American Reacts to How To Insult Like The British! 

if a Brit insults you then he probably likes you to some extent. It's the really polite ones you need to keep an eye on!

Here's a very subtle form of insult. A foreign woman is being shown into a mansion by a British butler. She says, ''This place is like a prison.'' The butler replies, ''I'm afraid you have the advantage of me madam.''

When I was on tour in China we were teaching our tour guide some English slang words including minging and knackered. The Captain of the boat trip we were on asked him to do an English announcement for the few English-speaking passengers on the boat and we dared him to include the new words. He didn't disappoint. "If you look over to the right you'll see Fengdu Ghost City but it's minging because the economy is totally knackered." 🤣🤣🤣

Several years ago I once told someone to offer themselves as specimen to a taxidermist. It sounded much more polite than just saying get stuffed.

One of my favourite nicknames was a guy got himself the nickname "bungalow" because he had nothing upstairs.

In leather working, a skiving knife was used to split the hide. The person who did this was a skiver and was often the only person who worked sitting down. Hence the word became associated with being lazy or getting the easy work, or later, avoiding work (or school) completely.

Blackadder has some really subtle but nasty ones: 'The mouth moves, the eyes see, but Mr Brain has long since departed.'

When you imitate us, it always sounds like you're doing a London accent. Badly! 😅

Now she only has to explain a few hundred insults the Scots use .Scottish people swearing is a form of art in its self .

I like that she chose the most benign, almost quaint and nostalgic of our insults. The kind of insults you’d use with friends or your grandmother 😃

I did try explaining to my ex husband - “Oi Git Face” was a term of endearment but I’m not sure he believed me 😂

Cockney rhyming slang used to be very popular and is still used by some. It's worth checking out. The rule is that you use only the first word of a pair in a phrase to mean something that thymes with the second word. So, 'trouble' means 'wife' (as in 'trouble and strife'). The example she gave was 'Berk', short for Berkshire, as in 'Berkshire Hunt'. So the meaning rhymes with 'hunt', if you get what I mean... 😃 Once you get it, 'Berk' comes across as ruder than it actually is.

Everytime you use that "British accent" a little bit of me dies.

_Berk_ is a classic example of Cockney rhyming slang (as Siobhan pointed out) - but one which has become socially acceptable. BTW: don't confuse _minger_ with _minge_ : it could get you into a lot of trouble in polite society!😆

Numpty is my favorite non offensive slang word

There is documentary evidence in the form of manuscripts to confirm that the English/Welsh two fingered "salute" originated around the time of Agincourt.

'Am I allowed to do this on RU-vid?... Probably just for a few seconds!' That's the funniest thing I heard on RU-vid all evening.

Go forth and multiply - is a subtle one.

"How to be mildly insulting like polite British". It's bollocks, but not the dog's bollocks.

Your imitating a British accent actually made me laugh out loud - but in a good way!

There's an easy way most Brits make words into an insult. Think of a random word... sausage, daffodil, teapot, football, etc. 🤔 Then put one of the following in front of it... bloody, total, absolute, complete & utter. e.g. you total daffodil you bloody sausage you absolute teapot you complete & utter football Instant insults. 🤣

My Nan always used to say “Don’t be a Mardy arse”.

Popular in Ireland: gobshite, langer, eejit, dirtbird, plank and gheebag 😂

My dogs a gannet! He doesn’t bit or chew his food. He just swallows it whole. Like a gannet 😂

I once said to my immediate boss, "Were you born a prat or do you have to work hard at it?". I kept my job - and he eventually got sacked for being a total prat!! 😅😅

Back in the 80s Phil Collins was guest staring in Miami Vice, having read the script he suggested an ad-lib, he used the term "you wanker". The American director wasn't familiar with the term and green lighted it. Later someone checked it's meaning and the scene had to be reshot.

A guy at work is nicknamed "pothole"..because you either want to avoid him or fill him in😅

And we Brits have an amazing ability to use the most profane of insults as terms of endearment

Years ago, at an 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England v 🇦🇺 Australia cricket match. The barmy army statered singing Get your shit stars, get your shit stars, get your shit stars off our flag. 🇦🇺V🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 the greatest rivalry

"Thick as Mince" is a good one. Also, if something is "Bollocks" is means real crap, but if something is the "Dogs Bollocks" it apparently means excellent. Also, Mutt's Nuts/Mutz Nutz.

• The two finger (V) salute = F*** Off! • The one finger (flippin the bird) = Up yours!

My American daughter-in-law has taken on some of my son's sayings and one day at work (they live in the US) she said to her colleagues about something being really manky. They were all WTF, lol. Manky isn't an insult as such, it just means physically dirty, although you could call someone that if you wanted to.

There’s an Arctic Monkey’s song called Mardybum. It’s very very good!

I'm Aussie but love plonker, pillock and muppet. 😄 We wouldn't tiptoe around with "berk" though!

The American comedian who now resides in the U.K. Reg Dwight Hunter says it takes you three weeks to realise that Brits have insulted you! That is how us Brits have taken the art of insulting to the next level. Another trait of ours is sarcasm and we use it liberally.

The Brits are also extremely good at sarcasm.

I remember as a child, being fascinated when I heard the name of a character being said in an episode of Mork & Mindy. He was called "Mister Wanker". Wanker has a very different meaning over here, basically another variation on Tosser.

Don't even have a try. We've been practicing this for centuries. Handed down from generation to generation.

As a Brit it really stands out when someone non-British puts up two fingers meaning "two".

Don't forget 'bellend' and the saying guaranteed to confuse non native English speakers 'Taking the piss'.

"Sit on it and swivel"... ... is the verbal vesion of the 'flippin the bird'.

You have a wonderful speaking voice ( unusual for an American lol) it’s very relaxing like an hypnotist 😂

A friend who is a barrister, told me that the greatest insult you could give to a colleague is "How terribly middle class of you."

Yeah she's right about where berk comes from, but even most Brit's don't know that and it's much less offensive. Although even the c word is not necessarily as offensive over here.

The two fingered salute is also known as "flicking the v's"

The fact you didn't just take her word for any of the insults, and looked them up yourself is amazing. I've watch so many reaction videos and I've never seen anyone else fact check the information. You really surprised me. Thanks, I look forward to seeing more of your content.

Your "British accent face", combined with your Michael Caine-esque accent is very funny.

4:50 Berk derives from the cockney rhyming slang from Berkeley Hunt which was a famous hunting area near London. It should be noted that Soho is a hunting call from any hunt member shouted upon spotting the fox. The response from the Master of the Hunt is Tally Ho commanding all to give chase.

My mother used to use mardy. We are from Birmingham. So most frequently we talked about small child being mardy.

You're so entertaining. I'm still working my way through them all. You have a lovely gentle voice.

British people do sarcasm like no other nationality on Earth. The kind of insults that arise out of pure unmitigated sarcasm is something to behold.

Best American insult I heard was in a restaurant in Florida. This guy at a nearby table was obviously not getting the service he expected. He turned around to the the waitress and said "you're either a waitress or an arshole, you can't be both". I was in stitches 😅😂😂😂

JJ, from the black country in the uk, yoam a yampy sod, look that one up

I love that we can add the word complete to pretty much all of them for emphasis

Cupid Stunt springs to mind. Not sure why. (Google that if you dare!)

abrupt ending lol youve clearly stopped giving a f@*& 🤣🤣

The two finger salute predates the archer myth but it does sound good.

In the uk not everyone speaks with a London accent

Along the same lines as pillock, one of my favourites is wazzock. Puzzock is one from my Gran who was Coventry-based. And one from the annals of Monty Python: "What a silly bunt."

Strangers are 99% polite to eachother, but once you're considered familiar/a friend, then you'll be greeted with "How you doing, you balding spasm tosser." We have a Jordanian working with us and he is learning English endearing insults very well. 😅

Tell your least favourite person "it'd be impossible for me to like you more than I already do". Say it in a way that gives the impression that you like them. THAT is the British way!

Skiving originates from the shoe making industry. The edges of two pieces of leather that are going to be stitched together are thinned to half thickness so that the joint is less bulky. This is the first operation in traditional shoe making where the operator is able to sit down, hence ; skiving = sitting on your arse when everybody else is busy on their feet.

Here's a good Geordie one for you: 'Radgie' = Crazy person. 'Radge' = Crazy. 'Divn't invite wor Davie, he's a pure radgie' or 'Watch oot, wor Davie's gannin' radge'.

My go-to insult is “ah bless”

I've used and heard all these words, it isn't until I watch a video like this I realise how funny they are. My personal favourite on that list is Tosser.

Skiver came from the old factory's its the person that thins the edge of leather before its joined. Its a very easy job in comparison to other work. So everyone wanted to skive off.

My fave is 'a brick short of a load' - oh, and 'Away with the fairies'. We also have a saying very similar to your own; "Ah, bless". ;-)

Ming in Scots means smell. Pillock is actually a slang term for the middle leg, but few remember it. Gannet in this context is pure Scots. Berkshire hunt - the female equivalent of pillock. Apocryphal (not entirely an insult) - of dubious origin, referring to the archer story, Cf, "Apocrypha," bits of the Bible of dubious authorship..

My faves are the long ones like: "More meat on a butcher's apron" meaning a person who's too thin, or a thing is too small. "One wave short of a shipwreck" meaning a person is a bit odd or crazy.

Fun fact 'mardy' was popularised by the song 'mardy bum' by the Sheffield band The Arctic Monkeys.

Most of our best insults do include incredible crude swearing I must admit lol

One of my favourites .. "Having your arse in your hands" Meaning you're unhappy, upset and angry about something, and probably getting really moody and sulky over something silly. Eg Jenny has gone to her room in a strop because she doesn't like her new hair cut. She's really got her arse in her hands over it " !

Omfg JJ 😂 Your impressions are GOLDEN 🤣

Telling people they're bellends is one of my particular favourites

You've really mastered that Australian accent.

My Dad used to say "Thick as shit in the neck of a bottle" lol. I think minger comes from a Scottish word, "Minging" meaning smelly.

big girls blouse, bellend and knobjockey are amongst my favourites

Skiver/Skiving actually comes from the leather process of skiving - which is the thinning of leather and was one of the few jobs performed sitting down. Hence, it was seen as an easier job and so "skiving" became synonymous with avoiding hard work.

These ‘insults’ are very polite.

"Scumbag" when the insult is directed at a politician!

I'm quite a fan of 'been dragged through a hedge backwards' for someone who looks unkempt or dishevelled 😂

Love the way she describes the word then he immediately looks up the word 😅😅 erm...why ? She's just explained the meaning

Geoffrey the butler from the Fresh Prince of Bel Air probably got away with so much ripping of his boss because of his cool and calm accent's delivery of the insults. That, and it being fiction, of course.

New insults evolve all the time, as language grows and develops. A (relatively) recent one is"You muppet!" (foolish, careless, no idea what to do). As noted in the comments, Scottish insults are at a whole next level, as are many in our various accents and dialects, e.g. Geordie andYorkshire. See "Bauchle" and "Barmpot"

I have always wondered what the length of the planks has to do with their thickness.

Fun fact: Churchill has actually done the two fingered salute. Whether he knew the meaning, or thought it was V for victory, no idea (there are pictures of it)

"Wazzack" is a lot like "pillock", but the football team AFC Wimbledon, in particular in the early 90s, when Vinny Jones was there, were also known as "the Barmy Army"! And while Vinny may have been known as a hard man, he had nothing on the Leeds Legends, particularly those under Don Revie, like Johnny Giles, Billy Bremner, Terry Yorath, Peter Lorimer and Eddie Grey to name literally five!

A popular mild insult is to call someone a muppet, which obviously comes from across the pond.

My favourite UK insults * Bell End - (tip of the penis) * Bell Fruit (variation on the above) * Belter (can mean something or someone is great, but also can mean the above depending on tone and context) * F*ck Nuggett (just sounds good not sure the exact meaning but I think that's up to the user) * Scrote (from Scrotum, usually describing a young male Teen who is causing trouble "the little Scrote set fire to the bin" * Lettuce (means they are stupid, very mild insult brilliant when joking and brilliant when angry with someone) * Cowbag (Cow and Bag are insults , usually towards women, Cowbag combines them, mild and jovial, a young girl might say to her friend "Oi stop taking my chips you Cowbag!!" and they would probably laugh afterwards....similar apply to both Cow and Bag, but Cowbag has the extra "bants" factor, it has a comedic meaning usually 99.9999999% of the time)

Minger is pronounced without the hard g as in singer rather than finger.

Mardy is a northern word, we don't normally use it in the south, but we do know what it means, and may use it occasionally

Winston Churchill famously showed the ‘Vicky’ instead of ✌🏼mistaking for ‘V’ for Victory.

Currently skiving work watching this...

Two cows in a field. First cow says MOOOO!. Second cow says "I was going to say that!. Same two cows a year later. First cow says "So. Have you heard about this Mad Cow Disease?" Second cow says "Doesn't bother me, I'm a fish."

My favourite insults as an Englishman are Wanker, Dinlo (not really used now days) means a stupid person, Dickhead/Nobhead, both mean the same thing and Tosser are my favourite words to use as an insult. Bollocks is probably favourite word to say which we tend to say when someone is lying, "you're talking bollocks" or just plain bollocks (you can also say I got a bollocking instead of I got told off, we also da a rollicking)

Arctic Monkeys wrote a brilliant song called 'Mardy Bum' about a chap arguing with his girlfriend

I like to use "onanist", rather than "tosser", as most people seem to think that it is a compliment ( this sort of proves the point).

Mardy can become a personal insult, most commonly Mardy-arse

"I don't like the cut of your tweed, sir!"

Ace vid...and your English accent is pretty damn good 👍