beer-off
A British regional term, particularly used in parts of Northern England, for an off-licence — a shop licensed to sell alcohol for consumption off the premises (i.e., to take home rather than drink in a pub).
Definitions
A British regional term, particularly used in parts of Northern England, for an off-licence — a shop licensed to sell alcohol for consumption off the premises (i.e., to take home rather than drink in a pub). Beer-offs were neighbourhood staples before supermarkets dominated alcohol retail, often attached to pubs or operating as standalone shops where you could grab a carry-out. The term is nostalgic but still recognised in areas where it was common.
Nip down to the beer-off on the corner and grab a couple of cans before the match starts.
Comments
(UK, regional) An off-licence.
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🇬🇧About British & Irish slang slang
UK and Irish slang — Cockney, Scouse, Geordie, Yorkshire, Glaswegian, Brummie, Welsh, West Country, plus Irish English. Centuries of regional dialects feeding into modern British and Irish street talk.
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- off-licence78%
(UK, Ireland) A shop selling alcohol for consumption only off the premises.
- offy76%
A British and Irish informal term for an off-licence -- a shop licensed to sell alcohol for consumption off the premises (as opposed to a bar or pub). The British/Irish sense is the most broadly known. In Australian cricket slang, 'offy' separately refers to an off-break bowler or delivery. The word is an excellent example of a short informal form that carries entirely different meanings in different contexts.
- off-trade73%
(Ireland, British) The sale of alcoholic drinks for consumption off the premises.
- bottle store67%
The standard New Zealand and South African English term for a liquor store or off-licence — the kind of shop where you pick up beer, wine, and spirits to take home. In New Zealand it's so deeply embedded in everyday vocabulary that most people have never thought to question it. South Africans use it with equal casualness. The name comes from the historic practice of buying bottled alcohol separately from general groceries, and it remains the default word in both countries today.