Brexit was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). Following a referendum on 23 June 2016, Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020. The UK is the only sovereign country to have left the EU. The UK had been a member state of the EU or its predecessor, the European Communities (EC), since 1 January 1973. Following Brexit, EU law and the Court of Justice of the European Union no longer have primacy over British laws. The European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 retains relevant EU law as domestic law, which the UK can amend or repeal.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office illuminated in the colours of the Union Jack on 31 January 2020
Border crossing at Killeen (near Newry in Northern Ireland), marked only by a speed limit in km/h (Northern Ireland uses mph.)
Cars crossing into Gibraltar from Spain clearing customs formalities. Gibraltar is outside the customs union, VAT area, and Schengen Zone.
Image: Margaret Thatcher (1983)
In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed, usually intentionally, by combining the sounds and meanings of two or more words. English examples include smog, coined by blending smoke and fog, as well as motel, from motor (motorist) and hotel. The component word fragments within blends are called splinters.
A spork
This 2012 novelty t-shirt combines the names of two place names, Wisconsin and Compton, California to form 'WISCOMPTON'.
