I think @Paintcharge is making the mistake of thinking it’s supposed to be decodable. IMO it’s not.
For any given rhyming slang word you were either taught that word and its derivation as a mnemonic, or you were not. And that teaching was probably informally by your peers. Rhyming slang you’ve never heard of won’t be decodable even by a native to the area who uses lots of other rhyming slang.
But …
For folks who grew up with it, and who share the same general non-slang vocabulary, your brain probably learns more connections between rhyming-type words than somebody who grows up i an area without rhyming slang at all.
So I’ll bet that at least some folks (who’d probably also be killer at Scrabble) get pretty good at guessing rhyming slang words based on their existing rhyming slang skill and vocabulary.
Speaking of Scrabble … I have a fairly hefty and varied vocabulary. I utterly suck at scrabble. I can spell English well and instinctually (typos notwithstanding ) but looking at a pile of disconnected letters and coming up with a word using some of them is trying to go the opposite direction from spelling. And my brain simply does not process in that direction, period amen.
And plenty of Americans eat American biscuits without gravy (I love biscuits, don’t care for “biscuits and gravy”), as a side, by itself (with butter or jam), served with breakfast (toast, biscuits, bagels pretty common breakfast breads), very often served with fried chicken, often as a sandwich (bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit). Most breakfast and chicken places sell biscuits, not that many sell biscuits and gravy as a dish.
I have never, ever heard of this in my fifty-something years living all over the US (and being perennially fascinated by language – I’ve heard all three hundred episodes of Lexicon Valley, read a thousand books and learned blogs on the subject, etc.). It’s obviously an in-joke that started with some TV show apparently called Survivor.
(I kid only about never having heard of Survivor. I know it was quite popular.)
“Several” means “more than one, and likely more than two or three.” As in, “There was an accident on the freeway. Several cars were involved.” Could have been seven, sure, but could have been 12 or 15. Or 23, who knows? Several cars were involved. Good descriptor to use, until they get the pileup sorted out.
I dunno. I wouldn’t use “several” to describe 12, 15 or 23 cars in that context. That would definitely be in the “a lot of” or “many” category, beyond “several.” And several, for me, is never two, not just “likely more than two.” I see dictionary.com agrees that it has to be more than two, but Merriam-Webster online gives both “more than one” and “more than two” in their definitions, so perhaps someone somewhere uses “several” to mean “two.”
For any Brits who want to have a go at making American biscuits you can get Bisquick on Amazon UK.
I heard a possibly apocryphal story of a young Irishman arriving in New York on holiday. When asked at passport control why he was there he said “I’m here for the craic!” and much confusion ensued.
I keep things super simple by using Bisquick “Complete” (regular or buttermilk)—no need for oil or milk, just water. I scoop out enough mix for a couple of biscuits, doctor it to my taste, then add just enough water to get a semi-solid texture. Into the air fryer for 10 minutes, and they turn out delicious!
Doctoring:
For savory biscuits (like for biscuits & sausage gravy, or an egg & bacon biscuit, or even as a side), I’ll throw in a pinch of salt and some rosemary. I may also shred in some cheddar cheese.
For a sweeter version (great for spreading jam or jelly), just add a teaspoon of sugar.
Not sure if Bisquick Complete is available in the UK, though.
And count me in as another American who’s never heard anyone think “several” means “seven.” To me, it’s just a couple more than “a few.”
Not much difference. The main thing with Bisquick is that it saves you time since it already has the right balance of ingredients—flour, baking powder, and shortening—all measured out for you. So, instead of dealing with each of those separately, you just add liquid and you’re set.
There’s an extra easy one out there that is just flour, heavy cream, baking powder and salt. It works surprisingly well, but there’s something to be said for buttermilk.
Nice observation. From time to time I’ll hear or read a phrase and realize, surely that has to be rhyming slang? I don’t remember being wrong.
Three I can remember off the top of my head. From upthread
“Not on your Nelly” (meaning No way, no chance)…
Nelly = Nelly Duff = Puff = Breath = Life (thus, Not on your life).
IIRC Ms Duff was a music hall entertainer.
Also, "On your Tod ", meaning On your own - from On your Tod Sloane, after a remarkably good jockey (American IIRC) who therefore spent a lot of time with nobody near him (ie winning by miles - note that a lot of rhyming slang has a cryptic element).
And for a bit of fun, one you can guess at - another phrase I used all my life before one day it occurred to me that it was RS
“Use your loaf” - meaning Think about it. - loaf of bread = head.
This may vary regionally, but in the northeast US, I’ve always known jelly, jam, and preserves as follows:
Jelly - after the fruit is cooked, the resulting solids are strained, and just the remaining juice is gelled
Jam - the cooked fruit is crushed or mashed, and not strained, but it might be pressed through a sieve to remove the seeds. the result is much thicker than jelly
Preserves - the cooked fruit is not mashed, and is left chunky
RE Ramp
This term comes form early long-distance flight. There were no large airports where airplanes could land and so many airlines used flying boats to cross the sea. When they landed they taxied up to a concrete ramp where either they were pulled onto the concrete by a tractor (if they had wheels) or had to power their way up. Some large seaplanes had no wheels, and offloaded and loaded passengers from
a dock. I believe that to service them they were taxied onto a wheeled frame that could then be pulled up onto the ramp and into a hangar
) but looking at a pile of disconnected letters and coming up with a word using some of them is trying to go the opposite direction from spelling. And my brain simply does not process in that direction, period amen.