North South divide?

[MR_DKBA]

As a southerner I use the word **** to mean a foolish silly person or to hit something but on a recent trip to Liverpool I called a person a **** for pulling out in his car to soon at a roundabout - my driver nearly had a heart attack!!! They explained that this was one of the worst swear words around. Why does a word have such a different meaning??

Thanks

[miss_chase]

Its a northern term for female genitalia and hence very similar to the c* word. However, like all swearwords they are as offensive as the listener makes them and effect can change over time - apparently the word naff has something to do with gay sex - check it out on t'internet!

However, down in the South we seem to have adopted the t* word as a lighthearted equivalent of plonker - which if you think about it...

(oh and if its used as a verb ' to hit something' its not offensive at all. don't know if this is used elsewhere)

Hope that helps!

[Quizmonster]

'Naff' is of uncertain origin, but believed to be a form of back-slang...ie from fan...which is, of course, yet another reference to the female genitalia. It was first used in writing by Keith Waterhouse in 'Billy Liar', published in the late 1950s, as a euphemism for the f-word in phrases such as the '...off' one. I've never heard of the gay connection, but it may well have taken on such a connotation.

[calleach]

As an aside I was at university in Edinburgh the home of an admirable educational establishment 'Heriot Watt University which was affectionately known as " The Hairy Twa* "

[joko]

I have heard that the word actually means 'pregnant fish' so I am not sure why it became a swear word - but then most swear words are actually just terms for sex or genitalia, so I guess its not too much of a stretch - be interested to know if the 'pregnant fish' thing is true though.

[WaldoMcFroog]

Naff is, apparently, Polari for 'Not Available For F'ing'.

Tw@ is certainly a word popularly used to describe a pregnant fish, but http://www.straightdope.com/columns/020329.html seems to think that there's no veracity to it.

Incidentally, I've seen people on here laughing at the very notion of fish being pregnant, but they should all smile on the other side of their faces. Just watch the Blue Planet episode about sharks, or indeed stick 'Sharks Pregnancy' into Google.

[kev100]

I'm pretty sure that "naff off" was coined by Ronnie Barker when he was writing sketches for the two ronnies.