(chiefly, British, intransitive, slang) To waste time or fool around; to engage in activity which produces little or no accomplishment.
(chiefly, British, intransitive, slang) To waste time or fool around; to engage in activity which produces little or no accomplishment.
Fanny about means: To waste time or fool around; to engage in activity which produces little or no accomplishment.. It is informal slang, fine in casual speech but not suited to formal contexts. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than risky behaviour. If your teen uses it, context will usually make the intent clear. A short, curious question about where they heard it is usually all that is needed to know whether to follow up.
Fanny about means: To waste time or fool around; to engage in activity which produces little or no accomplishment.. It is informal slang, fine in casual speech but not suited to formal contexts. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than risky behaviour. If your teen uses it, context will usually make the intent clear. A short, curious question about where they heard it is usually all that is needed to know whether to follow up.
Slang is read by different audiences for very different reasons. The For parents view re-explains the term in plain, non-judgemental language so a caregiver can understand what their child means without needing the surrounding subculture. The For English learners view focuses on register (when it's safe to use), formal alternatives, and common mistakes — what a textbook won't teach you.
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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.
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Browse all slang words starting with F.
(intransitive, chiefly, UK) To waste time; to spend time idly.
(slang) To waste time, or to fool about.
(UK, slang, derogatory, vulgar) An effeminate and ineffectual man.
British slang for wasting time or messing around without getting anything done. Implies aimless, ineffective activity — fiddling without purpose. The tone is usually mildly exasperated, used when someone should be doing something productive but clearly isn't. Roughly synonymous with 'faff about' or 'muck about,' and slightly vulgar without being strongly offensive.
fanny about means: To waste time or fool around; to engage in activity which produces little or no accomplishment.. Register: very informal, slang. Suitable only for casual conversation, chat and social media. Do not use in business, academic or news writing. A common learner mistake is using the word in a register it does not fit, or assuming a single global meaning; native speakers immediately notice when slang appears in formal contexts, so always check the surrounding register before producing it yourself.
(chiefly, British, transitive, and, intransitive, slang) To wander about or prowl around.