Rabbit! Rabbit! Rabbit

Source: www.speakup.com.br

Language level: Pre-intermediate

Standard: British accent

Rabbit!Rabbit!Rabbit!

All languages have strange expressions and English is no exception. For example, people in England often say “Use your loaf!” what they mean is “Use your brain!” or “Use your intelligence!” or “Use your head!” Another popular expression is “to rabbit on,” which mean to talk too much. When people talk too much, you can say “Rabbit! Rabbit! Rabbit!”

LONDON TOWN

But why does an animal that can’t talk – a rabbit – refer to talking? And why does a loaf, which normally describes bread, refer to the head?

The answer is that they are both examples of Cockney rhyming slang. This is popular in Britain, but also in Australia. A Cockney is a native of London. Technically, a true Cockney is from the “East End” of London, but today the term covers all of the capital.

HOW IT WORKS

In Cockney rhyming slang you take an expression that rhymes with another word. For example, “a loaf of bread” rhymes with “head.” You then remove the part of the phrase which rhymes: in this case, “o bread”; so “loaf” now means “head.”

And in the case of “rabbit,” the original phrase was “rabbit and pork,” (two types of meat), which rhymes with “talk.” You then remove the rhyming part – the words “and pork” – so “rabbit” means “talk.”

MY OLD CHINA

Another popular expression in London is “my old China.” This means “my old friend.” In English “mate” is an informal term for a friend and “China plate,” a type of porcelain, rhymes with “mate.” Again, you remove the second part of the expression – in this case “plate” – and so china means “mate” or “friend.”

LIES

And then there is the expression “to tell porkies.” This means to tell lies. The reason is that “pork pie” rhymes with “lie.” Again, you remove the rhyming word “pie” and so “pork” or “porkie,” means “lie.” (see also Speak Up, ed, 276, p.30).