Sod that for a laugh

[Poiuju]

Hi all,

What is meaning for saying 'Sod that for a laugh'?

[BobK]

= "I'm certainly not going to do that." It's quite strong. In polite society it's common to say "Blow that for a laugh".

'He told me he wanted the report on his desk by mid-day. Blow that for a laugh - maybe I can get it done by last thing today.'

b

[pedant]

Wow..."blow that..." The last time anyone said that must be around 1950's or so...which may explain why so many other answers on this website are so archaic. I don't know what 'polite' society BobK inhabits but it certainly isn't a current one in England.

"Sod" is a very common term which is probably about 3 steps more polite that "F**k".

"Sod" came into common usage in the 1980's, possibly due to it being a term of endearment frequently used by Baldrick (Tony Robinson) in the "Blackadder" series starring Rowan Atkinson, where "Sod Off" was the standard reply to any request made by Baldrick to Blackadder. A particularly funny scene from the show was when Baldrick was asked for his name:

What's your name? "Baldrick."
What's your first name? "What do you mean, I'm Baldrick,"
Well what other names do people call you? "Sod off Baldrick?".

This is slightly similar to the Australian version "Rack Off" which seems to be uniquely used in Australian Soaps, where what would normally be "F***" is translated to "Rack" in order not to cause offence!

Other common uses depend on intonation, some are

"SOD OFF!!!" meaning "please go away, NOW!",

"Sod Off..." meaning "I don't believe you, you are an idiot!"

"That was a sod of a question." meaning that the question was particularly difficult.

"Sod you!" meaning, "I don't care about you or what you think".

"Sod that for a game of soldiers!". meaning, if you think your approach to this problem is going to solve it, forget it!

In other words, "Sod" can be substituted anywhere that "F**k" might be used.

[Sapone]

The Finnish bloke who asked about "sod that for a laugh" shouldn't feel too self-conscious. As a Yank, I consider myself a native speaker of English. From time to time I get blindsided by colloquial expressions in both British and Australian English.

To most Americans, "sod" means "dirt" or "soil." Most commonly, "sod" is something to grow plants in. A popular kind of sod here in the USA is a sort of ready-grown grass for lawns. Rather than planting grass seeds and have the resulting lawn come up patchy, one can go to a nursery (the sort that sells plants) and buy rolls of "sod", long strips consisting of a thin layer of dirt with fully-grown grass in it. One takes it home, rolls the sod strips out into place, and there's your lawn. In a week or two, the grass takes root in the underlying soil, the seams between the strips of sod grow together, and your lawn is looking good!

If you were to say, "Sod off!" to a typical American, he'd look at you with a puzzled expression unless he was already familiar with the expression from watching British TV shows or movies. "Sod that for a laugh," got the same response from me, and I'm a native speaker.