Rick's WordPlay
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Rick's WordPlay |
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Part of a book on Cockney Rhyme slang that I hope will eventually be published.
Introduction
Nobody knows who first spoke in rhyme slang. But by the nineteenth century it was being spoken by Cockneys in England, by criminals in Australia and the United States, and by sailors here and there.
To speak rhyme slang you exchange a word you want to say with a word or phrase that rhymes with it. For example, if an alligator just ate your beard, you might scream out, "Help me! A see you later just ate my just as I feared!"
Of course if you really want someone who doesn't know rhyme slang to understand you, you'd better speak in plain English. But the beauty of rhyme slang is that it's difficult to understand by those who don't know rhyme slang. It's like a secret code.
In fact, that's why some groups of people long ago adopted rhyme slang--so that people outside their group wouldn't understand them.
And if you want to have a secret code, rhyme slang is a fun one.
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