy.' George adds: name for a newly hatched chick before its feathers grow, which is the reason for the other uses of the word.

Scallions: spring onions, an essential ingredient of champ.

Scrake of dawn: Very early.
'I've been up from the scrake of dawn.' Jen adds: Scrakin is also used to describe a sound such as a violin being played badly usually a beginner of usually a woman barging others.

Scringe: Grind.
'She scringes her teeth in her sleep every night.'

Scunner: A feeling of loathing.

'She took a right scunner at him from the very start.'

Scundered: Embarrassed, mortified.

'I was completely scundered when he walked in on me like that'. Aidan adds: My take on the word 'scundered' is that it means 'hoist by your own petard'. Aileen adds: there's the old Tyrone version of scundered (meaning really annoyed!) which translates as embarrassed in Belfast!

Shar: 1. Stress relief.

'A wee dander is a great way to get yer head sharred.'

'Ah tuk myself off to the pictures to get m'head sharred.'

2. Detestable group of people.

'I'm workin' wi a right shar ni.'

Simmet: Vest, undershirt.

'She went out without her simmet and she's bin under the dactor ever since.'

Skelly: 1. To have a skelly is to have a quick look.
'Let's have a skelly at yer Tele.'
2. To have a skelly eye is to be cross-eyed.
'He's that skelly-eyed one eye's lukkin at ye and the orr's lukkin for ye.'

Skelp: Smack.
'I hit him a quare skelp across the back of his legs.'

Skelf: Splinter.
'Ah wuddn't say he's saft but I got a skelf in m' han' pattin' his head.'

Skiff: A light shower of rain, usually in summer.
'Nivver worry, it's only a wee skiff.'

Skitter: 1. An abusive term for an unpleasant individual.

'He's one sleekit wee skitter that, stay well away.'

2. A watery stool/diaorrhea.

By extension, to call something skittery is to regard it as less substantial than you would like it to be.

'Thon's a skittery wee bit of fish! Throw anorr bit on!'

Terence Donnelly adds: 'Ye Skittery wee git ye!' - You're a very naughty boy/girl.

Sleekit: Sly, deeply untrustworthy. 'He's one sleekit wee get.'

Slider: Ice cream between two rectangles of wafer. A great way to eat real Italian ice cream and one of the great contributions of Italian migrants to Northern Ireland. Now, where did all the sliders go?

Smittal: Contagious.
'Don't go near her, she's had the measles and she's still smittal.'

So it is, so I did etc: Emphatic reiteration of a statement, so it is.

Speely: Climb quickly or nimbly.
'He speelied up thon wall like a monkey.'

Spittin: Raining intermittently.

Sprachle: Fall, tumble in a thrashing limbs kind of way.

'He went sprachlin' down the stair.'

Stickin out: Good, very good.
'Bout ye, Sean?' 'Stickin out Tommy, sticking out a fortnight.'

'How's the nose?' 'Stickin out.'

Stocious: Well and truly drunk.

Stour: Dust, particularly the fine stuff that hangs in the air.

Stuke: Fool.
'I was left standing there lukkin like a right stuke.'

Scalps: Meaning nothing...'What ye at today lad'.....'Scalps' Usually in North Antrim (Ballymena) From: Jody Doc

Snatters - "...shure the snatters were trippin him..."

Meaning in English terms, "Snot running from the nose"

Step - to soak in water for washing. As in, "that shorte (shirt) is boggin'so it is, it'd need step in scaldin' hot water." Or "stepped" meaning to be soaked - "thon towels were filthy dorty, an had to be stepped all night to get them clean" From: Linda

Styme - 'I can't see a styme.' Can't see anything because somethings blocking my vision. From: Shane


Snedding - cutting the leaves off turnips ready for transport, used in the phrase," touch my pint again an i'll snedd the fingers aff ye!" From: Gareth

Scobe: scrounge, steal. "He's always scobin my chips." (Heard in Lurgan.) From : Stephen

Some: great, fine. "That's some day." From: Stephen Hewitt

Strange- shy. strange ir startlin- unusual news. "What about ye? Anythin strange ir startlin wi ye? From: Stephen Hewitt

Spoof: (noun & verb) A lie or a waffle or aan exaggeration. From - Mark

Spoofer: (noun)One who spoofs. From - Mark

sturbut/stirabout: porridge. Stirabout was taken at supper when I was young 60 years ago and not at breakfast as now. The meal times then were breakfast, a squib of tay midmorning, dinner around noon, tay at 6 p.m. & supper before bedtime which was usually stirabout or pinade or something like rice, sago or tapioca. From: Jack

Shack. Nickname for the Sandro cinema in Sandy Row From: John Maze

Swanky. wearing posh, elegant clothes. From - Farnsbarn

Sprazzie: A sixpenny coin. From: John Maze

Shitehawk: also seagull. From: Brian Lyness

Stoat or Stoater: brilliant, very good. From Leonard

Scoop - cap. From Mark

Scooped - arrested by the police. From Mark

Smoother - iron. From: Sarah Welsh

Spulpin. Probably the Northern Irish pronunciation of Spalpeen - A scamp; an Irish term for a good-for-nothing fellow; s naughty (boy?) child - often used in good-humored contempt or ridicule. From Ray Thomson

Smalachin': chewing food (esp gum) very loudly. Paul Burns

Scran - food; usually not very nutritious and normally desired/consumed when drunk. Stevie Mac

Slack bit: a very attractive woman. From: Davie P

Stroke/Stroked - To steal something from someone. i.e. 'Aye Stroked his mobile off'f 'im' From: Billy

Slippy Tit - An untrustworthy individual. From Kevin.

Skite. "Take a wee skite over" call around for a short visit. From: Anncestor

Skitter-jap: a freckle...(see skitter.) From G Galway

Scrake of cats: I was up at a very early hour this morning. From: Anncestor

Smoothin' - to iron one's clothes - my ma used to always say ive got to do the smoothin!! From: Jim Turkington

Spot on - okay/good/generally to agree about anything. From: Cat

Scaredy cat - someone who's afraid - I don't know were the cat comes in to it. From Louis Hawthorne.

Steamin' - To be very drunk. "Oye met i was steamin last neet so a was". From: Richard Maguire

Sope - gimme a wee sope o' your drink - sip. From Jean Elliott

Slater: Woodlouse. From: Laura

Snib - prevents a key from turning a Yale lock e g 'put the wee snib on the door.' From: anon. Jim Gawn adds: also a window latch or cupboard latch. Not confined to Norn Irn: the word is used - as a verb - in a Sherlock Holmes story.

Slug:an indeterminate quantity probably a few mouthfuls "Here take a slug of this lemonade to kill your drooth (thirst)" From: Robert

So: used for emphasis extensively (East Belfast North Down). It is said SO much now by SO many people. From: Anon

Sir (Tyrone ,Derry) - form of address to a colleague though not to a superior e.g 'That's a quare day Sir'. From Robert.

Sickener is an expression used to describe a bellyful of somethin or more than expected in a negative sense 'Ah ye got a sickener there ye boy ye' From: Jen

Smashin' , "That's smashin'" said when expressing delight on hearing good or agreeable news. Possibly from Irish 'Is maith sin' meaning that's good. From Kevin.

Slooter - spill, splatter. From Simon Brown

Skud - someone who is bad news/bad luck. 'He's a skud so he is.' From David Clarke. (Ed's note: A great example of a skud, or scud, can be seen in the film The Cooler, a 'cooler' having the same effect as a skud but in this case on behalf of a Las Vegas casino!)

Scut (n) : used to describe someone, usually female, of short, stunted stature. (eng: short-arse) eg: "That wee scut isn't the size of two turfs, but she has a desperate tongue on her." From: Dominic Campbell

Slim: term for potato bread. a wee bit of slim. From Mick

Suckin diesel. Getting well into something. From:Connor

Swanker: latest spin on a spide/janty. i.e. Guy with tach and baseball cap. Girl who thinks she's Christine Aguilera with her fake tan and hair bleached aff her like. From Maria McComb

Spide - approximate translation of the English "chav" but has been around longer. Typically dresses from head to foot in sportswear (but avoids exercise at all costs), with a baseball tilted as far back on the head as possible without falling off, lots of chunky gold jewellery including at least 6 sovereign rings, chainsmokes, talks with a distinctive nasal tone and a particularly strong Belfast accent and aspires to own a souped-up Corsa or Nova. Also steek or smicker. From Mark. Valerie adds: This name originated in the early 1980's. At this time, denim tartan jeans were popular among the Belfast "chavs". The design resembled spider's webs and so the wearers were refered to as "spidermen", hence the shortened version "Spide"!

Steek - Another word for Spide. From: Nikki

Slap it inta ye - or "Slap it into you" - roughly translates as "Serves you right". Often preceded by the word "Hell" From: Chris Haggan

Sickener: oleaginous, sycophantic, person who never seems to go away. Often used of celebrities that appear too much on TV. "Turn that show aff - have ye not seen enough of that sickener?" From Dominic Campbell

Scone - Head. "He was blocked outee 'is scone" From: Louis

Slap: Generous, undefined portion. "Gee's a slap of that apple tart, there" Also used as a verb, to wolf food down in a rush. "Slap that feed inte ye, we have te go ni" From: Dominic Campbell

Snool: a really nosey person, always hovering around. eg: "Houl yer wheest fornent that snool, or the whole country'll know yer business" From Dominic Campbell

Snattery: adj : Incurably sarcastic. eg: "Our teacher was a real snattery get" or "Don't you get snattery with me, boy." From Dominic Campbell

Sizshe te me sheshe - "She said to me" e.g. Y'ere daft, sizshe te me sheshe. From Alex

Scowder (pron. scowdhur): a meal thrown together in a hurry. From Dominic Campbell

Saft talk: schmoozing, blatant PR. "Wud ye quit yer oul saft talk, I wudn't vote for your crowd, no way" From Dominic Campbell

Styahey or stiachey - my mother's name for a quick stew fried up in a pan using whatever was left in the larder cupboard. From: Bernie. Sally Kelly adds: A mixed up unappetising meal usually consisting of leftovers or whatever happens to be available

Scrab: scratch. If you don't stop annoyin' me I'll scrab the face off ye. From: Linda L

Slap - Gap in a hedge. "I need to stick a gate across that slap in the hedge." From: Maurice Wilson. Anon adds: Slap- a makeshift barbed wire gate into a field.

Sancey. He's a wee sancey man. He's dapper,neat & tidy.Always applied to a man, never a woman. From Linda

Skite - to jettison something. Indicates a certain accidental movement. "I was skitin' about on thon oul slippy floor" "Watch how ye houl yer drink or it'll skite out of yer haun". From: Daisy

Roland McIntyre adds: Skite - a slap. As in,"behave, or you'll get wan skite" Dominic Campbell adds: Skite also means splash, as in "He got skit by the car hittin' the puddle"

Shipyards - large shoes,'He's wearing big shipyards'. From 'Yer Ma'

Swiggin': tea "Sit down till I make you a wee swiggin'" From: Dominic Campbell

Scooped - caught, apprehended in the act. From FK

Stroke - to steal. Also, when selling goods by weight, to supply less than paid for. "he was putting his finger on the scale, trying to stroke me" or "I stroked that off yer man". From: Mark

Sorn Iron: see Norn Iron. From: Alan Armstrong

Stoolying - My granny used to say to us as kids when we told tales "Stop tat stoolying" From Gemma G.

Starvin - very cold. 'I went out wi'out me ganzee and got a run o'starvin' From: David Graham

Starving cold: means cold not hungry "I'm starving cold so I am". From Christine

Sparrafart - Insignificant boy. From Brian

Starvo - someone who is always hungry. From Brian

Slabber - either a verb meaning to speak pejoratively of someone,or a noun denoting one who slabbers. From: Paavo. Someone who talks rubbish. 'Don't lissena him - he's only an oul slabber'. From: Brian. Belfast adds: also to insult or ridicule someone, often heard in "you slabberin?" See stirren. Louise Hawthorne adds: - rude - He's a cheeky wee slabber. Sally Kelly adds: A person who talks a lot, chatterbox, particularly someone who talks rubbish or boasts and brags a lot.

Spide - Casual from Belfast. From: Brian.

Swally - Drink, are ya goin for a swally? From: JBD

Sham, (north antrim) used the same as 'boyo' in Wales and 'mate' in England eg 'Bout ye sham!' From: Chris Small.

Slakin or slaken a very small ammount i.e. a slaken of butter on bread. From: Sian Ferguson

Scratcher: bed (fermanagh) 'I'm away ta the scratcher' From: Alex Benjamin.

Samage, 2 slices of bread. 'wud ya take a wee samage?' From: Deirdre.

Sheugh (pronounced shuck): A dug-out channel at the inside of the road.
'Mind ya dinnae drive inta the sheugh.' From Donna Knapper. Marty adds: 'Sometimes also used as a name for the Irish Sea. "He's gone across the sheugh". Terence Donnelly adds: drainage system surrounding fileds.
'Hi, he fell off the tractor into the shuck; there was a quare hum aff him let me tell ye!'

Stirren, someone trying to cause trouble via conversation. 'Don't listen ta her, she's just stirren it.' From Donna Knapper.

Splittin - intense pain. 'Ma head's splittin, a need a powder.' From: Sian Ferguson

Scrakin meaning scratching. From: Des

Souper - Someone who converted from catholicism to protestantism. From Brian

Steamboats - drunk From: Brian

Shitehawk - Unpleasant person. From Brian

Shebeen: Drinking den (normally illegal). From Brian

Skald Meaning tea. Have a cup of skald in your hand. From Des

Santer:To talk a lot (particularly nonsensical chatter or bragging talk) From: Sally Kelly

Scabby:To have skin conditions due to under-nourishment or starvation eg impetigo; small, pitiful. From: Sally Kelly

Scaldie: A fledgling or baby bird (or a small child that resembles one) From: Sally Kelly

Scallions: Spring onions. From: Sally Kelly

Scheming:Playing truant from school (Co Derry)

Schkelp: To remove skin, hair or tissue from. From: Sally Kelly
a mixed up unappetising meal usually consisting of leftovers or whatever happens to be available. From: Sally Kelly

Scobin': A sort of digging or scratching at something ie door, ground. From: Sally Kelly

Scootered: Drunk, inebriated. From: Sally Kelly

Score: To engage in romantic liaisons. From: Sally Kelly

Scrab :To scratch or tear skin off. From: Sally Kelly

Scud: A harbinger of bad luck; to cause bad luck or ill fortune. From: Sally Kelly

Scunner/skunner: To cause boredom/to exasperate/to wear out or vex. From: Sally Kelly

Seatie: To take someone pillion on a bicycle

Session: A loud, raucous drinking bout

Sheebo: A storm or indication of bad weather to come. From: Sally Kelly

Shift:To get off with, to engage in romantic liaisons. From: Sally Kelly

Shockin': Awful, terrible. From: Sally Kelly

Shook: Pale, ill, frightened/pallor as a result of fear, illness. From: Sally Kelly

shower: collective noun group of people, things "Oh! They were a right
shower of b@$tards!" From: Sally Kelly

Showered/shired: To feel relief or reprieve ie "Oh! Thank God she's gone. Now I'll get my head showered/shired!! From: Sally Kelly

Skitter: An annoying or untrustworthy person. May be used offhandedly or affectionately when describing a child eg "Go on, you wee skitter".
Alternatively it may be used to describe diarrhoea. From: Sally Kelly

slag: To make fun of someone, to tease, taunt or gibe (usually in a good natured way) From: Sally Kelly

Slider: A dessert consisting of ice cream sandwiched between two wafers. From: Sally Kelly

Snedding: Harvesting turnips. From: Sally Kelly

Snog: To kiss. From: Sally Kelly

Soft day: When referring to weather conditions a day which is not sunny and may rain a little, yet is not cold. From: Sally Kelly

Sound: Of decent character. From: Sally Kelly

Sponge: To cadge, scrounge or beg in a sly manner. From: Sally Kelly

Steamin': Drunk, inebriated. From: Sally Kelly

stew: A clever, studious person (similar to swot) From: Sally Kelly

Stocious: Very, very, drunk, inebriated. From: Sally Kelly

Stoor: Smokey, dusty atmosphere. From: Sally Kelly

Stoving: Very angry, irate, in a foul temper. From: Sally Kelly

Swinging: The lead colloquialism pretending to be sick (malingering) especially to escape work. From: sally Kelly

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