This is a list of short versions of names of TV programmes, dogs, organisations, food, clothes, hobbies, products, people, places, etc that often come up in discussions in or about the UK. There is also a similar list of UK acronyms available on this site.
- AbFab – Absolutely Fabulous (a popular comedy series)
- adult ed – adult education
- Advertising Standards – The Advertising Standards Authority
- aggro – aggression (meaning violence)
- Airedale – Airedale Terrier
- alkie/ alky – (an) alcoholic
- am dram – amateur dramatics
- aristo – aristocrat
- baccy – tobacco
- Bake Off – The Great British Bake Off (a reality TV show)
- bants – banter
- Baz/ Bazza – Barry
- beans – baked beans
- Becks – Rebecca/ David Beckham
- the Beeb – BBC
- Berks – Berkshire
- bevy/ bevvy – (alcoholic) beverage
- B'ham/ Brum – Birmingham
- biccie/ bikkie – biscuit
- bookie – bookmaker
- Boro – Middlesbrough/ Middlesbrough FC
- brekkie – breakfast
- Brexit – British exit (from the EU)
- brickie – bricklayer
- brill – brilliant (= wonderful)
- Brookie – Brookside (a former soap opera)
- Bucks – Buckinghamshire
- budgie – budgerigar
- bull – bull's-eye (in darts)
- (greasy) caff – a traditional British café (like an American diner)
- car boot – car boot sale (a kind of flea market)
- cardie/ cardy – cardigan
- cas/ caz – casual
- champers – champagne
- Chancellor – Chancellor of the Exchequer (the British minister of finance)
- The Channel – The English Channel
- Chaz – Charles
- cheese and onion – cheese and onion crisps
- chippy – (fish and) chip shop
- Chrimbo – Christmas
- ciggie – cigarette
- The City – The City of London (the financial district, also known as the Square Mile)
- Co. – County (as in Co. Antrim)
- co-ed – co-educational (the opposite of single sex)
- The Commons – The House of Commons
- comp – comprehensive school
- Con. – Conservative (written abbreviation)
- Co-op/ The Co-op – The Co-operative Group (most famously a supermarket)
- Corrie – Coronation Street (a popular and long-running soap opera)
- crackers – Christmas crackers
- (a) cuppa – a cup of tea
- daffs – daffodils
- day return – day return ticket (= two way tickets travelling both directions on one day)
- Dazza – Darren
- deb – debutant
- deffo/ defo – definitely
- dip – diploma
- Docs/ Doc Martens – Doctor Martens/ Doctor Marten boots
- doner – doner kebab
- double decker – double decker bus
- Downton – Downton Abbey (a popular historical drama)
- dryer – tumble dryer
- E Sussex – East Sussex (written abbreviation)
- eff off/ F off – a slightly more polite way of saying “f**k off”
- estate – council estate/ housing estate/ estate car
- exhaust – exhaust pipe (= tailpipe)
- The Express – the Daily Express (newspaper)
- felt tip – felt tip pen
- fish’n’chips – fish and chips
- footie/ soccer – (association) football
- full fat – full fat milk
- G – ground floor (written abbreviation used on lift buttons etc)
- gas – natural gas
- Gatwick – London Gatwick/ Gatwick Airport
- Gaz/ Gazza – Gary/ Paul Gascoigne (former England footballer)
- gent – gentleman
- (the) gents – the gentlemen’s toilet
- glam – glamorous/ glam rock
- Glos. – Gloucestershire
- goalie/ keeper – goalkeeper
- guide – girl guide (= girl scouts)
- guv/ guv’nor – governor (a way of addressing people)
- ha’penny – an old fashioned expression for half a penny
- a half – half a pint (usually of beer)
- halls – halls of residence/ student halls (= student dorms)
- (The) Hammers – West Ham FC
- hankie – handkerchief
- Hants – Hampshire
- hash – hash sign/ hash button
- head – head teacher/ headmaster/ headmistress
- Heathrow – London Heathrow/ Heathrow Airport
- Herts – Hertfordshire
- Hibs – Hibernian (football club)
- high rise – high rise building/ high rise flats
- high vis (jacket) – high visibility (jacket)
- the Highlands – the Scottish Highlands
- hockey – field hockey (not usually used for ice hockey in the UK)
- (summer) hols – (summer) holiday (= vacation)
- Home Ec – home economics (a school subject mainly consisting of cooking)
- Hons – (degree with) honours
- hostel – youth hostel
- house – house music
- hubby – husband
- Hull – Kingston upon Hull (the short form is more common)
- hyper – hyperactive (similar meaning to ADHD)
- Imperial – Imperial College London
- indie – independent rock music
- Jack Russell – Jack Russell Terrier
- jaffas – jaffa cakes
- Jag – Jaguar (cars)
- jammies / jimjams/ PJs –pyjamas
- Jez/ Jezza - Jeremy
- King James – King James bible
- King’s – King’s College London
- kit – sports kit (= sports uniform)
- Lab./ Labour – the Labour Party
- the ladies – the ladies’ toilet
- Lancs. – Lancashire
- lav – lavatory
- Led Zep – Led Zeppelin (a classic rock group)
- (The) Lib Dems – The Liberal Democrats
- the lights – traffic lights (= traffic signals/ stoplights)
- lino – linoleum (a kind of floor covering)
- lipo – liposuction (a kind plastic surgery)
- lippy – lipstick
- lolly – lollipop
- London Met – London Metropolitan University
- Lords – House of Lords
- L-plate – learner plate (put on a car when the driver doesn’t have a full driving license)
- Ltd – limited (liability) company
- The Mail – The Daily Mail (newspaper)
- m’way – motorway (mainly a written abbreviations, but sometimes pronounced “em way”)
- M1/ M25 etc – motorway (used in the name of the road)
- mac – mackintosh (raincoat)
- Macca – common nickname for people whose family name starts with “Mc” or “Mac”/ Paul McCartney (former Beatle)
- mag – magazine
- Maggie – Margaret/ Margaret Thatcher
- Man U – Manchester United
- Manc – Mancunian (= from Manchester)
- (bangers and/ pie and) mash – (sausages and/ meat pie and) mashed potato
- mason – freemason/ stonemason
- maths – mathematics
- The Met – The Metropolitan Police
- (The) Met Office – formerly the Meteorological Office (the agency in charge of weather forecasts)
- mobile – mobile phone
- mod cons – modern conveniences (meaning a fridge, iron, etc)
- morning – good morning
- mouth to mouth – mouth to mouth resuscitation
- mpg – miles per gallon (still used, despite decimalisation)
- mph – miles per hour (still used, despite decimalisation)
- NatWest – National Westminster Bank
- navvy – navigator
- Newkie Brown – Newcastle Brown (a kind of beer)
- nightie – nightdress
- Northants – Northamptonshire
- Notts – Nottinghamshire
- Number 10 – Number 10 Downing Street (the Prime Minister’s house)
- Ofcom – Office of Communications (the regulator for TV etc)
- offie – off license (= liquor store)
- Ofgem – The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets
- Ofqual – Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation
- Ofsted – Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (the regulator for schools etc)
- Oxbridge – Oxford University and Cambridge University
- Oxfam – originally the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief
- p – penny/ pence
- panto – pantomime
- pants – underpants
- para – paratrooper
- peg – clothes peg
- pen. – penalty (written abbreviation)
- a pepper – green pepper/ red pepper/ etc (= bell peppers, not black pepper, which would be just “pepper” with “a”)
- phone box – telephone box (= phone booth)
- pitbull – pitbull terrier
- a plaster – a sticky plaster
- pleb – plebeian (an insulting term for working class people)
- (ex) poly – former polytechnic (a kind of lower ranking university)
- Pool/ The Pool – Liverpool/ Liverpool FC
- pot – teapot
- pram – formerly called a perambulator (= a baby carriage)
- prep school – preparatory school
- Pret – Pret a Manger (a chain of sandwich shops)
- prezzie – present
- Pride – London Pride (beer)
- Proficiency – Cambridge Proficiency (in English) (also known as CPE)
- prole – proletariat
- the prom – promenade (meaning a place to walk along the seaside, similar to an esplanade)
- provos – the Provisional Irish Republican Army (usually known as the IRA)
- The Pru – Prudential PLC (insurance company)
- pt – (imperial) pint (different from a US pint)
- pub – public house (= a kind of bar)
- pud – pudding (= dessert/ sweet)
- quad – quadrangle (a courtyard, most famously in colleges)
- r./ R. – reigned (from… to…)
- ready salted – ready salted crisps
- rec – recreation ground
- ref – referee
- return – return ticket (= round trip)
- a roast – roast dinner/ Sunday roast
- Rolls/ Roller – Rolls-Royce
- Rt. Hon. – Right Honourable (a title for important politicians)
- rugger – rugby
- rules and regs – rules and regulations
- sage and onion – sage and onion stuffing (put into a chicken or turkey before roasting)
- salt and vinegar – salt and vinegar crisps
- sarnie – sandwich
- Scottie – Scottish Terrier
- Scunny – Scunthorpe
- semi – semi-detached house
- semi skimmed – semi-skimmed milk (= low fat milk)
- semis – semi finals
- Sgt – sergeant
- Shazza – Sharon
- Shrops – Shropshire
- sickie – sick day
- Sid – Sidney
- single – single ticket (= one-way trip)
- skin – skinhead (haircut or person)
- Soton – Southampton/ Southampton FC
- spag bol – spaghetti bolognese
- special ed – special education
- sprouts – Brussels sprouts
- Spurs/ Tottenham – Tottenham Hotspur (football team)
- st – stone (= 14 pounds)
- St Paul's – St Paul’s cathedral
- Staff – Staffordshire Bull Terrier
- Staffs – Staffordshire
- Stella – Stella Artois
- Stoke – Stoke upon Trent
- the Stones – the Rolling Stones
- Strictly – Strictly Come Dancing (a reality TV show)
- studio – studio flat
- telly/ TV – television
- the Tower – the Tower of London
- tie – necktie (the long version is rarely used in the UK)
- tip – rubbish tip (= rubbish dump/ landfill)
- totes – totally
- tracky bottoms – tracksuit bottoms
- Trinity – Trinity College
- TWTWTW/ TW3 – That Was the Week That Was (a famous satirical TV programme)
- (meat and two) veg – vegetables
- veggie – vegetable/ vegetarian
- W Sussex – West Sussex
- Wednesday – Sheffield Wednesday FC
- wellies – wellington boots (= rubber boots/ galoshes)
- West Brom – West Bromwich (town and football team)
- Winnie – Winston Churchill
- Yank – Yankee
- Yorkie – Yorkshire Terrier
- Yorks – Yorkshire
- Yorkshire pud – Yorkshire pudding