(UK, Irish, Commonwealth) Adhesive tape.
If that didn't work, well, nothing some sellotape and a Stanley knife won't fix up, ya just gotta have the know-how.
From the 1960s to 1980s, the Sellotape company was part of [Dickinson Robinson Group](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dickinson_Robinson_Group "Dickinson Robinson Group"), a packaging and paper conglomerate.
(UK, Irish, Commonwealth) Adhesive tape.
Sellotape is the UK brand name for transparent adhesive tape, now used generically (like Scotch tape in the US). Not concerning, just stationery vocabulary. If your kid uses it constantly, ask them where they first heard it, not to police their speech but to understand which online community they are in. Most slang of this kind moves through TikTok and group chats, so seeing it in your child's vocabulary just means they are plugged into normal teen internet culture.
Sellotape is the UK brand name for transparent adhesive tape, now used generically (like Scotch tape in the US). Not concerning, just stationery vocabulary. If your kid uses it constantly, ask them where they first heard it, not to police their speech but to understand which online community they are in. Most slang of this kind moves through TikTok and group chats, so seeing it in your child's vocabulary just means they are plugged into normal teen internet culture.
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.
Add your own interpretation of "sellotape".
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See all Australian & NZ slang slang on Slangora.
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(British, slang) sellotape.
(British, Australia) adhesive tape.
(US, Philippines, Singapore, Canada) or translucent pressure-sensitive adhesive tape, used for sealing items together, especially paper.
The standard British and Australian term for what Americans call Scotch tape or clear adhesive tape — the transparent, slightly shiny tape you grab for wrapping presents, fixing torn pages, or attaching notes. It's one of those quintessentially British vocabulary differences that catches Americans off guard: perfectly logical, perfectly descriptive, and utterly normal to anyone who grew up with it. Every British home has a roll of sticky tape rattling around somewhere in a kitchen drawer.
Sellotape is the UK brand name for cellulose adhesive tape, used generically (like American "Scotch tape"). Use in British English contexts. Formal equivalent: "adhesive tape," "clear tape." Common non-native mistake: capitalisation. Even though it is a brand name, in current British usage it is often lowercased ("sellotape") as a generic noun and verb. Capitalisation depends on context. Read or listen to the word in context several times before trying it yourself; the right register is harder to learn than the dictionary meaning.
“If that didn't work, well, nothing some sellotape and a Stanley knife won't fix up, ya just gotta have the know-how.”
“From the 1960s to 1980s, the Sellotape company was part of [Dickinson Robinson Group](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dickinson_Robinson_Group "Dickinson Robinson Group"), a packaging and paper conglomerate.”
(transitive, British, Irish, Australian, New Zealand) To seal with adhesive tape.
The door was slightly ajar, with a newspaper cartoon sellotaped to it: