[Brian Allgar]

Here's a list - I've left out a few that were obviously very recent. There are some words that I'd never realized had their origins in rhyming slang, such as 'bread', 'rabbit' and 'scarper'.

Let's hope no one writes a poem containing 'Hampton' and 'Khyber'. ***

Apples - Apples and pears - Stairs (In use by 1857.)
Ayrton - Ayrton Senna - Tenner (10 pound note)
Barnet - Barnet Fair - Hair (In use by 1857.)
Berk - Berkeley Hunt - Cunt (In use by 1937.)
Boat - Boat Race - Face
Borassic - Borassic lint - Skint
Brahms - Brahms and Liszt - Pissed (drunk)
Bread - Bread and Honey - Money
Bristols - Bristol Cities - Titties (breasts)
Brown Bread - Dead
Bull and Cow - Row (argument) (In use by 1859 (Hotten).)
(Have a) butcher's - Butcher's Hook - Look
(My old) China - China Plate - Mate
Cobbler's - Cobbler's Awls - Balls (testicles)
Crackered (or creamed) - Cream Crackered - Knackered (tired)
Crust - Crust of Bread - Head
Daisy roots - Boots (In use by 1859.)
Dog and Bone - Phone
Donkey's - Donkey's Ears - Years
Elephant's - Elephant's Trunk - Drunk (In use by 1859 (Hotten).)
Frog and toad - Road (In use by 1859 (Hotten).)
Ginger - Ginger Beer - Queer
Hampsteads - Hampstead Heath - Teeth
Hampton - Hampton Wick - Prick/dick (penis)
Khyber - Khyber Pass - Arse
Lardy - La-di-da - Cigar
Loaf - Loaf of Bread - Head
Mincies - Mince pies - Eyes (In use by 1859 (Hotten).)
Mutton - Mutt and Jeff - Deaf
North and South - Mouth
Orson - Horse 'n cart - Fart
Oxford Scholar - Dollar
Pen and Ink - Stink (In use by 1859 (Hotten).)
Plates - Plates of Meat - Feet
Taters - Potatoes in the mould -Cold
Rabbit - Rabbit and Pork - Talk
Raspberry - Raspberry Tart - Fart
Richard - Richard the Third - Turd (shit)
Rosie - Rosie Lee - Tea
Ruby- Ruby Murray - Curry
Scarper - Scapa Flow - Go
Sexton - Sexton Blake - Fake
Syrup - Syrup of Figs - Wig
Tea Leaf - Thief
Titfer - Tit for tat - Hat
On your tod - Tod Sloan - Alone
Trouble - Trouble and Strife - Wife
Weasel - Weasel and Stoat - Coat

*** Well, you can imagine the sort of thing that less pure minds than mine might come up with, can't you?

I tried to put my hampton in her khyber,
But she protested: “Are you brahms, you oaf?”
She grabbed my cobblers, said: “Or are you ginger?
Just try my north and south - I’ll give you loaf.”

[Andrew Mandelbaum]

Awesome!

What's borassic lint? God, I love this stuff. American-ese is pale compared.

[Andrew Mandelbaum]

So, sometimes the rhyme is dropped... butcher's and sometimes not?

dog and bone
tea leaf

[Brian Allgar]

Originally Posted by Andrew Mandelbaum

So, sometimes the rhyme is dropped... butcher's and sometimes not?

dog and bone
tea leaf

Yes, I don't know why some phrases haven't been shortened to just the first word. If they had, one could write a poem beginning

I was talking on the dog
In the middle of the frog ...

[Jayne Osborn]

Shortening just some of the words adds to the deliberate mystification, perhaps.

I love the word hemiteleia (see my original post), though I'm not quite sure how to pronounce it; it's not even in my dictionary.
"Listeners not in the know" was what it was chiefly all about - making Cockney rhyming slang the exclusive realm of... Cockneys

Jayne

[Andrew Mandelbaum]

Me and my under have been making our own argot all morning. We call it Yankee-cracker chain.

While we are trying to be original we will confiscating freely from over there. There is no linguistic court extradition agreement. Luckily.

[Douglas G. Brown]

Me and my under have been making our own argot all morning. We call it Yankee-cracker chain.

As heard up here in Waldo County;

"That harbor hog Wilma got wicked hammered last night on fat ass in a glass,
and stove her Pontiac all to catshit."

[Ann Drysdale]

It's "boracic" lint. It was used as a wound dressing - a soft pink lint impregnated with boric acid (a much-used antibacterial agent in olden times, now banned, I believe).

OK?

[Andrew Mandelbaum]

Originally Posted by Douglas G. Brown

As heard up here in Waldo County;

"That harbor hog Wilma got wicked hammered last night on fat ass in a glass,
and stove her Pontiac all to catshit."

Light of the rhyme but plenty up on the Cracker, Deah.

[Jayne Osborn]

I meant to say earlier...

Brian, what an absolute hero you are for putting up that long list, along with their meanings. Thank you very much for taking the time to do that. It put a big smile on my ''boat''!

Andrew,
Brian's list contains all the old favourites, the genuine ones. New ones are being coined all the time but they just don't compare with the originals. I mean, "Apple cider''...for spider? Pah! Rubbish.

I hadn't quite realised till now that I use some of these expressions without thinking about it, even though I'm not a Cockney. I'm often "Cream crackered'' (knackered) and if something smells horrible it "Pens'' (pen and ink - stink). And not forgetting my all-time favourite thing -- going for a ''Ruby"!!!

Jayne