British Slang For Tired (9 Examples!)

Life can wear us out sometimes—in fact, a lot of the time.

Out of this arises the need for many different ways to describe being tired, and the British are world leaders in this area.

British slang is rich with tons of different ways to describe how tired you are, why you’re tired, and even the various, subtly different kinds of tiredness that people might experience.

Today, we’re going to look at a selection of these slang terms to get an idea what they all mean.

Let’s get started.

In This Article

Knackered

Undoubtedly the most common and universal slang term for tired in Britain is “knackered”.

To be knackered means you’re very tired, and it can be applied in all sorts of situations.

You might say it before a nap after a heavy session in the gym, or you might more simply just use it when you are falling asleep and ready for bed.

Pretty much everywhere in Britain, this expression is used or understood. “I don’t think I’ll come to the pub tonight, I’m absolutely knackered,” for example.

The term derives from the 19^th Century in a somewhat morbid setting.

It is first recorded to mean “very tired” in 1883, and before that it meant to kill or castrate, specifically someone who killed or slaughtered old, injured or sick horses.

The idea is that a horse is “knackered” when it is sick or injured beyond treatment.

Zonked

Another way to say you are tired in British slang is to say you’re “zonked” or “zonked out”.

This is not as common but you will certainly be hard-pressed to find anyone who has no understanding whatsoever of what it means.

Functionally it is not much different from “knackered”.

To be zonked is simply to be very tired.

To be “zonked out” could either mean you are fast asleep from tiredness, or that you’re not really able to concentrate because you’re so tired.

“I’m going to bed, I’m zonked,” for example.

The term originally meant simply to “hit something hard”, in the 1950s, and by the end of the 1960s it had come to mean “to put into a stupor”.

The word itself is echoic in origin, which is to say that it is an onomatopoeic imitation of the sound of hitting someone on the head.

Worn out

A very common expression used in British English meaning tired is to say you are “worn out”.

This is another one used all over Britain to mean you are tired, and again it can have varying degrees of meaning.

It might mean you are completely out of energy and falling asleep.

On the other hand, it might have a wider meaning, having the sense of being burnt out or done with, for example, work or a personal drama.

“I’ve just been worn out at work lately,” for example.

To use the term “worn” meaning “exhausted by wear” is a very old British idiom stretching back to at least the 17^th Century.

At first it was, and still is, used to refer to things, like items of clothing in particular.

By the early 18^th Century, it had come to be applied to people, too.

Spent

In certain parts of Britain, you might hear people say they are “spent” when they are all out of energy or drive.

This one is not as common as some of the others we’ve seen so far, but again most British people will certainly understand the sense that this is meant in.

The south of England is where you’re most likely to hear this one, particularly among the older generations.

“I had a great time tonight but now I’m utterly spent and ready for bed,” for example.

This one might sound like a bit of an archaism to modern ears, and that’s because it is.

The earliest recorded uses of the word “spent” in the sense of exhausted from overwork or over activity come from the 1560s.

The word itself derives from Old English and ultimately the Latin spendere.

Done in

Another way to say you’re tired in British slang which is used throughout Britain is “done in”.

This is certainly more common in certain parts of the country, particularly the north of England, but it’s used and understood everywhere.

Again, you could use this when you’re just tired and ready for bed or after a big workout of one kind or another.

“That walk has me done in, I’m going to go to sleep now,” for example.

This slang phrase is quite a lot more recent than some of the ones we’ve seen so far.

The word “done,” naturally, has ancient origins, ultimately deriving from the Old English gedon.

By at least 1917, though, and no doubt earlier in the spoken vernacular, to be “done in” meant to be extremely tired.

It probably came from the older expression “done for”, which meant something like “doomed” and was in use by 1803.

Shagged

You will certainly want to be careful using this one as you may well know “shagged” can have a very different and NSFW meaning which is in fact the far more common one.

In some parts of Britain, though, to be “shagged” means to be very tired, worn out and ready for bed.

It’s certainly fallen out of use a bit now as the other meaning has become the dominant sense of the word. “I’ve had a really long drive up and I’m shagged, can you show me to my bedroom?” for example.

It’s not entirely clear where this term got this meaning. It most likely relates to the sense of being unkempt and messy, particularly having long, rough, “shaggy” hair.

This meaning arose at the end of the 16^th Century, and you will still hear this form of it used today.

To be “shagged” meaning tired likely came out of this.

Cream Crackered

Next we have an example of Cockney rhyming slang. If you hear someone describe themselves as being “cream crackered”, this means they are very tired—or “knackered”!

Cockney rhyming slang, if you aren’t familiar, is a slang spoken in the East End of London where one word is simply replaced by a rhyming but semantically unrelated word—thus “cream crackered” from “knackered”.

“I was out late last night and I’m cream crackered at work today,” for example.

It’s often hard to say when Cockney rhyming slang phrases arose, although this one seems to have begun being used in the last thirty years or so.

As I said, you won’t hear this one used much outside of a specific part of London, but nonetheless many people across Britain will understand it.

Clapped out

Another way to say you’re very tired and worn out in British slang is to say you are “clapped out”.

This is a common British expression meaning tired, although “clapped” can have a couple of other meanings depending on where you are.

It more specifically means that something is worn out from age and use, but can be used to talk about yourself or others as simply being tired.

It might for some more have the sense of someone who is tired with old age.

“He’s 90 years old, he’s clapped out,” for example.

The origin of this phrase isn’t completely certain, but there are several theories.

Some believe it relates to hunting hares, who would “clap” their hind legs when they were worn out from being chased by the hounds.

Others think it relates to those old “clapper” devices people would use to turn off their lights.

The truth is we just aren’t sure.

Conked out

Conked out is another common expression in British slang meaning you’re very tired and on the verge of falling asleep.

This one could be used for someone who has already gone to sleep, though usually meaning that they have done so because they were so tired they couldn’t stay awake.

To be “conked”, though, can equally just mean you’re extremely tired. “I’ll be conked out on the sofa as soon as I get home,” for example.

This one is similar to “zonked”.

Originally, “conk” was (and still is) a British slang term for nose.

This may have arisen from a supposed resemblance of noses to a conch shell, which is pronounced “conk”.

This arose in the 19^th Century, and soon came to mean not just nose but “punch in the nose”.

So, you would be “conked out” if someone hit you hard enough on the nose that you fell unconscious.

The British have many varied ways of describing all different kinds of tiredness, then.

Whether you’re worn out by old age, you’re knackered from a long day, or you’ve been done in by grueling weeks at a tiring job, there’s always a way to describe your specific kind of tiredness in British English.

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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