rhyming slang
Americannoun
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a form of slang in which a rhyming word or phrase is substituted for the word intended, as Kate and Sidney for steak and kidney or khaki rocks for army socks.
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a further removal from the original word intended by ellipsis of the rhyming part, as titfer for tit for tat for hat.
noun
Etymology
Origin of rhyming slang
First recorded in 1855–60
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Our Gravedigger speaks to us, and to the moon, about her heart’s desire in charming cockney rhyming slang.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2026
Saunders said interpreting the messages was "a long and complicated process", due to the blend of coded language, Romany slang and Cockney rhyming slang used.
From BBC • Jun. 13, 2025
Austin recalled, “He was telling a porky pie,” and laughed, using Cockney rhyming slang for a lie.
From New York Times • Jun. 21, 2022
I don’t know who their researcher was, but the cockney rhyming slang was invented in 1814, by costermongers, that being market traders.
From Slate • Dec. 28, 2018
We welcome the introduction of "rhyming slang" to brighten up the advertisement columns.
From Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 158, 192-06-30 by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
