Wallies of the world.

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Banned
Ferntree Gully
Australian Australia
I agree with geve who posted in the congratulations page.
Should we move this thread to English only and rename it "wallies of the world"?
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Do you know of the meaning and usage of the term 'wally' or 'wallies'?

.,,
 
    • Is that anything like a wallaby ;) ?

    Sorry, I was having a blonde moment. :eek:

    Does that make me a "Wallette"?

    I used to have an Uncle Wally, but he died - he wasn't a very nice person, though.

    Just found this on wikipedia.com:
    Based on its meaning as a pickled cucumber, Wally is commonly used in Britain as a slang word for a fool.
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    French4beth is right - wally is common slang here for someone who is a bit of an idiot. It isn't a nasty word - you would commonly use it of someone you like or love. The OED does not support the pickled cucumber hypothesis, nor have I heard of 'wally' meaning a pickled cucumber.
     
    french4beth said:
    Is that anything like a wallaby ;) ?

    Sorry, I was having a blonde moment. :eek:

    Does that make me a "Wallette"?

    I used to have an Uncle Wally, but he died - he wasn't a very nice person, though.

    Just found this on wikipedia.com:
    Click to expand...
    Actually wallaby and wally and wombat are used in the same vein down here as they all hop or waddle about looking not so much thick as solid.

    .,,
    I could not imagine a bright wombat.
     
    heidita said:
    Beth, what is a blonde moment? A stupid one?

    .,, what is a wombat?
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    A wombat is a slow witted slow moving slow eating slow sleeping slow burrowing Australian marsupial not known for its rapid thought process.

    A blond moment is a reference to the stereotypical peroxide blond who has the intelligence of a dim wombat.

    .,,
    Trying to imagine a blond wombat.
     
    se16teddy said:
    French4beth is right - wally is common slang here for someone who is a bit of an idiot. It isn't a nasty word - you would commonly use it of someone you like or love. The OED does not support the pickled cucumber hypothesis, nor have I heard of 'wally' meaning a pickled cucumber.
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    Hi teddy,

    On a couple of different threads now, you have either not heard of something that I hear often, or heard of something that I have not, and yet ( I take it your SE, while I'm more NW) here we are living in the same neck of the woods.

    Walk into any fish'n'chip shop and ask for a wally and you will be provided with a pickled gherkin. Walk in to any other shop and ask for a wally and you are likely to be introduced to the most dim-witted assistant on the premises.
     
    se16teddy said:
    French4beth is right - wally is common slang here for someone who is a bit of an idiot. It isn't a nasty word - you would commonly use it of someone you like or love. The OED does not support the pickled cucumber hypothesis, nor have I heard of 'wally' meaning a pickled cucumber.
    Click to expand...


    You surprise me Teddy. No fish and chip shop worth its salt would be without a large jar of "wallys" on the counter. Huge, sweet, pickled gherkins (dill pickles). I was brought up in London and I remember buying "cod & chips, with a wally". Your se16Teddy name makes me wonder if you live in Bermondsey where I went to school, in Southwark Park Road.

    I guarantee that if you go into any South London "chippy" and ask for a wally you will be given one. Here is a site with an English slang dictionary where you will find "wally" listed.

    We even have wallys in our Isle of Wight chippys.

    Edit: Sorry A90Six, I didn't see your post.



    ;)
    LRV
     
    la reine victoria said:
    I was brought up in London and I remember buying "cod & chips, with a wally". Your se16Teddy name makes me wonder if you live in Bermondsey where I went to school, in Southwark Park Road.
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    I live two minutes' walk from Southwark Park Road, but I was brought up in Yorkshire and I have only lived in London 15 years so I probably missed out on some formative Bermondsey experiences! I haven't noticed 'wallies' in our local chippy, but then it is Greek-run.
     
    french4beth said:
    Yikes! I've never heard of this use of chippy, just this one (found here):

    I feel like a blonde wombat!
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    UK BE slang.
    Chippy = Fish & chip shop.

    In IE slang, I believe Chipper is the equivalent.
     
    se16teddy said:
    I live two minutes' walk from Southwark Park Road, but I was brought up in Yorkshire and I have only lived in London 15 years so I probably missed out on some formative Bermondsey experiences! I haven't noticed 'wallies' in our local chippy, but then it is Greek-run.
    Click to expand...
    Wallies will rarely be advertised, but if you see pickled gherkins/dills/cucumbers on the menu board, just ask for a wally. Greek, Turkish, Chinese or English proprietors should all know what a wally is.
     
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