Abbreviations used in this list:

abbr. abbreviation

ad. adoption

adj. adjective

cont. contraction

der. derived from

n noun

phr. phrase

v verb

BAFVS	abbr.	British Armed Forces Vouchers issued to troops stationed in BAOR for use in the NAAFI. In monetary value, BAFVs notes ranged in value from threepence to five pounds.
Balls-up		Gross mistake, a mess-up.
Banger	n sl.	Sausage.
Banjo	n sl.	Sandwich.
BAOR	abbr.	British Army of the Rhine.
Baron		Title given to the loan sharks who lent money or cigarettes at exorbitant rates.
Barra	n sl.	Lightly armoured vehicle said to be amphibious.
Bash	n sl.	Forced march, i.e. a five-mile bash being part of the annual fitness test.
Basha	n sl.	In Units in the Far East - barrack room, or shelter.
B.D.		Battledress uniform.
Bed space		The floor space allotted to an individual in a barrack room in which his bed, locker, kit and personal effects were kept, and for which he was entirely responsible.
Beezing		The spit and polish method of raising a deep shine on boots and chinstrap.
Belt and braces		Covering all eventualities.
BER		Beyond economical repair.
BFPO	abbr.	British Forces Post Office. BFPOs were numbered, e.g. BFPO 36 was the military post office designation of Osnabruck.
Bhint		Girl or woman – word introduced originally by troops serving in Egypt.
Bicycle	n sl.	Female, not necessarily a prostitute, readily available for …
Big head		One with an over-inflated ego.
Billet	n	Sleeping quarters for military personnel.
Bingo!		Exclamation equivalent to ‘Eureka!’
Bird		Girl or woman.
Birmingham screwdriver	n sl.	Hammer.
Blanco	n	Chemical coating used on webbing.
Blighty	n sl.	Home (1915) ad. Hindi bilayati.
Blood wagon	n sl.	Ambulance (see Meat wagon).
Bod		Bloke.
Bog	n sl.	Lavatory.
Bog-trotter		Irishman.
Bollocking		A severe admonishment.
Bollocks		Balls. An expletive, or an expression of disbelief. Also reference to the male genitalia.
Bolo	v sl.	To be cheeky, impertinent.
Bolshie	n sl.	To be argumentative, obstructive. cont. Bolshevik.
Bomb head		One possessing superior intellect. Often attributed to Telemechs and other electronics tradesmen.
Bone dome		Pilot’s outer flying helmet.
Bonce		Head.
Bone head		Opposite of ‘bomb head’.
Booties	n sl.	cont. of Boot-necks, derogative naval term applied to the Royal Marines.
Bordon Bullet		Familiar to those who attended Artificer selection board, the steam train to Bordon, Hampshire.
Brass	n sl.	Staff Officers (senior officers; colonels and generals).
Brass monkeys		Very cold (weather). Derived from: ‘as cold as the balls on a brass monkey’.
Brassed off		Unhappy with or about something.
Brat School	n sl.	Place for training apprentice tradesmen.
Bristols		Breasts. Derived from rhyming slang: ‘Bristol cities’ – tities.
Broke		Having no money.
Brothel creepers	n sl.	Rubber-soled footwear.
Brown-noser		See Grovel.
Brum		Birmingham.
Brummie		Nickname for one who hails from Birmingham.
Brylcreem boys		Members of the RAF.
Buckshee	n sl.	Alms, gift, donation, extra, spare ad. from Arabic baksheesh. Also, sometimes applied to a private soldier without NCO rank.
Bug rake		Comb.
Bulling boots		See Beezing.
Bullshit	n sl.	1. Derogatory word to nonsense. 2. Word used to denote cleaning one’s kit.
Bully		Corned beef.
Bum boy		One who submits to the advances of an arse bandit, usually a superior who, if rejected, could make life intolerable for his victim.
Bum fluff		The first growth of fine facial hair that says to the youth: “Time to start shaving”.
Bumper		A heavily weighted short-bristled brush or thick felt pad, pivoted on the end of a long wooden handle, used to polish the wood floors after polish had been laid.
Bum’s rush		To be ejected/disassociated from.
Busted	v sl.	Demoted. Reduced in rank.
Butcher’s		Shortened form of ‘butcher’s hook’ – see Shufti.
Button-brush		Brush used to polish brass buttons, badges and buckles.
Button-stick		A thin slotted brass plate used to protect one’s uniform when polishing brass buttons, badges and buckles with ‘Brasso’ metal polish and button-brush.
Butts	n sl.	Firing range.