Scotland may be small, but it is home to a large variety of languages, including, but not limited to, Gaelic, Glasgow patter, Doric, and Shetlandic. Of course, most travelers are strangers to these Scottish regional tongues, and luckily for them, English is very much the vernacular of choice in most places. But that does not mean that visitors to Scotland are out of the woods — the Scottish slang, the Scottish idioms, and the colorful sayings used by the locals may be just as confusing as a foreign language.
This guide to Scottish slang and expressions will help understand some of what the locals are saying while in Scotland. It even includes some very good tips to decipher, and even adopt, the legendary difficult-to-understand accent.
- Scottish slang phrases and how to pronounce them
- Funny Scottish sayings you’ll need to understand the locals
- Scottish language tips to help you blend in
Scottish slang phrases and how to pronounce them
That’s pure manky/mankin/mingin/boggin
Translation: That’s not nice