Got this idea from BBC’s ‘Life on Mars’ so I wanted to use it in my latest casebook.
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Definition of slang word: ‘tosser’
From Portia Adams to Pickles the cat, here's where you can follow their journeys
Never heard of it, now I can say I learned something today !
Yay!
I say guv’nor, whatever happened to that Rani tosser? I’d like to see the boys down at BBC bring her back, alright.
Lol
I aim to please.
The Online Etymology Dictionary says it dates from 1977. My Oxford Concise Dictionary doesn’t hazard a guess at how long it’s been around. Does your research indicate an early enough origin?
Oxford also just says it’s “vulgar slang,” and “used as a general term of abuse,” but other sources attribute a male sexual derivation, too. I used it in that general context in Irish Firebrands, during an argument in which the male MC angrily refers to a rival.
I am definitely using that! Thanks.
The “male sexual derivation” that Christine mentions is that “tossing off” is an expression that can mean masturbating, specifically by a man. So “tosser” is like “wanker”, except less specific so a little more acceptable/under-the-radar 🙂
(I’m British, if it helps!)
Love it, thank you Rachel!