adjective General Slang

Bene

/ˈbiːni/ · adjective · slang

Cant for 'good' — the opposite of 'queer'; bene bouse was good drink, a bene cove a sound man.

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Definitions

1

In 'bene whids' — good or fair words; to 'cut bene whids' was to speak kindly.

“Cut bene whids to the mort and she'll think well of you.”
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2

Good, fine or excellent; the canting word of approval, opposed to 'queer' (bad). Used freely in compounds.

“Bene bouse and a bene bed — what more does a cove need?”
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3

A 'benar' form appears too, as a comparative — 'better'; Harman's dialogue has 'cut benar whyddes'.

“Cut benar whids than that, or you'll get no welcome here.”
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Bene In A Sentence

He called the haul a bene one and split it fair.
A bene cove never grassed on his own crew.
Bene darkmans to you — good night, in the canting tongue.

Origin & Usage

Recorded by Harman (1566), whose canting dialogue uses 'bene' (good) and 'benar' (better), opposed to 'queer' (bad). Listed through B.E. (1699) and Grose (1785). Likely related to Latin 'bene' / Romance 'bene', via beggars' contact with continental cant.

Variants bienbenarbene bouse
Tags #thieves-cant#cant#historical#british#slang

People Also Ask

What does bene mean in thieves' cant?

Good or fine — the canting word of approval, opposed to 'queer' (bad), recorded by Harman in 1566.

What is the opposite of bene?

'Queer', the cant word for bad, false or worthless — as in 'queer bouse', bad drink.

Where does bene come from?

It appears in Harman (1566) and likely traces to the Romance/Latin 'bene' (well, good), entering English cant through contact with continental beggars' argot.

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