Home / Dictionary / Polari

Polari Moderate

Polari has 2 different meanings across 1 category:

Proper Noun

Definitions
Verb
1

To talk.

Proper Noun
1

A cant used in the London fishmarkets, in the British theatre, and by the homosexual community in Britain, attested since at least the 19th century and popularised in the 1950s and 1960s by the camp characters Julian and Sandy in the popular BBC radio show Round the Horne.

Related Terms

Origin

The word comes from Italian parlare, meaning "to talk," but its spelling reflects how a non-rhotic British accent altered the original sounds. It likely entered English around 1846 as part of a Romance-based pidgin or creole used by performers.

Rhyming Words
ari yari mari dari pari nari jari wari hari cari sari vari bari kari gari aari lari acari akari shari
Compare
Polari vs