not on your nelly

not on your nelly

An expression of one's refusal to do something. Primarily heard in UK, Australia. A: "Will you go out to the barn and clean up after the horses?" B: "Not on your nelly!"

See also: nelly, not, on

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

not on your nelly

BRITISH, INFORMAL, OLD-FASHIONED

You can say not on your nelly to mean that there is no chance at all of something happening. Note: `Nelly' is sometimes spelled `nellie'. Will I be attending the ceremony? Not on your nelly! Note: This expression may come from cockney rhyming slang. `Not on your Nellie Duff' stands for `not on your puff', which also means `definitely not'.

See also: nelly, not, on

Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012

not on your nelly

certainly not.

This expression, modelled on the phrase not on your life , originated as not on your Nelly Duff , which is British rhyming slang for ‘puff’, meaning ‘breath of life’.

See also: nelly, not, on

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

not on your ˈnelly

(old-fashioned, British English, informal) definitely not: You want to borrow my new car? Not on your nelly! Nelly was short for Nelly Duff, which was rhyming slang for puff, an informal word for your life.

See also: nelly, not, on

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017