Royal Naval Slang & Terminology
The Royal Navy has a language all of its own and the average matelot uses a lot of terminology unheard in other walks of life. Here is a guide of the more common naval terms for those that have never served and as a gentle reminder for those that left the Navy many years ago.
| Adrift | To be late |
| Airy Fairy | member of the Fleet Air Arm |
| Anchor-faced | To be totally intoxicated by the Navy |
| Andrew, The | The Royal Navy |
| Babies heads | Steak & kidney puddings |
| Bag meal | A packed lunch |
| Banyan | Beach party |
| Belay | Stop or cease |
| Bezzy | Best as in "bezzy oppo" - best mate |
| Big eats | Takeaway food |
| Bish, The | Naval chaplain |
| Bite | To be fooled into believing something stupid |
| Bimble | Walk slowly |
| Bone (1) | Stupid |
| Bone (2) | To have sex with |
| Bootneck / booty | Royal Marine |
| Bravo zulu (BZ) | Well done |
| Brown hatter's overalls | Pyjamas |
| Buffer | Chief Bosuns mate |
| Buggery board | The long board running along the inside of a bunk on a ship, separating it from the adjacent bunk. |
| Burberry | Service issue raincoat |
| Buzz | Rumour |
| Can man | Canteen (NAAFI) manager |
| Chad Valley | An unreliable piece of equipment |
| Channel night | The final night at sea before returning to base port |
| Cheesy hammy eggy | Ham and melted cheese on toast topped with a fried egg. |
| Chippy | Shipwright |
| Chit | Request form |
| Chogie nosh | Chinese food |
| Chop one off | Salute |
| Civvy | Civilian |
| Clanky | Marine engineer |
| Clear lower deck | Whole ship's company to muster |
| Club swinger / clubs | PT instructor |
| Cock & arse | Officers' cocktail party |
| Corn dog | Corned beef |
| Crabby | Dirty |
| Crabfat | A member of the RAF |
| Crash out | Get your head down, go to sleep |
| Crimp | Sleep |
| Crumb duster | Steward |
| Dabber / Dabtoe | Seaman or member of the Ops Branch |
| Deck (1) | The floor |
| Deck (2) | Knock someone to the floor |
| Deckhead | Ceiling |
| Dhobie | Wash |
| Dhobie dust | Washing powder |
| Dhobie hitch | Unrecognisable knot |
| Dhobie shack | Ship's laundry |
| Dig out | Make an effort |
| Dipped in | Made an unexpected gain |
| Dipped out | Missed out on something |
| Dit | A story |
| Doofer | A bit that goes on something |
| Dose | A sexually-transmitted disease |
| Double-bagger | Someone so ugly that you put a bag over your own head in case theirs falls off! |
| Drip | To moan or complain |
| Drop a sprog | Give birth |
| DTS | Dinner Time Session (lunchtime drinking session) |
| Duff | Pudding |
| Eating irons (port & starboard) | Knife and fork |
| Essence | A gorgeous woman (very occasionally a man) |
| Exped | Adventurous training |
| Fanny rat | Womaniser |
| Fat knacker | An unfit person |
| Fish-head | Fleet Air Arm's name for a sailor |
| Flapping | Panicking (flapping around like a headless chicken) |
| Flash | Get angry |
| Flash up | Start (machinery) |
| Flat | Passageway or open space between decks on a ship |
| Float test | Dispose of something by chucking it over the side of the ship |
| Floggie | Pornographic magazine |
| Foulie | Service issue foul weather jacket |
| Four O'clockers | A snack of sandwiches or buns sometimes served at 4pm when at sea. |
| Gash | Rubbish |
| Gen | Genuine / true as in "gen dit" - a true story |
| Gizzit | A free gift / something unwanted that might prove useable |
| Gobshite | Someone with a big mouth who usually talks rubbish |
| Goffer (1) | A large wave breaking over the ship |
| Goffer (2) | A soft drink |
| Goofer | Spectator |
| Greeny | An electrician |
| Grey Funnel Line | Royal Navy |
| Gronk board | A collection of photographs (usually from the whole mess) of former girlfriends |
| Gulpers | A quantity of drink somewhere between "sippers" and "sandy bottoms" |
| Gulch | Area of a messdeck between the bunks |
| Guz | Devonport |
| Heads | Toilets |
| Honky Fid | Hong Kong |
| Homeward bounders | Large untidy stitches |
| Hooky | Leading hand |
| Icers | Very cold |
| Ickies | Foreign money |
| Jack | A sailor |
| Jack dusty | A naval stores rating |
| Jenny | A Wren (female sailor) |
| Jimmy (the 1) | The First Lieutenant |
| Joss man | Master-at-Arms |
| Klebbies | Foreign money |
| Killick | Leading hand |
| Kit muster | A personal kit inspection |
| Lash up | To treat someone (usually to drinks) |
| Limers | Soft drink, usually made from powder, drank when working in hot conditions |
| Loafing | Idly hanging around, not putting in any effort |
| Lower deck lawyer | A rating that is always quoting rules and regulations |
| Maily | Letter |
| Make & Mend | An afternoon off |
| Matelot | Sailor |
| Minging (1) | Drunk |
| Minging (2) | Ugly |
| Mob, The | The Navy |
| Muscle bosun | Fitness fanatic |
| NATO standard | Tea or coffee with milk and two sugars |
| Necky | Got a nerve (as in more neck than a 3 badge giraffe at action stations with a make and mend chit) |
| Nines | No. 9 punishment - Loss of leave with extra work |
| Nine O'clockers | A supper of sandwiches or buns sometimes served at 9pm when in harbour. |
| Nutty | Sweets / chocolate |
| Nutty fiend | Someone who eats a lot of sweets |
| Oggies | Cornish pasties |
| Oggin | The sea |
| Old Man, The | Skipper, Commanding Oficer |
| Old Ships | A former shipmate |
| One-eye | Idiot |
| Oppo | Friend / colleague |
| Ovies | Overalls |
| Pash | Girlfriend |
| Percy | Soldier |
| Pig | Officer |
| Piglet | Midshipman |
| Pigsty | Wardroom |
| Pillow fluffer | Steward |
| Pinged | To be seen |
| Pipe | Announcement over main broadcast |
| Piso | Tight or stingy |
| Pit | Bed |
| Pompey | Portsmouth |
| Pongo | Soldier |
| Proffed | Aquired something by dubious methods |
| Punkah louvre | An adjustable ventilation hole |
| Pusser | The Navy |
| Quaff | To drink |
| Rabbits | Presents or souvenirs |
| Rat-arsed | Drunk |
| RDP | Run down period (period just before going on draft when interest wanes) |
| Reggie | Regulator (Naval policeman) |
| R.O.M.F.T. | Roll On My Fucking Time (used by hacked of sailors eager to leave the Navy) |
| Roof rats | Aircraft handlers |
| Roughers | Rough seas |
| Rounds | Routine inspections by an officer |
| Run ashore | A night out |
| Sad on, have a | To be depressed |
| Scab lifter | Medical Assistant |
| Schoolie | Instructor officer |
| Scran | Food |
| Scran bag (1) | A scruffy person |
| Scran bag (2) | A bag for collected items of loose items of clothing and kit |
| Scratcher | Bed |
| Sea dust | Salt |
| Secure | The end of the working day |
| Set | Full beard |
| Shippers | Shipmate |
| Shitehawk | Seagull |
| Shithouse shinpad | A method for transporting pornographic literature to the heads unnoticed. |
| Shitinit | Be quiet! |
| Shitnicks | Underpants |
| Shit on a raft | Kidneys in gravy on fried bread |
| Shoot through | Fail to turn up or leave run ashore early |
| Sickbay ranger | Someone who spends a lot of time off sick |
| Sickbay shackle | Safety pin |
| Singers | Singapore |
| Sippers | A sip of a drink |
| Skin | Young and fresh-faced |
| Slide | Butter |
| Slops | Clothing Issue Store |
| Snorkers | Sausages |
| Snorkers in fearnought | Sausage rolls |
| Sods opera | A show put on at sea by the ships company |
| Spin | To tell or explain |
| Split-arse | Wren |
| Spondoolies | Money |
| Sprog (1) | Child |
| Sprog (2) | Someone who has only been in the Navy for a short time |
| Sports pages | Saucy letter from a wife of girlfriend |
| Squeezing | Suffering from a sexually transmitted disease |
| Stoker | Marine engineering mechanic |
| Stand easy | Tea break |
| Steaming bats | Service issue non-slip work boots |
| Sub | Stand in for duty |
| Sun dodger | Submariner |
| Swamp | Wet yourself or wet your bed |
| Tea & stickies | Friendly non-alcoholic hospitality |
| Thin out | Leave (the vicinity) |
| Three-badgeman | Someone with 3 good conduct badges (12 years service) and usually has not advanced beyond Able Rate. |
| Tiff | Artificer (engineering technician) |
| Tilly | Minibus |
| Tot | A measure of rum |
| Townie | A shipmate from the same home town |
| Turn to | Start work |
| Two's up | Reserving position eg "two's up with that book" |
| Uckers | A mess game. A variation of Ludo. |
| Upper scupper | Upper deck |
| Wafu | A member of the Fleet Air Arm |
| Wardroom | The officers' mess |
| Watch on stop on | Continuous duty without relief |
| Wet | A drink |
| Winger (wings) | A friend |
| Wing it | Make it up as you go along |
| Woolly pully | Service issue woollen pullover |
| Yonks | A long time |
| Zeds | Sleep |
