To whoever gave me a rep point for the "doomed" thread...

[Louweasel]

Would have pm-ed but I don't know who it was!

For reference, the expression is "taking the p!ss" when you are talking about making fun of something in a deadpan, sarcastic way. "Taking a p!ss" is just an american toilet-related activity...

[mifencer]

That would be me. It was explained to me by an American. Go figure. Sorry, I'll have to brush up more on my British-slang.

[Louweasel]

No need to apologise, just widening the cultural boundaries! It's a useful phrase if you are ever coming to Britain. What do americans say instead?

[mifencer]

Are you pulling my leg? Is a phrase that comes to mine, I'm sure other people here can elaborate.

[Larrison]

Similar phrases here

"You sh**tting me?"
Hoodwinking someone
Scamming
"doing a bit of smoke and mirrors"
Bogosity (from "bogus")
Pulling your leg
That was just lame....

[Soldier]

"You're pouring water down my back and telling me it's raining, aren't you?"

Or, in 1337: 74|<1n9 73h p!55

[Point_Left]

"You're pouring water down my back and telling me it's raining, aren't you?"

Or, in 1337: 74|<1n9 73h p!55

No wonder I have problems deciphering that stange "language." It uses a different alphabet, and it is a code! Makes me feel like I'm not a little kid anymore. And this is a good thing.

[Louweasel]

Similar phrases here

"You sh**tting me?"
Hoodwinking someone
Scamming
"doing a bit of smoke and mirrors"
Bogosity (from "bogus")
Pulling your leg
That was just lame....

That's not what "taking the p!ss" is. I understand and even use some of the above (althought hoodwinking is a bit Dickensian) but taking the p!ss is almost entirely different. I'm having trouble explaining. Any Brits, help!!

[Zelda]

taking the p!ss as I understand - is teasing people in a way that they are not sure if you are serious or not.

Does that help oh clever weasel?

[esskreemr]

We have various phrases that use piss and have nothing to do with toiletry:

"Pissing someone off" -- to upset an individual to the point they are near a state of rage.

"Piss off!" -- Used to emphatically inform someone that their presence is not longer desired.

"Pissed off." -- By using the past tense of piss, the phrase now indicates that a person is really upset.

"Well, isn't that a pisser." -- Whoah, I find that event to be mildly annoying and slightly unexpected.

"We were just pissing around" -- Indicates that the person and/or parties involved were engaging in aimless activity.

[Louweasel]

We have all those too, and they mean exactly the same thing. Except I have heard americans say "pissed" instead of "pissed off" when they mean angry or annoyed, when to us it means drunk.

Zelda, that goes some way towards helping, but then again you can take the piss out of someone in a really obvious way - I'm not sure that uncertainty is usually a factor.
It's to poke fun, to tease, it can be to satirize, but in a less subtle and clever way.

[Zelda]

True Lou, but keep in mind I do blonde impersonations real well! and generally have to THINK to see if someone is taking the piss or not.

[esskreemr]

We have all those too, and they mean exactly the same thing. Except I have heard americans say "pissed" instead of "pissed off" when they mean angry or annoyed, when to us it means drunk.

Hmmm... yes, I see your point. I wonder what the etymology would be.

I think pissed is typically used when one person is involved, ie: "Man, was I pissed!" or "Wow! She was really pissed".

Pissed off typically (not exclusively though) involves another party: "Wow, you really pissed me off" or "Whoah...they pissed her off!"

I look for the scholarly citations and post my conclusions later