Irish is an oddball when it comes to the English language. It is not only English, but also has Irish Gaelic influences. This leads to some pretty strange Irish slang words!
Irish is one of the oldest languages in the world, and depending on how you view it, is one of the most sophisticated dialects in the world.
As you probably know, Ireland is divided into two parts, the larger south is known as the Republic of Ireland, whilst the smaller north is part of the UK. Most in the north are descended from Scottish and English settlers.
For the most part, these Irish slang words will come from the south, as the north’s slang is intertwined with English and Scottish slang.
15. Black stuff – Guinness
Guinness is Ireland’s largest and most recognizable companies. Each St. Patrick’s Day, 13 million pints of Guinness is drunk, mostly in Ireland, but also in places with a large Irish population.
As such, it should come as no surprise that Irish people have their own slang words to refer to Guinness. Whilst there are several, by far the most common is black stuff.
If you were to look at a pint of Guinness it’s fairly self-explanatory. It’s a glass full of stuff… that’s black. I don’t think it requires any more explanation than that.
Example:
“Hey, we’re going to the pub for some black stuff. Do you want to join us?”
14. Fluthered – Wasted
As with most cultures, some Irish people have a bit too much to drink. Once you’ve drank enough black stuff for one day, and you’re proposing to your pint glass, the Irish would probably say you’re fluthered.
Roughly, this is akin to wasted in American slang or pissed in British slang. Literally meaning that they are quite drunk and need to go home for their own safety and wellbeing.
Depending on what area of Ireland you’re in, you may also hear several variations on this term. By far the most common are fluther-eyed, fluthery-eyed as well as fluttered (the latter used predominantly in the South East).
Example:
“Have you seen Seamus? He’s absolutely fluthered!”
13. Knackered – Tired
Although not solely used in Irish slang, knackered is certainly a hallmark of it. If you ever spend much time in Ireland, you’ll hear it a lot, especially on a Friday night as everyone’s clocking out from work.
Literally, knackered has no real meaning. Instead, it was coined by the British to mean “tired” or “exhausted”, this later spread across their empire, including to their closest neighbor, Ireland.
Alternatively, you could also used shattered to mean the same thing. In Irish slang in particular, knackered also has another meaning, this is to mean “to damage seriously” and can refer to anything, be it an object or a person.
Example:
“How are you?”
“Me? I’m knackered!”
12. Craic – Fun / Gossip
Craic is arguably one of Irish Gaelic’s most famous words, little do many of them know, that craic, up until recently wasn’t in the dictionary. As such, it is considered to be a slang word.
Literally speaking, craic has no “official” meaning, although has had numerous different meanings over the centuries. Today, it’s meaning is something like “fun” but in a gossipy-style.
Many in Ireland believe that the term originates in the Gaelic language. However, this isn’t strictly true, with it having been borrowed from English and Scots Gaelic, with the spelling being altered to fit with Irish Gaelic.
Example:
“Hey ladies, what’s the craic?”
“Just talking about Oisin and Roisin.”
11. Scarlet – Embarrassed
Have you ever been so embarrassed at something that you’ve been mortified at the idea of it? Chances are you aren’t alone- so have the Irish. It’s so common that it even has its own slang term!
Literally speaking, scarlet is a shade of the color red, or a name for a girl. However, in Ireland, it also has another meaning: “mortified” or “severely embarrassed”. It is usually used after someone has shared a really embarrassing story about you.
As you may have guessed, the term scarlet actually originates with the act of being embarrassed itself. When you’re embarrassed, you turn red, and another term for red is scarlet…
Example:
“Did you see me when Ciara told me that? I was so scarlet!”
10. How’s she cuttin’? – How you doing?
In almost every English dialect’s slang, there is some form of greeting/way of asking how someone is. Americans may be familiar with wassup? or something similar for example. Irish’s is how’s she cuttin’?
Without knowing context, the phrase literally has no meaning. However, if you did know the context, you’ll know that how’s she cuttin’? translates to something like “How are you doing?”
Allegedly, the term originated as a joke between groups of male friends- poking fun at each other as being “girls” (obviously, this was a long time ago). To do this, they’d refer to them as “she” and it took off from there…
Example:
“Ahhh, there’s Patrick!”
“How’s she cuttin’?”
9. Ciotóg – Left-handed
As you can probably guess, unlike most other Irish slang words, ciotóg actually comes from Irish Gaelic, rather than English. Tis alone makes it one of the most interesting Irish slang words I have ever come across!
Ciotóg is a shortened version of the Irish Gaelic word ciotach, meaning clumsy. Despite this official meaning, ciotóg is used differently- to describe someone who’s left hand is dominant over their right.
Allegedly, the origin of ciotóg is intertwined with that of ciotach. The story goes that left handed people were very clumsy (as the tools didn’t work as well for them) as such they became known as ciotach, and eventually, ciotóg.
Example:
“You’re a ciotóg? I never knew that.”
“Yeah, my entire family are ciotógs.”
8. Mot / Fella – Girlfriend / Boyfriend
In most language’s slang, there is some form of word to describe that special someone, be it your husband/wife or your boyfriend/girlfriend. In Irish, they use mot or fella.
Although these are both mostly used in Dublin and its surrounding area, you may also hear this used in other parts of Ireland, usually in the large cities, rather than the countryside.
Mot, is the word many Irish men use to describe their girlfriend/wife, originating from the Gaelic word maith, meaning good.
For Irish girls, they tend to use fella to describe their boyfriend/husband, with this having come from the British Empire.
Example:
“Hey Cian, you bringing your mot to the game this weekend?”
“Yeah, you bringing yours?”
7. Savage – Great / Brilliant
Have you ever seen something so brilliant and/or great that there is no word in the English language to describe it? The Irish certainly have, and have several slang terms to describe it. The most common of these is savage.
Literally speaking, savage is usually used as a derogatory term to describe someone who doesn’t have manners. However, in Irish slang, it has another meaning- roughly akin to “great” or “brilliant”.
When you think about, it is only used in the same way that Americans use wicked or the more popular sick. Both of which have rather negative connotations in Standard English, but positive ones in slang.
Example:
“Did you see the Rovers’ game last night?”
“No.”
“Oh, it was savage!”
6. Floozie – Person who sleeps around
Throughout history, there have been thousands of ways to insult both men and women, who are rather… promiscuous. In Irish slang, they tend to use the word floozie, a word since carried over to the US.
Literally, floozie has no meaning. However, in Irish slang, it is used to talk about a person, usually a woman, who dresses provocatively, or more commonly, sleeps around a lot.
To describe a man, you may also hear the term male floozie as well.
Depending on what part of Ireland (or indeed what area of the US) you visit, you may also see floozie spelled as floozy. Indeed, this latter spelling is the one seemingly preferred by Irish Americans.
Example:
“Have you seen Sean?”
“No, but Cara says he’s a bit of a floozie”
5. Throw shapes – Show off
I have found that there are certainly some rather strange Irish slang words. Without proper context as to how some of them came into being, you’ll likely never understand what they mean. Throw shapes is precisely one of these…
The term actually originated in the 1980’s. During this time, disco and other new forms of dance were emerging, and their followers would often “throw some shapes” eg. start dancing. Eventually, this entered common vernacular.
Prior to this, the term had no real meaning in Ireland. Instead, there were other ways to say “show off” in Irish, the vast majority of which have since fallen into disuse in favor of things like throw shapes.
Example:
“Have you seen Siobhan?”
“Oh yeah, she’s really throwing some shapes!”
4. Yes – Hello
I’m sure you’re a little confused by this one. Don’t be. It just needs a little explaining as it’s a uniquely Irish way of using yes. As with all other dialects of English, yes does (officially) mean “yes” in Irish English.
However, in Irish slang, it can also be used to say “Hello”. It is becoming increasingly present at schools. Usually, this is when someone is starring into oblivion, and someone asks them some sort of question.
In recent years, thanks to the large Irish descended population in the US, this has become quite popular as well. This has seen it be used in American media and thus, travel across the entire world.
Example:
“Cara, what did you get on the History test?”
“Huh? Hello! Sorry, I got 20/20!”
3. Sorry – Sorry
Confused? Don’t be. This phenomenon isn’t unique to Ireland, and can be seen in other Anglophonic countries, including the UK, Australia and Canada.
In Standard Irish English, sorry does mean sorry, the same as it does in all other English dialects. However, in Irish slang, the term can also be used to mean “excuse me” or “pardon me”.
You’ll likely hear this at the supermarket, when people are accidentally blocking the isle without realizing it. To Irish people, it’s just a way of being polite, rather than pushing past as you may see elsewhere.
Example:
“Sorry, can I get through there please?”
“Sorry.”
2. Wired to the moon – Great time
Wired to the moon is an incredibly unique Irish phrase. There is no other phrase for it in any language I have ever come across, be it a dialect or a “standard” variant of the language.
Have you ever been to a party where you have gotten perhaps a little too drunk? You aren’t vomiting uncontrollably from the alcohol but you aren’t that far off in all honesty. But at leats you’ve had a good time.
When you wake up the next morning, you realize you are still somewhat inebriated. So you go to your local Starbucks and order eighteen shots of espresso. That’s wired to the moon.
Example:
“Have you seen Eddie yet?”
“No, why?”
“He’s completely wired to the moon!”
1. Melter – Annoying / Idiot
Have you ever had that one person who is just so annoying and talks complete and utter nonsense all the time? So have the Irish. Whilst you may use several vulgar terms to describe them, the Irish simply use melter.
Literally, melter refers to someone/something who melts. However, in Irish slang, it translates to something like “annoying” or “idiotic”, but is something more than that- someone who talks complete and utter nonsense!
When you think about it, it makes sense. They talk so much rubbish and are so annoying/idiotic that anytime you are anywhere near them, your brain wants to melt!
Example:
“Have you seen Colleen? She’s so smart!”
“What are you talking about! She’s a complete melter!”
Which are your favorite Irish slang words? Tell me in the comments!
