A

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CANT

ENGLISH

Abandoned person Blasted fellow, brimstone, lurch

Accomplice
Hired Help
Arrested
boned, hooked, invited, nabbed, pulled, roasted, snapt, touched
Assassin
Hit Man

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CANT

ENGLISH

Backstab
Beer

Shoulder tap
Bowse
Abram men, autem mort, dommerer, Mad Tom, rattling mumpers, rufflers, Tom of
Bedlam
Angling for coppers, maunding
Tall man
Ark
Quarromes
Ressurection men
Quota, swag, whack
Bingo
Expense money
Academy, snoozing ken

Beggars
Begging
Big (size)
Boat
Body
Body thieves
Booty
Brandy
Bribe
Brothel
Burglar,
professional
Burglary

Rounder
Visitin' the neighbors

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CANT

ENGLISH

Calf, stolen
Call for Police
Cart
Climb
Cloak
Club
Coach man
Coin shavings
Coin, fake
Commiting crimes
Con
Con artist/swindler
Con man
Con/swindle victim
Copper
Counterfeited
Counterfeiter
Counterfeiting
Courthouse
Criminals being
transported
Criminals in the
stocks
Criminals with

Blater
Cry beef
Gaoler's coach
Taking a big step
Calle
Jordain, oaken towel
Rattling cove
Nig, parings
Button, dump
Rooton'
Amuse, bilk, fob, fun, fuzz, hoodwink, sham
Pigeon Plucker
Amuser, jack in a box, needle point, nip, sharper
Pigeon
Rust
Confect
Bene feaker, figure dancer, queer bit maker
Drawing the King's picture, sweating
Nubbing ken
Barrow man, lag
Babes in the wood, nappered, overseer
Badge, charactered

hands burned
Crowbar

Bess, Betty, ginny, jemmy

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CANT

ENGLISH

Dagger
Danger
Day
Death sentence
Diamond
Die
Dog
Door
Drunk

Pig poker
Lay
Lightmans
Cramp word
Chunk o' Gin
Goin' Legit
Fang, bufe
Lid
Clear

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CANT

ENGLISH

Earrings
Emerald
Escape

Lobe Latches
Green Beer
Bing, burning ken, hike, rub

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CANT

ENGLISH

Feign illness
Fence
Flogging, whipping
Follow
Fool

Sham abram
Uncle
Getting Stripes
Drag
Ben, cullability, gudgeon, gull, milch cow, pigeon, queer

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CANT

ENGLISH

Chatts, deadly nevergreen, Gregorian Tree, morning drop, new drop, Newman's lift,
nubbing cheat, sheriff's picture frame, three legged mare, three legged stool, topping
cheat
Gang
Birds of a feather
Gloves
Fams
Gold
Yellow Tin
Good
Bene, rum
Guard
Pig
Guard, Head of the Papa Porker
Guildsman, highMade Guy
standing
Gypsies
Cattle, moon men
Gallows

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CANT

ENGLISH

Acorn, artichoked, beilby's ball, cry cockles, cropped, dangled, frummagemmed, hearty
choked, hempen fever, ironmongers shop, jammed, leaf, noozed, nubbing, ridin' the
rope, scragged, stretched, swing, turned off
Hangman
Derrick, Jack Ketch, Ketch, nubbing cove, sheriff's journeyman, topping cove
Healer, underworld Tinker
Heavy (weight)
Fat lady
Hello
Knock-knock
Hide
Shadow dance, Crawl in a hole
Hanged

Hideout
Highway
Highway robbery
Highwayman
Hit
Honest man
House
Housebreaker

Dive, fencing ken, flash ken, stalling ken, stop hole abbey, stuling ken
Pad
Recruiting service
Colt, gentleman's master, high pad, knight of the road, land pirate, rank rider
Click
Cull
Crib, ken, panny
Cracksman, draw latch, Ken Miller, Ken Cracker, rushers

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CANT

ENGLISH

Illegal Goods
Inform
Informant
Injury
Injury, serious
Innocent

Contraband
Cackle, long tongued, nose, office, peach, rat, sing
A hole in need of a plugging
Scratch
Broken finger
Dodgies

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CANT

ENGLISH

Jail
Jail break
Jewel
Jewelry
Judge

Guesthouse
Goin' home
Booze
Fancy Booze
Beak, fortune teller, grandpa, queer cuffin

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CANT

ENGLISH

Kill
Crash, have a chat with, use up
Knock unconcious Tuck in bed

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CANT

ENGLISH

Lantern
Larceny
Lawyer
Lead
License
Lie
Light (weight)
Lock
Lockpick
Lockpicker
Lockpicking
Lookout
Loot
Loot from a theft
Losing a hand
(legal punishment)

Darkee, glim
Racket
Black box, cursitor, petty fogger, puzzle-case
Moss
Jukrum
Amuse, gamon, palaver
Thin woman
Joke
Punchline, charm, dub, kate, screw
Gilt
Black art, dub lay
Pair of eyes
Stuffing
Score

Dropping a glove

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CANT

ENGLISH

Magic
Magic item

Flash
Bagged flash

Man
Cove
Mistress of brothel Nypper, reader merchants
Money
Bits

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CANT

ENGLISH

Necklace
Night watchman

Noose
Moon pigs

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CANT

ENGLISH

Open

Tell a joke

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CANT

ENGLISH

Pearl
Pickpocket
Plan (noun)
Planning
Platinum
Prisoner

Milk
Purse collector, Cannon
Signals
Flag waving
Shiny Tin
Hizzoner's guest (his honor's guest)

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CANT

ENGLISH

Quiet

Smooth

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CANT

Receiver of stolen
goods
Rich
Ring
Riot
Risk
Rope
Ruby

ENGLISH

Family man, fence

Equipt, oak
Jem, onion, finger joint
Hubbub
Boredom
Danglestuff
Chunk o' Brandy

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CANT

ENGLISH

Sapphire
Secure
Sell
Shackles
Sheep stealing
Shoplifter
Silver
Small (size)
Staff
Steal
Stocks
Stolen
Swap

Berry Wine
Rug
Switch
Darbies, King's plate, ruffles, slang
Bleating rig
Bob
Tin
Short man
Jordain
Bite, bite the blow, borrow, cloy, curbing law, heave, hoist, lift, nim, prad lay
Bilboes, parenthesis, penance board, wooden ruff
Ard, made
Bug, ring the changes

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CANT

ENGLISH

Tavern owner
The target of a
confidence game
Theft
Theft of brass
weights

Beggar Maker
Mark
Game
Avoir du pois lay
Adam Tiler, anabaptist, anglers, ark ruffians, autem divers, bawdy basket, blue pigeons,
Bob, bubber, bufe napper, bung nipper, buzman, canters, canting crew, Captain Sharp,
clank napper, cloyes, cracksman, draw latches, dromedary, fagger, fidlam ben, filcher,
footpad, foyst, gallows bird, gentleman, gilt, glazier, hooker, kiddeys, little snakesman,
lully priggers, made man, moon curser, napper of naps, natty lads, nypper, old hand,
pad borrowers, poulterer, priggers, priggers of prancers, priggers of cacklers, queer
cove, reader merchant, ressurection men, Robert's men, rovers, shoplifter, sneak,
swaddler, tayle drawer, waterpad, whip jack

Thief

Thief specialized in
Box-man
cracking safes
Thief who replaces
valuable goods
Pennyweighter
with worthless
ones
Thief, head
Arch Rogue, Dimber Damber, Prince Prig, Upright Man
Thief, independent Lone Wolf
Thieves' cant
Flash lingo, gibberish, patter flash, slang
Thieves, group of Mob
Tie up
Dress up
Torture
Have tea with the pigs
Trader of
knowledge on
where stolen
Piece Man
property can be
sold
Trap
Bite
Trial
Show

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CANT

ENGLISH

Victim

Content, provendor

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CANT

ENGLISH

Wall
Whipping
Whipping Post
Widow
Witness, fake
Woman
Wound
Wound

Tilted floor
Air and exercise, cly the jerk, flogging, hue, teize
Jigger
Ace of spades, hempen widow (if husband was hanged)
Affidavit man, knight of the post
Mort, mot
Beef
Beef

Treasures

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TREASURECANT

Bronze
Copper
Diamond
Earrings
Emerald
Gold
Jewel
Jewelry
Loot
Money
Necklace
Pearl
Platinum
Ring
Ruby
Sapphire
Silver

Bronze
Rust
Chunk o' Gin
Lobe Latches
Green Beer
Yellow Tin
Booze
Fancy Booze
Stuffing
Bits
Noose
Milk
Shiny Tin
Finger Joint, onion, jem
Chunk o' Brandy
Berry Wine
Tin

Time

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Time is measured in hours after sunset or sunrise. After sunset is "clean," after sunrise is "dirty." One hour
is called a finger. "Fingers" can be divided into three 20 minute periods called "knuckles."
TIME

CANT

1:19 pm
"Seventh dirty finger"
2:20 pm
"First dirty knuckle on the eighth finger"
3:00 am
"Nine clean fingers"
4:45 am
"Second clean knuckle on the tenth finger"
Midnight
"Thumbs"
Near Sunrise "Gettin' dirty"
Near Sunset "Almost clean"
Noon
"Six dirty fingers"
If a thief suspects that he can be overheard, hand gestures may be used. In this case, the back of the hand
is "dirty" and the palm is "clean." There are hundreds of variations in this scheme. Thieves planning a crime
will agree beforehand on which to use.

Size / Weight
SIZE/WEIGH
CANT
T

Big
Heavy

Tall man
Fat lady

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Light
Thin woman
Small
Short man
Specific lengths and weights are given in the normal measurements.

Example Conversation

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Thief #1: "Knock-knock, Blackhand an I were flag wavin' bout visiting Papa Porker's crib at seven clean
fingers. We're lookin' fer a third gentleman for a pair o' eyes. Interested?"
Thief #2: "What style of stuffing ya wanna to borrow ? Who's your uncle?"
Thief #1: "Uncle's out of town. We're gonna pick bits.
Thief #2: "That's fat lady work. Sounds too boring. I'm not interested."
ENGLISH TRANSLATION
Thief #1: "Hello, Blackhand and I were planing on burglarizing the Captain of the Guard's house tonight
at 1:00 am. We need a third theif to act as lookout. Are you intrested?"
Thief #2: "What kind of loot are you going to steal? Who's your fence?
Thief #1: "We won't need a fence. We are going for money only."
Thief #2: "That's going to be heavy work. Sounds too risky. I'm not interested."