# Question on British slang

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-british-slang/975999>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [December 4, 2022, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-british-slang/975999 "2022-12-04T01:55:33Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\
**Post date:** [December 4, 2022, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-british-slang/975999/1 "2022-12-04T01:55:33Z")

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I’m watching a documentary on the Royal Scot’s (train) journey through the Peaks District. At one point, the narrator says “The service staff [cooks, waiters] continue to woo the passengers with even more [what sounded to me like] **belize**.” [_Cut to passengers imbibing cocktails_.]

What is “belize”? Or did I mishear the narrator completely?

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**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\
**Post date:** [December 4, 2022, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-british-slang/975999/2 "2022-12-04T05:14:33Z")

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How was it pronounced, rhyming with flies or fleas, say?

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**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\
**Post date:** [December 4, 2022, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-british-slang/975999/3 "2022-12-04T05:17:37Z")

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The latter, like the name of the country Belize.

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**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\
**Post date:** [December 4, 2022, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-british-slang/975999/4 "2022-12-04T05:53:56Z")

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I found the episode on YouTube. The line is apparently “oil the passengers with still more Belinies”:

[![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZZhAxSrDAs)

Around the 39:00 mark.

I get it now: Belini is the name of the cocktail.

[https://www.bawarchi.com/recipe/belini-ogsmvFbiajgff.html](https://www.bawarchi.com/recipe/belini-ogsmvFbiajgff.html)

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**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\
**Post date:** [December 4, 2022, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-british-slang/975999/5 "2022-12-04T06:21:06Z")

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More commonly spelled “Bellini”, like (but nothing to do with) the opera composer - apparently named after a lesser-known Venetian artist.

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**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\
**Post date:** [December 4, 2022, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-british-slang/975999/6 "2022-12-04T16:27:03Z")

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![](https://media.tenor.com/djZsCFv_4kgAAAAd/rebekka-klatka.gif)

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**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\
**Post date:** [December 4, 2022, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-on-british-slang/975999/7 "2022-12-04T16:31:11Z")

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That tickles! 🤭