cough and a spit
A vivid British colloquial phrase with two distinct meanings.
Definitions
A vivid British colloquial phrase with two distinct meanings. In theatre and film, it refers to a tiny, blink-and-you'll-miss-it role — just a cough and a spit's worth of screen or stage time, no lines or maybe one. In everyday British speech, it means an extremely short distance, as in 'it's just a cough and a spit away.' Both uses share the same idea: something so small it's over before it's begun. It's the kind of expression that captures British wit perfectly — humorous, understated, and immediately understood.
The village shop was a cough and a spit from the cottage, so they walked there every morning for milk.
Comments
(UK, colloquial) A very short distance.
Comments
(film, theatre) A minor role.
Comments
Used in
Have a better definition?
Add your own interpretation of "cough and a spit".
🇬🇧About British & Irish slang slang
UK and Irish slang — Cockney, Scouse, Geordie, Yorkshire, Glaswegian, Brummie, Welsh, West Country, plus Irish English. Centuries of regional dialects feeding into modern British and Irish street talk.
See all British & Irish slang slang on Slangora.
Tags
Other words near "cough and a spit" (C)
Browse all slang words starting with C.