The British are all idioms (shop, eat, approval)

[RH1]

Originally Posted by WoodwardGirl

Chalk and cheese different (and, sadly, Hawks and Handsaws)
Taking a **** (means something completely different here!) I'm confused... if the asterisks are what I think, what else could it mean??
Gone pear-shaped gone wrong
He's barking He's mad (some of these probably have their roots in cockney rhyming slang don't they?
Coals to Newcastle How do you explain this? It's a bit like doing something pointless - like Newcastle has a lot of coal traditionally so you wouldn't bother sending it there...
Take a Butcher's having a look - this is definitely rhyming slang (butcher's hook)
Come a cropper made a mistake/ fallen over
Donkey's years A long time (context "that pub's been there donkey's years...")
Lost his bottle Chickened out... oh that's another one... er... lol... run out of courage - got scared....
On the blower On the phone

I'll add more as I think of them.

Adding comments in red for UBJ...

We were at a farmer's market the other day and there was a basket of dried pig ears (presumably for dogs to chew on.) I pointed at them and said to my poor bad-joke-suffering OH "They've made a right pig's ear of them..."

That traditionally would mean they've made a mess of that/ messed it up. Well I thought it was funny...

[uglyblackjohn]

RH1-Thank you for the help.

[Yorkie Bar]

Originally Posted by uglyblackjohn

WoodwardGirl- Or anyone else, please give the meanings of the ones you've stated. I'll watch a Guy Richie movie and need the context to understand what their idioms/slang mean but just stating different sayings... I'm confused as to what they could mean.

**edit** Damn, RH1 beat me to it!

I'm no linguist but I'll tell you what I think they mean.......

Chalk and cheese - things that are very different

Taking a p*i*s*s* (taking the ****) - making fun of somebody or taking a liberty with something (e.g have you seen the price of gas? Those oil companies are taking the ****)

Gone pear-shaped - it's all gone horribly wrong

He's barking - He's not all there mentally/insane/nutter

Coals to Newcastle - Newcastle has a lot of coal so it's pointless to take them more, like taking sand to a desert.

Take a Butcher's - cockney rhyming slang, Butchers (Hook) = Look

Come a cropper - literally to fall over or off or to fail at doing something (often when trying to be a bit too clever for your own good)

Donkey's years - a long time (are donkeys long lived?)

Lost his bottle - lost his nerve/courage, chickened out, didn't carry it through

On the blower - not sure if this is rhyming slang but it means speaking on the telephone

I'm sure somebody will correct me if I'm wrong.

[RH1]

Originally Posted by Yorkie Bar

**edit** Damn, RH1 beat me to it!

I'm no linguist but I'll tell you what I think they mean.......

.....

Taking a p*i*s*s* (taking the ****) - making fun of somebody or taking a liberty with something (e.g have you seen the price of gas? Those oil companies are taking the ****)

LOL sorry!

Well figured-out on taking the p*** - we should probably just point out to our American colleagues though that "taking a p***" means exactly the same here. So you don't want to be saying to someone "Are you taking a p***?" because they'll probably be offended if they think you think they're incontinent.

[WoodwardGirl]

Originally Posted by RH1

LOL sorry!

Well figured-out on taking the p*** - we should probably just point out to our American colleagues though that "taking a p***" means exactly the same here. So you don't want to be saying to someone "Are you taking a p***?" because they'll probably be offended if they think you think they're incontinent.

LOL, first at getting asterisked out, then at getting it wrong, myself! Thanks for the translations.

let's add:

"he cocked that up!"
one we've laughed about before: "Keep your pecker up" or "keep your pecker pecking!"
"Safe as houses"
"I'll be mother"
"he got the chop."
"he's done a runner"
"have a dekko" (is this still in use? Often used to see it in British novels, but less so these days... always wondered if it was from an Asian word, or somehow related to "recce" which I think came from Re-connoitre, a word that is used but not really ever abbreviated in the US)
"up the spout"
"he's a dab hand."
"take the mickey"
"she'll throw a wobbly"
"chocks away!"
"give us a bell"
"he dropped a clanger"
"spend a penny"
"it takes the biscuit"

[Stormcrow73]

I think us hillbillies here in the states use plenty of idioms as well.

[Hobokenkitchen]

Originally Posted by WoodwardGirl

one we've laughed about before: "Keep your pecker up" "

Ha!! My Dad used this one while he was over visiting us. We were at a school in Boston and he has a very loud voice.

He also says " Blow me!". It means "My Goodness!" in British English, and something unspeakable in American English. Lol.

[alchem88]

I thought they were really entertaining and interesting until I moved to England. Now I just find them irritating.

[southdown]

Originally Posted by Stormcrow73

I think us hillbillies here in the states use plenty of idioms as well.

We'd love to hear them

[uglyblackjohn]

Woodward,Yorkie,RH - Some kind-of make sense, some you can speculate on their orgin. The one that makes me laugh is, "Gone pear-shaped". Does this reference a woman's bottom as she ages or is there a more (or less) inane orgin?