In the UK, "shoes" is the standard term for footwear, but athletic or casual rubber-soled shoes are commonly called trainers. Other regional or specific terms for casual, light, slip-on shoes include plimsolls (often used for school PE), pumps, daps (Wales/West Country), or gutties (Scotland).
The term "sneakers" originated from the UK, where they were initially called "sneaks," referring to their noiseless rubber soles. The British also use the term "plimsolls" for basic athletic shoes, which are different from the more advanced athletic footwear referred to as "trainers."
Trainers are what British people call “sneakers” or running shoes, or “kicks” if you are American, so if you have come to London to shop until you drop, and perhaps buy some new Nike or Adidas on the high street, be sure to call them trainers if you want to fit in with the locals.
Common slang for shoes includes kicks, sneaks, trainers, runners, and footwear, with "kicks" being a popular term for stylish sneakers or athletic shoes, often used in hip-hop and youth culture. Other terms like "creps" (UK), "batts" (Cockney slang), or specific terms like "grails" for rare sneakers also exist, depending on context and region.
The British English equivalent of sneaker in its modern form is divided into two separate types: predominantly outdoor and fashionable trainers, training shoes or quality 'basketball shoes' and in contrast cheap rubber-soled, low cut and canvas-topped plimsolls, daps, or flats.
Across the Atlantic, in the United Kingdom, the term 'slippers' is used almost universally. There is less regional variation compared to the US. Slippers in the UK are associated with comfort and warmth, often crafted from soft materials like wool or felt.
In British English, "sneakers" are called trainers, short for training shoes, and this term is used for sports footwear and casual athletic-style shoes, though some younger people might use "sneakers" due to American influence. So, if you're in the UK and want to buy athletic shoes, you'd ask for "trainers".
A boot is the kind of shoe that can rise as high as your knee, like riding boots, or just up to your ankle, like silver-studded Beatle boots. To boot means to kick something (with or without the fancy footwear). Like most fashionable things, the word boot comes from the Old French bote.
shoe(n.) Middle English sho, "low-cut covering for the human foot," from Old English scoh, from Proto-Germanic *skokhaz (source also of Old Norse skor, Danish and Swedish sko, Old Frisian skoch, Old Saxon skoh, Middle Dutch scoe, Dutch schoen, Old High German scuoh, German Schuh, Gothic skoh).
In Britain, Oxfords are formal footwear with closed lacing. In the US, the terms 'Oxford' and 'Balmoral' are used fairly interchangeably for this type of shoe. It's worth noting that in Britain, the name Balmoral is used to describe a specific style of Oxford; an Oxford with no seams except for the toe cap seam.
A shoo-in is a guaranteed winner. This noun phrase first appeared in the 1930s in the context of horse racing. When there was a predetermined winner in a horse race, jockeys would hold their horses and shoo the winner in. Shoo means to drive something away while you yell, "Shoo!" — like the way you might shoo flies.
The archaic plural shoon is from Middle English shon, from Old English scōn, scōum (“shoes”, dative plural) and scōna (“shoes'”, genitive plural); it is cognate with Scots shuin (“shoes”).
