Getting to Grips with Regional Dialects

We’ve all experienced it at some point or another. It’s so embarrassing when it happens, even though you can’t help it at all.

When you don’t understand what someone is saying to you because of their accent, it can be humiliating. Luckily the occasions that this happens are generally minimal for most people.

However, if you are moving somewhere for work or study then the occasions when this might happen to you might increase, particularly if you are moving somewhere with a regional dialect. Knowing how to communicate well with different people from different countries and all areas of society is key to doing well. It’s also key to making a good first impression. “The most memorable leaders naturally know how to make a good first impression,” according to @Forbes.

To make sure that you are making the best first impression you can you need to be able to speak to people from anywhere in the world. So, read on to find out how to navigate those awkward moments when you just don’t have a clue what someone is saying to you!

InnClusive specialises in finding short or medium-term accommodation for people needing to relocate for work or study on a short or medium-term contract.

1. Belfast

According to new research from Uswitch.com, the Belfast accent is one of the five most difficult accents for home support devices like Alexa and Google Home to understand. If those high-tech devices are struggling to understand Belfast natives, what hope do we have?

Some of the most popular phrases you might hear in Belfast that will be new to you are, ‘go for a poke’ which means to ‘go for an ice cream’. ‘Scundered’ or ‘scunnered’ mean different things depending on your location.

However, they usually mean ‘embarrassed’ or ‘depressed’. ‘Wee’ is used all the time. It can be put in front of any word to make the conversation more informal and friendly. ‘Dead on’ means ‘fine, or good, or not a problem’. Like ‘wee’, you will hear this phrase a lot.

2. Newcastle

The Geordie accent is one of the UK’s favourite accents. At number 7 on Big Travel 7’s list, it’s a favourite for lots of people, but that doesn’t mean that you will be able to understand it during your time in the city.

There are lots of phrases that are very specific to Newcastle that you might encounter during your time in ‘The Toon’. ‘Geet walla’ means ‘very, very large’, for example, ‘There’s a geet walla queue at Asda, gan to Morrisons instead’ (There is a very large queue in Asda. I’m going to Morrisons instead). ‘Gadgie’ means ‘man’. ‘Radgie’ means ‘temper tantrum’. ‘Haddaway’ means ‘You’re joking!’ It’s commonly used to express disbelief.

3. Sheffield

The Yorkshire accent was at number nine on the list of Britain’s sexiest accents. And whilst it might well have you all of a shiver, understanding it can sometimes be a little bit tricky.

You might hear the following phrases during your time in the historic city. ‘Ey up’ means ‘how are you?’ or ‘Are you alright?’. ‘Nah then’ means ‘Now then’ and ‘Ge’ore’ means ‘Give over’ or ‘shut up’.

Most peculiar to Sheffield though is the use of the word ‘while’. You might hear people saying ‘while’ in phrases like, ‘I work nine while five’ instead of ‘until’. There’s also the shortening of vowels like ‘make’ and ‘take’ to ‘mek’ and ‘tek’ for you to adjust to.

4. Dublin

Everyone knows that there’s plenty of craic to be had in Dublin, but to find it you might need to familiarise yourself with the lingo.

Of course, ‘craic’ means ‘fun’. But what are some other popular Dublin phrases you should learn? ‘What’s the craic?’ means ‘How are you?’ or ‘What’s going on?’. ‘Cop on’ means ‘Have some sense’. ‘Grand’ means ‘okay’. ‘Rapid’ means ‘cool’. ‘The jax’ means ‘the toilet/bathroom’. ‘The craic was 90’ means ‘It was good fun’. ‘C’mere til I tell ya’ means ‘Let me tell you a story’. ‘I’m delire for you’ means ‘I’m very happy for you’.

5. Nottingham

Nottingham was at number 34 of the list of the UK’s sexiest accents with people commenting ‘Does Nottingham even have an accent?’ Of course, Nottingham does have its own vocabulary and accent.

Our favourite phrases are ‘Ay up miduck!’ which means ‘Hello friend!’ and ‘Allreet’ means ‘Are you okay?’. ‘That’s animal’ means ‘It’s good’. ‘Am orryte’ means ‘I am quite well’. Familiarise yourself with Nottinghamese here.

Hopefully, this handy guide of common phrases will help you whilst you are out and about in any one of the incredible cities that InnClusive are based in. People will soon think that you are a local!

Get in touch with InnClusive today to find your new home from home. Call us on 0208 159 1036 today.