Shemmy means: Shemmy is British slang for chemin de fer - the casino card game in the baccarat family, popular in European gambling circles in the mid-20th century and strongly associated with James Bond fiction. It is informal slang, fine in casual speech but not suited to formal contexts. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than risky behaviour.
shemmy
Shemmy is British slang for chemin de fer — the casino card game in the baccarat family, popular in European gambling circles in the mid-20th century and strongly associated with James Bond fiction and the upper-class gambling world.
Definitions
UK
#1·Apr 28, 2026UK
Shemmy is British slang for chemin de fer — the casino card game in the baccarat family, popular in European gambling circles in the mid-20th century and strongly associated with James Bond fiction and the upper-class gambling world. The shortening follows the classic British pattern of clipping foreign words to more pronounceable informal versions. The register is informal and nostalgic; 'shemmy' sounds like the kind of thing someone says in a private members' club.
They found a table running shemmy in the back room and played until the small hours.
Origin: Shortened from 'chemin de fer' (French: railway), the card game; the British rendering compresses the French pronunciation to a manageable informality. Editorial expansion authored on Slangora.
For parents
Shemmy means: Shemmy is British slang for chemin de fer - the casino card game in the baccarat family, popular in European gambling circles in the mid-20th century and strongly associated with James Bond fiction. It is informal slang, fine in casual speech but not suited to formal contexts. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than risky behaviour.
For ESL learners
shemmy means: Shemmy is British slang for chemin de fer - the casino card game in the baccarat family, popular in European gambling circles in the mid-20th century and strongly associated. Register: very informal, slang. Suitable only for casual conversation, chat and social media. Do not use in business, academic or news writing. A common learner mistake is using the word in a register it does not fit, or assuming a single global meaning; native speakers immediately notice when slang appears in formal contexts, so always check the surrounding register before producing it yourself.
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UK
#2·Apr 27, 2026UK
(UK, slang) (card game).
Cluster: general
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For specific readers
Why is this section here?
Slang is read by different audiences for very different reasons. The For parents view re-explains the term in plain, non-judgemental language so a caregiver can understand what their child means without needing the surrounding subculture. The For English learners view focuses on register (when it's safe to use), formal alternatives, and common mistakes — what a textbook won't teach you.
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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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Other words near "shemmy" (S)
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(UK, slang, card games) The card game called chemin de fer.
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Smeggy is British slang for something bad, foul, inferior, or disgusting, derived from 'smeg' — itself a shortening of smegma. The term gained wide cultural currency through the British sci-fi sitcom Red Dwarf, where 'smeg' served as a general-purpose expletive on par with 'crap.' Calling something smeggy implies it is unpleasant, substandard, or generally objectionable. The register is informal, playful, and slightly adolescent, carrying a distinctly British comedic flavour.