British Slang For Wife (Helpful Content!)

The most common British slang terms for wife are “missus,” “old lady” and “wifey”. Some more old fashioned ones include terms like “the boss” or “ball and chain”. In Cockney rhyming slang, a wife is referred to as “trouble” or “trouble and strife”. If any single one is most common, it is probably “missus”.

Wives have been a part of life since long before we can remember.

No one knows the ultimate origin of marriage, so there have perhaps always been terms of some kind or another to describe wives in slang.

Let’s break down some of the most common terms and where they might come from.

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British Slang For Wife

What do the British call a wife?

Missus

The British have a few different terms for wives, but perhaps the most likely and commonly used phrase for a wife in British English is “missus”.

This one is used throughout Britain, from the north of Scotland to all across England and Wales.

It is doubtless more common in certain areas—the north of England, for example, tends to favor this particular slang term.

However, it is used and definitely understood throughout Britain.

It’s also worth mentioning that some may use this just to refer to a female partner, though this is less common.

Example in a sentence: “Me and the missus are going to the pub later if you fancy it?”

Old Lady

Another common slang term in Britain for a wife is “old lady”.

This one is widely understood to mean someone’s wife, unlike its counterpart “old man” which can mean both a husband and a father.

Of course, “old lady” can refer to someone’s mother in British English, but this is a lot less common.

Naturally, this is more often used among older couples, though not exclusively by any means.

Example in a sentence: “The old lady wants to go shopping after work.”

Wifey

“Wifey” is perhaps less common but is definitely widely used in British slang.

It’s probably less common than its equivalent for husbands, “hubby,” for one reason or another.

It is a fairly complex social question about the way men vs women feel comfortable using quaint, perhaps cutesy terms like this.

Example in a sentence: “Ever since they moved in together, he’s been calling her his wifey.”

The Boss

Other than these neutral terms, there are a few old-fashioned slang terms that refer to wives as, essentially, burdens that make life more difficult.

These are mostly to be taken in a jocular and humorous way, not meant to be serious.

“The boss” is perhaps the most common of these used in Britain.

Example in a sentence: “I’m not sure if i’m coming out tonight, i’ll have to ask the boss”

Ball and Chain

Another slang term that’s popular in the United States and also in Britain is “Ball and Chain.”

Example in a sentence: “I’ll have to check that with the old ball and chain”

Trouble and Strife

Finally, you have the Cockney rhyming slang “trouble and strife,” a common slang expression used in the East End of London—again, not to be taken entirely at face value.

Let’s look at where these terms come from.

Why do the British say “missus”?

“Missus” or “the missus” is a universally understood slang phrase in Britain, and the inherent meaning is fairly clear to those who speak with a British accent of one kind or another.

It is a colloquial contraction of “mistress”, originally, as the oral form of the title Mrs.

This sense comes from around 1790, and probably a bit earlier.

Later on, it came to simply mean “the wife”, and this is attested in writing by 1833.

Again, it’s broadly understood today simply in the sense that people know the title Mrs means a woman who is married, as opposed to “miss” or “Ms”.

Again, though, many people do simply use this term to refer to a female partner, even one they haven’t necessarily married yet.

So, it’s worth being a bit careful of that, but it’s generally reserved for someone’s wife.

Why do the British say “wifey”?

“Wifey” is somewhat common in British slang, and at the very least the majority of people will understand what you mean by this.

It can seem quaint and somewhat childish, even if only due to the morphology of the word itself. It derives from the late 18^th Century, and was simply a diminutive form of the word “wife”.

It became quite popular and was used for a long time, though has perhaps begun to fall out of use over the course of the last century or so.

As mentioned, you’re much less likely to hear this one used than its counterpart “hubby”.

Why do the British say “the boss”?

“The boss” is an old fashioned slang term for wife which refers to the way wives supposedly are in charge of their husbands.

They make sure they come back on time and don’t stay out late, tell them what to do at home, and so on.

Again, this is a fairly humorous slang term and not one meant to be taken very seriously.

This one has been in use from around the 19^th Century, as best we can tell.

Why do the British say “trouble and strife”?

Finally, Cockney rhyming slang refers to wives as “trouble and strife”.

Again, this one is not to be taken totally literally.

People are not always being serious when they say their wife is “trouble and strife”, though of course, the joke is where the term comes from.

Cockney rhyming slang is slang used in the East End of London by simply taking a rhyming word or phrase to substitute for the word you want to say.

So, while there are some archaic terms still in use that retain this sort of humorous derogatory perception of wives, for the most part these have fallen out of use in favor of simpler terms like “missus” or “wifey”.

That said, they are far from completely unheard of and you may still encounter these phrases from time to time.

More in British Slang

Founder - @PollyWebster

Polly Webster is the founder of Foreign Lingo and a seasoned traveler with a decade of exploration under her belt.

Over the past 10 years, she has journeyed to numerous countries around the globe, immersing herself in diverse cultures, traditions, and languages.

Drawing from her rich experiences, Polly now writes insightful articles about travel, languages, traditions, and cultures, sharing her unique perspectives and invaluable tips with her readers.

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