Blighty: Britain; coined originally by British expatriates in India, but taken up by homesick soldiers during the First World War. A ‘Blighty wound’ required a trip home for treatment and convalescence.
Boche: French derogatory term for Germans, used by the British during the war.
Bully: ‘bully-beef’, or corned beef, formed an important part of the British soldiers’ rations.
Estaminet: French tavern or public-house, frequented by locals as well as British soldiers during the war.
Fritz: German male Christian name; used as nickname for all Germans.
Hun: derogatory term for Germans during the war.
Jerry: a German or German soldier.
Poilu: nickname for French soldiers of the First World War. It derives from the adjective poilu, translating literally as ‘hairy’ and referring to the unshaven faces of the soldiers, who had to spend long periods in the trenches.
Subaltern: in the British army, a junior commissioned officer below the rank of captain.
Very lights: flare fired by a pistol at night, either for temporary illumination, or for signalling.
Wipers: soldiers’ slang for Ypres.