Nadsat |
English |
Word origin |
|
appy polly loggies |
apologies |
Highly exaggerated pronunciation of apologies – Burgess's homage to James Joyce's ALP |
auto |
car |
Short for automobile; mirrors the usage in Russian: see авто (avto) |
|
baboochka |
old woman |
бабушка (babuška,
literally “grandmother”) |
baddiwad |
bad |
Young child talk |
banda |
band |
банда (banda, “gang”)
|
barry place |
prison |
From bars on windows in prisons. |
bedways |
to bed |
— |
bezoomny |
mad, crazy |
безумный (bezumnyj)
|
biblio |
library |
библиотека
(biblioteka) |
bitva |
battle |
битва (bitva) |
blub |
weep, cry |
English slang. Not exclusively Nadsat. From the verb form of the English word blubber, often used in a dismissive or insensitive manner, meaning
to
sob or weep noisily. |
Bog |
God |
бог (bog) (pronounced /box/ (where x
sounds
like kh) or (in some dialects) /bog/) |
bogman |
godman |
See section G below |
boomaboom |
thunder |
Onomatopoeia |
bolnoy |
sick |
больной (bolʹnoj) |
bolshy |
big, great |
большой (bolʹšoj);
больший (bolʹšij,
“larger”). Cf bolshie
|
boohoo, boohoohoo |
to cry |
From the sound that one makes while crying. Not exclusively Nadsat. |
boorjoyce |
bourgeois |
Burgess' pronunciation of "bourgeois". |
bootick |
boutique |
brat, bratty |
brother |
брат (brat) |
bratchny |
bastard |
брачный (bračnyj,
“matrimonial”), — likely a shortened внебрачный
(vnebračnyj, “out-of-wedlock”), even though stripping it of the prefix inverts the
meaning |
britva |
razor |
бритва (britva) |
brooko |
belly |
брюхо (brjuxo) |
brosay, brosat |
to throw |
бросай (brosaj,
“throw!”, imperative), бросать (brosatʹ,
“to
throw”) |
bruiseboys |
police officers, security guards |
bugatties |
riches |
богатый (bogatyj). |
bugatty |
rich |
богатый (bogatyj). |
|
cables |
blood vessels, tendons?, veins |
|
cal |
crap |
кал (kal, “faeces”), sometimes used
as an
invective as well |
cancer |
cigarette |
Short for English slang cancer stick from the
disease with which heavy smoking is most commonly associated |
cantora |
office |
контора (kontora) |
carman |
pocket |
карман (karman) |
chai |
tea |
чай (čaj), not exclusively Nadsat. |
charles, charlie |
chaplain |
A play on Charlie Chaplin. Not
exclusively Nadsat. |
chasha |
cup |
чашка (čaška); чаша (čaša, “large
bowl”)
|
chasso |
guard |
часовой (časovoj) |
cheena |
woman |
женщина (ženščina)
|
cheest |
to wash |
чистить (čistitʹ,
“to
clean”) |
chelloveck |
person, man, fellow |
человек (čelovek,
“human, man”) |
chepooka |
nonsense |
чепуха (čepuxa) |
choodessny |
wonderful |
чудесный (čudesnyj)
|
chumble |
to mumble |
Blend of chatter + mumble |
cine |
cinema, film |
French slang ciné |
clockwork |
mechanically responsive |
|
clop |
to knock |
хлопать (xlopatʹ,
“clap”); German klopfen (“to knock”) |
cluve |
beak |
клюв (kljuv) |
collocoll |
bell |
колокол (kolokol) |
crack |
to break up, smash |
— |
crark |
to howl |
Blend of crow
+ bark |
crast |
steal, rob, robbery |
красть (krastʹ, “to
steal”) |
creech |
to shout, scream |
кричать (kričatʹ) |
cutter |
money |
From Cockney rhyming slang derived from bread-and-butter |
|
dama |
lady |
дама (dama); cf Dame
|
decrep |
elder |
Short for "decrepit" |
ded, dedoochka |
old man |
дед (ded), дедушка (deduška,
“grandfather”), coll. "old man" |
deng |
money |
деньги (denʹgi) |
devotchka |
young woman |
девочка (devočka,
“girl”) |
dobby |
good |
добрый (dobryj, “kind,
good”) |
dook |
trace, ghost |
дух (dux, literally “spirit”); Romani dook (“magic”) |
domy |
house |
дом (dom) |
dorogoy |
dear, valuable, expensive |
дорогой (dorogoj) |
dratsing |
fighting |
драться (dratʹsja,
“to
fight”) |
drencrom |
drug |
Possibly adrenochrome |
droog |
friend |
друг (drug, “friend”) |
droogie |
friendly |
дружелюбно
(druželjubno, “friendly”) |
dung |
to defecate |
— |
dva |
two |
два (dva) |
|
eegra |
game |
игра (igra) |
eemya |
name |
имя (imja) |
eggiweg |
egg |
Juvenile mutation of "egg" |
em |
mother |
Derived from the first letter of "mother". |
espresso rapido |
train |
"fast express" in Italian |
eunuch jelly |
gutless coward |
|
fag |
tire, exhaust |
English slang. Not exclusively Nadsat. |
faggy/fagged |
tired, exhausted |
|
fashed |
bothered, annoyed, tired |
Scots fash |
filly |
to play or fool around with |
Dim. of "fiddle", cf filly (horse) |
filmdrome |
cinema |
From δρόμος
(drómos, “course”), meaning "place for doing films". |
firegold |
strong drink |
? "firewater" |
fist |
to punch |
From Engl. fist, cf удар кулаком, БИТЬ кулаком |
flatblock |
block of flats |
flip |
wild |
From Eng. slang to flip out (“to go
mad/crazy”) |
forella |
trout |
форель (forelʹ), from German Forelle |
fuzzy |
scratchy |
|
gazetta |
newspaper |
газета (gazeta), cf gazette |
glazz, glazzies, glazzballs |
Eye, eyes (also used to refer to nipples) |
глаз (glaz) |
gloopy |
stupid |
глупый (glupyj) |
glory |
hair |
godman |
priest, chaplain |
golly |
unit of money |
Rhyming slang, "lolly," or "polly" |
goloss |
voice |
голос (golos) |
goober |
lip |
губа (guba) |
gooly |
to walk |
гулять (guljatʹ) |
gorlo |
throat |
горло (gorlo) |
govoreet |
speak |
говорить (govoritʹ)
|
grahzny |
dirty |
грязный (grjaznyj) |
grazzy |
soiled |
грязь (grjazʹ, “dirt”),
грязный (grjaznyj,
“dirty”)
|
gromky |
loud |
громкий (gromkij) |
groody |
breast |
грудь (grudʹ, “breast”),
груди pl (grudi,
“breasts”)
|
gruppa |
group |
группа (gruppa) |
guff, guffaw |
laugh |
Guffaw |
gulliver |
head |
голова (golova) |
guttiwuts |
guts |
Children’s speech |
|
hen-korm |
chickenfeed |
Engl. hen + корм
(korm,
noun, literally “feed”), but cf corn |
horn |
to cry out |
— |
horrorshow |
good, well, wonderful, excellent |
хорошо (xorošo,
“well,
good”) |
hound-and-horny |
corny |
Rhyming slang |
|
in-out in-out, the old in and out |
sexual intercourse |
— |
interessovat |
to interest |
интересовать
(interesovatʹ) |
itty |
to go |
идти (idti, “to go”) |
|
jammiwam |
jam |
Juvenile mutation of the word "jam" |
jeezny |
life |
жизнь (žiznʹ) |
|
kartoffel |
potatoes |
картофель
(kartofelʹ), which itself is derived from German Kartoffel (“potato”) |
kashl |
cough |
кашель (kašelʹ) |
keeshkas |
guts |
кишка (kiška,
“gut”)
|
kisa |
girl |
киса (kisa, literally “kitty”)
|
kleb |
bread |
хлеб (xleb) |
klootch |
key |
ключ (ključ) |
knives |
drugs |
knopka |
button |
кнопка (knopka) |
knopkavat |
buttoning |
кнопка (knopka) + -овать (-ovatʹ) (pronounced -avat)
suffix used to form verb infinitive from the noun, cf. газ (gaz, “gas”) - colloquial газовать
(gazovatʹ, “to gas up”) |
kopat |
to 'dig' (appreciate) |
копать (kopatʹ, literally
“to
dig”) |
korova |
cow |
корова (korova) |
koshka, kot |
cat, tomcat |
кошка (koška), кот (kot) |
koshtoom |
clothing |
костюм (kostjum,
“suit”) |
krovvy |
blood |
кровь (krovʹ) |
kupet |
to buy |
купить (kupitʹ) |
|
lapa |
paw |
лапа (lapa) |
lewdies |
people |
люди (ljudi) |
lighter |
old woman, crone |
Unknown, possibly "blighter" or "fire lighter" |
litso |
face |
лицо (lico) |
lomtick |
piece, bit |
ломтик (lomtik,
“slice”) |
luna |
moon |
луна (luna) |
loveted |
caught |
ловить (lovitʹ, “to
catch”) |
lubbilubbing |
making love |
любить (ljubitʹ, “to
love”), люблю (ljublju,
“(I)
love”) |
luscious glory |
hair |
Rhyming slang, possibly "upper storey" (or, more likely, a reference to 'crowning glory') |
|
malchick |
boy |
мальчик (malʹčik) |
malenky |
little, tiny |
маленький
(malenʹkij) |
maskie |
mask |
маска (maska) |
maslo |
butter |
масло (maslo) |
merzky |
filthy |
мерзкий (merzkij,
literally
“vile, disgusting”) |
messel |
thought, fancy |
мысль (myslʹ) |
mesto |
place |
место (mesto) |
mewler (or: mowler) |
to mew |
— |
millicents |
police |
From милиционер
(milicioner, literally “a militsiya
officer”) (милиция
(milicija)), influenced by the given name Millicent. Cf militia |
minoota |
minute |
минута (minuta) |
molodoy |
young |
молодой (molodoj) |
moloko |
milk |
молоко (moloko) |
Moloko plus |
milk laced with drugs |
moodge |
man |
муж (muž, “husband”), archaic,
high-flown "man" |
morder |
snout |
морда (morda) |
mounch |
snack |
munch |
munchy-wunching |
munching |
Juvenile mutation of the word "munching" |
mozg |
brain |
мозг (mozg) |
|
nachinat |
to begin |
начинать (načinatʹ)
|
nadmenny |
arrogant |
надменный
(nadmennyj) |
nadsat |
teenage |
From -надцать
(-nadcatʹ, “-teen”), suffix; e.g., одиннадцать
(odinnadcatʹ), двенадцать
(dvenadcatʹ), тринадцать
(trinadcatʹ), etc. |
nagoy |
naked |
нагой (nagoj, “nude”),
high-flown for "naked"
|
nazz |
fool |
назад (nazad, “backward”)
|
neezhnies |
underpants |
нижнее n
(nižneje, “lower”, adjective); нижнее
бельё (nižneje belʹjó, “underwear”) |
nochy |
night/nocturnal |
ночь (nočʹ) ночной (nočnoj) |
nogas |
feet, legs (also used in reference to cars) |
нога (noga) |
nozh |
knife |
нож (nož) |
nuking |
smelling |
нюхать (njuxatʹ, “smell,
sniff”) |
|
oddy knocky |
on one's own |
одинокий (odinokij,
literally “lonesome”) |
odin |
one |
один (odin) |
okno |
window |
окно (okno) |
oobivat |
to kill |
убивать (ubivatʹ) |
ookadeet |
to leave |
уходить (uxoditʹ) |
ooko |
ear |
ухо (uxo) |
oomny |
brainy |
умный (umnyj, “clever”)
|
oozhassny |
terrible |
ужасный (užasnyj) |
oozy |
chain |
узы (uzy) archaic, high-flown "shackles"
|
orange |
man, person |
Malay orang (“man”), whence orang utan (literally “forest man”),
orang-pendek
|
osoosh |
to wipe |
осушать (osušatʹ,
“to dry”) |
otchkies |
eyeglasses |
очки (očki) |
|
pan-handle |
erection |
— |
pee and em |
father and mother |
"pa and ma", "pater and mater" |
peet |
to drink |
пить (pitʹ, “pit”) |
pishcha |
food |
пища (pišča) |
platch |
to cry |
плач (plač, noun), плачь (plačʹ, verb imperative) |
platties |
clothes |
платье (platʹje) |
pletcho |
shoulder |
плечо (plečo) |
plenny |
prisoner |
пленный (plennyj,
literally
“captive”) |
plesk |
splash |
плеск (plesk); plash |
plosh |
to splash |
Onomatopoeia "kerplosh"; plash |
plott |
body |
плоть (plotʹ, “flesh”)
|
podooshka |
pillow |
подушка (poduška)
|
poison |
person |
Phonetic approximation of person in a Cockney accent
|
pol |
sex |
пол (pol, “gender”) |
polezny |
useful |
полезный (poleznyj)
|
polly |
in phrase "pretty polly" = money |
Rhyming slang for "lolly" |
polyclef |
skeleton key |
French clef (“key”); Greek poly- (“many”) |
pony |
to understand |
понимать (ponimatʹ,
“to understand”) |
poogly |
frightened |
испуганный
(ispugannyj, “frightened”), пугливый
(puglivyj,
“easily scared”) |
pooshka |
gun |
пушка (puška, literally
“cannon”), slang "gun" |
pop-disc |
a record, pop album |
— |
prestoopnik |
criminal |
преступник
(prestupnik) |
pretty polly |
money |
Rhyming slang for "lolly" |
privodeet |
to lead somewhere |
приводить
(privoditʹ) |
prod |
to produce |
— |
ptitsa |
girl |
птица (ptica, “bird”),
cf.
chick (bird is a common slang in Britain for a
(young) woman, but is not used in Russian in this sense)
|
punchipunching |
punching |
Juvenile mutation of "punching" |
pyahnitsa |
drunk |
пьяница (pʹjanica) |
|
rabbit |
work |
работа (rabota) |
rabbiter |
worker |
работник (rabotnik)
|
radosty |
joy |
радость (radostʹ,
“joy”) |
raskazz |
story |
рассказ (rasskaz) |
rassoodock |
mind |
рассудок (rassudok)
|
raz |
time |
раз (raz, literally “time”), as in
"one
time, two times" |
razdraz |
annoy/annoyed |
razrez |
to rip, ripping |
разрез (razrez, “a
cut”), разрезать
(razrezatʹ, “to cut”) impf / pf |
rookerful |
handful |
рука (ruka, “hand”) |
rook, rooker |
hand |
руки pl (ruki) |
rot |
mouth |
рот (rot) |
rozz |
policeman |
rozzer (“policeman”) (Cockney rhyming slang) |
|
sabog |
shoe |
сапог (sapog, “boot”), cf
French sabot (“shoe”)
|
sakar |
sugar |
сахар (saxar), cf English saccharine |
sammy |
generous |
"(Good) Samaritan" (Bible Story) |
sarky |
sarcastic |
English slang, not exclusively Nadsat. |
scoteena |
beast, cow |
скотина (skotina,
“cattle”) |
shaika |
gang |
шайка (šajka) |
sharp |
female |
Cockney rhyming slang "sharp and blunt" |
sharries |
buttocks |
шары pl (šary,
“spheres, marbles”) |
shest |
barrier |
шест (šest, “pole”) |
shilarny |
desire |
желание (želanije,
“desire, wish”) |
shive |
slice |
Probably from shiv |
shiyah |
neck |
Russian шея (šeja), Ukrainian шия (šyja) |
shlem |
helmet |
шлем (šlem) |
shlaga |
club, bat |
German Schläger (“club, bat”,
literally
“hitter”) |
shlagnicked |
clubbed |
"shlaga" + -ник (-nik, “Russian diminutive”) |
shlapa |
hat |
шляпа (šljapa) |
shoom |
noise |
шум (šum) |
shoot |
fool |
шут (šut, “clown, jester”)
|
shop-crasting |
stealing from a cars and houses |
shvat |
take |
схватить (sxvatitʹ,
“grab”) |
silver-like |
shiny |
sinny |
film, cinema, movie theater |
Mutated spelling of "cine" |
skazat |
to say |
сказать (skazatʹ) |
skitebird |
shithead |
Dialect or slang for seagull, known for their loose bowels |
skolliwoll |
school |
Juvenile mutation of the word "school" |
skorry |
quick, quickly |
скорый (skoryj) |
skriking |
scratching |
Blend of strike + scratch |
skvat |
to grab |
схватить (sxvatitʹ)
|
sladkvat |
sweetest |
сладкий (sladkij) |
sladky |
sweet |
сладкий (sladkij) |
sloochat |
to happen |
случаться
(slučatʹsja) |
sloosh, slooshy |
to hear, to listen |
слушать (slušatʹ,
“listen”), слышать (slyšatʹ,
“hear”) |
slovo |
word |
слово (slovo) |
smeck |
laugh |
смех (smex, “laughter”) |
smot |
to look |
смотреть (smotretʹ)
|
sneety |
dream |
сниться (snitʹsja,
“to
be seen in a dream”) |
snoutie |
tobacco |
From snout, Engl. prison slang for "tobacco"
or
"cigarette" |
snuff it |
commit suicide |
From the phrase used to put out a lit candle (to
snuff
it). Not exclusively Nadsat. |
sobirat |
to pick up |
собирать (sobiratʹ)
|
sod |
to fornicate/bugger, fornicator/bugger |
Engl. slang; from sodomy, not exclusively nadsat.
|
sophistos |
sophisticated/beautiful people |
. |
soomka |
old woman |
сумка (sumka, “bag”), as
in
the English slang for old woman |
sooka |
whore |
сука (suka, literally “bitch”),
as
in the common slang for a whorish or unsavoury woman |
soviet |
advice, order |
совет (sovet, literally “a
piece of
advice”) |
spat, spatchka |
to sleep |
спать (spatʹ, “to
sleep”), спячка (spjačka,
“hibernation”) |
splodge, splosh |
splash |
— |
spoogy |
terrified |
испуганный
(ispugannyj) |
Staja |
cell, State Jail |
Formed from the beginning of the words "STAte JAil"; cf German Stalag, English stalag. It is also the scholarly transliteration of
стая (staja, literally “flock (of
birds,
of wolves)”).
|
Steaky Wake |
Beef Steak |
A childish pronunciation of the word steak. |
starry |
ancient, old |
старый (staryj) |
strack |
horror |
страх (strax, “fear”)
|
stoolies |
chairs |
стулья pl
(stulʹja) (from стул (stul)) |
stripey hole |
prison |
From appearance of bars, or alternatively the striped uniforms once worn by prisoners. |
synthemesc |
drug |
Possibly "synthetic mescaline" |
|
tally |
waist |
талия (talija) |
tashtook |
handkerchief |
From German Taschentuch (literally
“pocket-cloth”)
|
tass |
cup |
From French tasse or German Tasse |
this nochy |
tonight |
ночь (nočʹ, “night”) |
tick-tocker |
heart |
From the sound of a heartbeat, often "ticker" in English slang. |
ticklewickled |
grazed |
timps |
drums |
From English timpani |
tolchock |
push, hit |
толчок (tolčok) |
toofles |
slippers |
туфли (tufli, “shoes”)
|
tree |
three |
три (tri) |
|
vareet |
to cook up |
варить (varitʹ, literally
“to
cook by boiling”) |
vaysay |
washroom |
From French pronunciation of w.-c. (“water
closet”) |
veck |
person, man, fellow |
человек (čelovek,
“person, man”) |
vehina |
wine |
вино (vino) |
vellocet |
drug |
Probably fabricated; '-cet' is a common ending of painkillers (e.g., percocet, ultracet).
Possibly
from speed (velocity), which is slang for the drug amphetamine
or
possibly suggested by the British motorcycle manufacturers Velocette. |
venail |
? (used as tolchocking and venailing) |
Actually "the nailing in" referring to the nailing of Christ as described in the Bible |
veshch |
thing |
вещь (veščʹ) |
viddy |
see |
видеть (videtʹ, “to
see”) |
vino |
wine (also used as blood) |
вино (vino) |
voloss |
hair |
волос (volos, “a hair”);
волосы pl
(volosy, “hair”)
|
von |
smell |
вонь (vonʹ, “stench”) |
vred |
to harm or damage |
вред (vred, “harm”), вредить (vreditʹ,
“to
harm”) |
|
warbles |
songs, recordings |
From the English word warble (“to
sing”).
(As in the birds known as "warblers") |
worldcast |
satellite TV or shortwave radio broadcast |
Blend of world + broadcast |
|
yahma |
hole |
яма (jama) |
yahoodies |
Jews |
From Arabic يهود pl
(yahudi, “Jews”)/ from Hebrew( יהודי- yehudi) Jewish/Jew. Not exclusively Nadsat
|
yahzick |
tongue |
язык (jazyk) |
yarbles, yarblockos |
testicles |
яблоко (jabloko,
“apple”) (The Russian word doesn't have this meaning, see яйца (jajca, literally
“eggs”))
|
yeckate |
to drive |
ехать (jexatʹ, “to go (by
vehicle)”) |
|
zammechat |
remarkable |
замечательный
(zamečatelʹnyj) |
zasnoot |
sleep |
заснуть (zasnutʹ,
“to
fall asleep”) |
zheena |
wife |
жена (žena) |
zoobies |
teeth |
зубы pl (zuby) |
zvonock |
bellpull, doorbell |
звонок (zvonok,
“doorbell”) |
zvook |
sound |
звук (zvuk) |