Much loved regional insults across the United Kingdom might soon go the way of the dodo – because a new study has revealed more than half of young people today don’t understand what they mean
Prat, cad and Del Boy’s favourite word Plonker are all insults in danger of dying out, new research has found.
The survey asked adults under the age of 28 – the Gen Z demographic, whether they had heard of traditional slights. Regional insults fared the worst, with the East Anglian term for a clumsy oaf, “lummox”, topping the list of slur people hadn’t heard of – with 62% of youngsters not knowing its meaning.
While “bampot” – Scottish slang for fool – was unknown to 60% of the younger generation. Rounding off the top five insulting words most likely to die out were “blighter”, meaning a contemptible individual, “ninny”, referring to somebody who is an idiot, and “cad”, meaning a man who doesn’t behave like a gentleman towards women.
Other traditional insults set to disappear include “toe rag” – a despicable person, “plonker” – a person who is inept, and “drip” meaning somebody who is a pushover. Gen-Z jibes are more likely to include calling somebody a “Karen”, meaning an entitled moaner or “basic”, referring to the fact they have mainstream tastes.
Other terms of criticism they use include “delulu”, meaning somebody holds unrealistic beliefs or accusing somebody of “main character syndrome” when they want to be the centre of attention. Phone emojis are also commonly used as insults, such as sending somebody a clown or sending a person a thumbs up as a sarcastic response to something they said.
Half of those aged over 40 thought insults were of a gentler nature back in the day, with 60% feeling they were more jovial than more modern day put-downs. However, it’s clear whatever the term you’re using is, insulting a loved one as back-handed way of showing affection is a very British trait, with 81% of UK adults across all ages agreeing with this.
Harriet Scott of research agency Perspectus Global, who conducted the survey, said: “Language changes, evolves and moves on. Our research shows that calling someone a plonker or a prat is no longer a fashionable way to insult them.
“Interestingly, the research highlights the extent to which Brits feel some of the more traditional jibes, feel softer and less severe, than some of today’s more controversial ones.”
Top 15 insults youngsters haven’t heard of:
1. Lummox (62%)
2. Bampot (60%)
3. Blighter (54%)
4. Ninny (51%)
5. Cad (47%)
6. Drip (42%)
7. Tosspot (36%)
8. Toe rag (34%)
9. Pillock (33%)
10. Plonker (25%)
11. Nitwit (27%)
12. Prat (25%)
13. Scallywag (26%)
14. Git (26 %)
15. Numpty (22%)
