Free the Word: Mardy

28 September 2017

Mardy by Toby Campion

BBC Radio Leicester

Mardy by Toby Campion

Def: Spoilt; sulky; moody. Suggested by listeners to BBC Radio Leicester,

You know face like thunder, eyes rolling like rainclouds, turn the whole room grey when you walk in type thing.

def | Sulky; moody.

The term mardy, meaning sulky, moody, is one that most people in the south of England will be unfamiliar with. However, it is ubiquitous in the midlands and north of England... In the 20th century it evolved to cover anyone who was perceived to be acting like a spoilt or overindulged child. Mardy was also used to form new nouns such as mardy-bum (which may be familiar as the title of an Arctic Monkeys song) and mardy-arse.

Read more on the OED Blog

Susie Dent on the local words that bring it all back home
It’s not just poets who are fascinated by local dialect, as celebrity lexicographer Susie Dent explains.

Bobowler by Liz Berry
A large moth. From listeners to BBC Radio WM (West Midlands).
Cheeselog by Hollie McNish
A woodlouse - selected by BBC Radio Berkshire listeners
Didlum by Dean Wilson
A community savings scheme - selected by BBC Radio Humberside listeners.
Dimpsy by Chrissy Williams
Dusk; twilight. From listeners to BBC Radio Devon.
Fam by Caleb Femi
A familiar form of address for a friend. From listeners to BBC Radio London.
City of Geg ins by Chris McCabe
To interrupt; to butt in. From listeners to BBC Radio Merseyside.
Ginnel by Vidyan Ravinthiran
An alleyway. Suggested by listeners to BBC Radio Leeds.
Gurt by Vanessa Kisuule
Very; great - suggested by listeners to BBC Radio Bristol.
Mardy by Toby Campion
Spoilt; sulky; moody. Suggested by listeners to Radio Leicester.
On the huh by Rebecca Watts
Lopsided; wonky. As suggested by listeners to BBC Radio Suffolk.
Ode to Twining by Katie Hale
To moan; to complain. From BBC Radio Cumbria.
Twitten by James Brookes
A narrow lane; an alleyway. From BBC Sussex.

Here's the Weather by Stuart A Paterson
The many Scots words related to the weather are given their freedom in Stuart's poem.

Free the Word
Mardy, gurt, cheeselogs, dreich and dimpsy: 13 poets highlight the local words that matter to you.
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