Post by Chief Paperboy on Apr 19, 2009 12:34:39 GMT
Part 1: Regular Words/Phrases
The twenties were the first decade to emphasize youth culture over the older generations, and this had a tremendous influence on mainstream America. Many new words and phrases were coined by younger people and the flapper sub-culture.
This is an alphabetical listing of some of the slangs, idioms and historical terms from the era.
A.
Ab-so-lute-ly: Affirmative.
All Wet: Describes an erroneous idea or individual, as in, "he's all wet."
And How: I strongly agree!
Applesauce: An expletive same as horsefeathers, as in "Ah applesauce!"
Attaboy: well done!; also Attagirl!
B.
Baby: Sweetheart. Also denotes something of high value or respect.
Balled Up: Confused, messed up.
Baloney: Nonsense!
Bank's Closed: No kissing or making out - i.e. - "Sorry, Mac, the bank's closed."
Bearcat: A hot-blooded or fiery girl.
Beat it: Scram or get lost.
Beat one's gums: Idle chatter.
Bee's Knees: An extraordinary person, thing, idea; the ultimate.
Beef: A complaint or to complain.
Beeswax: Business, i.e. None of your beeswax."
Bell bottom: A sailor.
Berries: That which is attractive or pleasing; similar to bee's knees, As in "It's the berries."
Bible Belt: Area in the South and Midwest where Fundamentalism flourishes.
Big Cheese: The most important or influential person; boss. Same as big shot.
Big six: A strong man; from auto advertising, for the new and powerful; six cylinder engines.
Bimbo: A tough guy.
Bird: General term for a man or woman, sometimes meaning "odd," i.e. "What a funny old bird."
Blind Date: Going out with someone you do not know.
Bluenose: An excessively puritanical person, a prude, Creator of "the Blue Nozzle Curse."
Bootleg: Illegal liqour.
Bootlegger: The middleman who procures illegal liquor and sells it.
Breezer: A convertible car.
Bronx Cheer: A loud spluttering noise, used to indicate disapproval. Same as raspberry.
Bull: (1) a policeman or law-enforcement officer including FBI
(2) nonsense
(3) to chat idly, to exaggerate.
Bull Session: Male talkfest, gossip, stories of sexual exploits.
Bum's rush: Ejection by force from an establishment.
Bump Off: To murder, To kill.
Butt me: I'll take a cigarette.
C.
Cajun: An ethnic group descended from Acadians who migrated from Nova Scotia to Louisiana. The dialect they speak is derived mostly of Cajun French and English.
Caper: criminal act or robbery.
Carry a Torch: To have a crush on someone.
Cash: A kiss.
Cash or check?: Do you kiss now or later?.
Cat: A man. Also known as a bull, buck, lad, sheik, daddy, palooka or fella.
Cat's Meow: Something splendid or stylish; similar to bee's knees; The best or greatest, wonderful.
Cat's Pajamas: Same as cat's meow.
Chassis: The female body.
Cheaters: Eyeglasses.
Check: kiss me later.
Chicago Typewriter: Thompson sub-machine gun, also called a Tommy gun or chopper.
Ciggy: Cigarette.
Clam: A dollar.
Copacetic: Wonderful, fine, all right.
Crush: An infatuation.
D.
Daddy: A young woman's boyfriend or lover, especially if he's rich.
Dame: A female.
Dapper: A Flapper's dad.
Darb: An excellent person or thing (as in "the Darb" - a person with money who can be relied on to pay the check).
Dead soldier: An empty beer bottle.
Deb: A debutant.
Dick: A private investigator.
Dogs: Feet.
Doll: An attractive woman.
Dolled up: Dressed up.
Don't know from nothing: Don't have any information.
Don't take any wooden nickels: Don't do anything stupid.
Double-cross: To cheat, stab in the back.
Dough: Money.
Drugstore Cowboy: A guy that hangs around on a street corner trying to pick up girls.
Dry Sate: A U.S. State enforcing Prohibition.
Dry up: Shut up, get lost.
Ducky: Very good.
Dumb Dora: A stupid female.
E.
Earful: Enough.
Edge: Intoxication, a buzz. i.e. "I've got an edge."
Egg: A person who lives the big life.
Establishment: Ambiguous term for a Speakeasy operation.
F.
Fall Guy: Victim of a frame.
Fire extinguisher: A chaperone.
Fish: (1) a college freshman.
(2) a first timer in prison.
Flat Tire: A dull witted, insipid, disappointing date. Same as pill, pickle, drag, rag, oilcan.
Flivver: A Model T.
Flapper: A girl who behaves and dresses according to the fashions and youth sub-culture of the 1920s. A stylish, brash, hedonistic young woman with short skirts & shorter hair.
Fly boy: A glamorous term for an aviator.
Frame: To give false evidence, to set up someone.
Fuzz: Police.
G.
Gams: A womans legs.
Get a wiggle on: Get a move on, get going.
Giggle Water: An intoxicating beverage; alcohol.
Gin Mill: An establishment where hard liquor is sold; bar.
Glad rags: "Going out on the town" clothes.
Gold Digger: A woman who associates with or marries a man for his wealth.
Goofy: In love.
H.
Hair of the Dog: A shot of alcohol.
Handcuff: An engagement ring.
Hard Boiled: A tough, strong guy.
Hayburner: (1) a gas guzzling car
(2) a horse one loses money on.
Heebie-Jeebies: The jitters.
High-Hat: To snub.
Hit on all sixes: To perform 100 per cent; as "hitting on all six cyclinders"
Hooch: Bootleg liquor.
Hood: Hoodlum; a gangster.
Hoofer: Dancer.
Horsefeathers: an expletive; same usage as applesauce.
Hotsy - Totsy: Pleasing.
I.
Iron: A gun, as in 'packing iron'.
Ishkabibble: A slang term used to dismiss something as trivial. 'That's ishkabibble.'
It: Sex appeal.
J.
Jack: Money.
Jake: OK, as in , "Everything is Jake."
Jalopy: Old car.
Jane: Any female.
Java: Coffee.
Jazz Age: Refers to the period between WWI and WWII, encompassing the Roaring 20's and the Great Depression, during which jazz music became immensely popular.
Jitney: A car employed as a private bus. Fare was usually five cents; also called a "nickel"
Joe: Coffee.
John: Toilet.
Joint: An establishment, usually selling alcohol.
Juice Joint: A speakeasy.
K.
Keen: Attractive or appealing.
Kisser: Mouth
Kitten: A woman. Also known as a bearcat, tomato, dame, doll, jane, vamp or sheba.
L.
Left holding the bag: (1) to be cheated out of one's fair share (2) to be blamed for something.
Level with me: Be honest.
Line: Insincere flattery.
Live wire: A lively person.
M.
Middle Aisle: To marry
Mrs. Grundy: A priggish or extremely tight-laced person
Moll: A gangster's girl
Muddy Miss: The Mississippi River. Also known as Old Man River or the Big River.
Mais: 'Well', a common way for a Cajun to begin a sentence.
N.
Neck: Kissing with passion.
New Rich: A family/person who recently gained wealth.
Nifty: Great, excellent.
"Now you're on the trolley!": Now you've got it, now you're right!
Nobody Home: Describes some one who is dumb. "There's nobody home."
O.
On the lam: Fleeing from police.
On the level: Legitimate, honest.
On the up and up: On the level.
Orchid: An expensive item.
Ossified: Drunk. Also called splifficated, tanked, hosed, zozzled, plastered, or embalmed.
Owl: A person who's out late.
Old Rich: A family/person with inherited money.
Old Man River: The Mississippi River. Also known as the Muddy Miss or the Big River.
P.
Palooka: (1) a below-average or average boxer
(2) a social outsider, from the comic strip character Joe Palooka.
Pet: Same as neck, but more so.
Piker: (1) a cheapskate
(2) a coward.
Pill: (1) a teacher
(2) an unlikable person.
Pinch: To arrest.
Pipe down: Stop talking. Opposite of 'pipe up'.
Pushover: A person easily convinced or seduced.
Putting on the Ritz: After the Ritz hotel in Paris; doing something in high style.
Prohibition: The period of US history between 1919 and 1933 during which the sale, import and manufacture of alcohol was made illegal as outlined by the Volstead Act and established by the 18th Amendment to the Constitution. The production and sale of alcohol became an underground business as a result of the legislation and a trend of unprecedented organized crime followed.
Q.
R.
Ragamuffin: A dirty or disheveled individual.
Razz: To make fun of.
Real McCoy: The genuine article.
Ritzy: Elegant (from the hotel).
Rube: (1) A derogatory term commonly used by city-dwellers to refer to unsophisticated country folk.
(2) Money or dollars.
Rumrunner: one who smuggles illegal liquor across borders, usually by boat.
S.
Sap: A fool.
Says you: A reaction of disbelief.
Scram: Ask someone to leave immediately.
Sheba: A woman with sex appeal (from the move Queen of Sheba) or (e.g. Clara Bow).
Sheik: A man with sex appeal (from the Valentino movies).
Shiv: A knife.
Sinker: A doughnut.
Speakeasy: Also called a 'gin mill' or 'joint', a speakeasy is an illegal, secret place to partake of a drink (or more.) During Prohibition, speakeasies came in all shapes, sizes and degrees of sophistication. They could be found in cellars, abandoned buildings, privately owned homes, barns or any number of other discreet places.
Spifflicated: Drunk. The same as canned, corked, tanked, primed, scrooched, jazzed, zozzled, plastered, owled, embalmed, lit, potted, ossified or fried to the hat.
Spiffy: An elegant appearance.
Spoon: To neck, or at least talk of love.
Springfield : Springfield M1903 rifle.
Struggle Buggy: The backseat of a car. A parent's worst nightmare.
Stuck On: Having a crush on.
Swanky: Ritzy.
Swell: Wonderful. Also: a rich man.
T.
Take for a Ride: To drive off with someone in order to bump them off (kill them).
Tiddlywinks: Invented in the 1890's, the object of the game is to use a disk called a squidger to flip some smaller disks, called winks, into a cup.
Tin Pan Alley: The music industry in New York, located between 48th and 52nd street.
Tomato: A female.
Torpedo: A hired gun.
U.
Upchuck: To vomit when one has drunk too much.
V.
W.
The Great War: World War I.
Wet Blanket: A solemn person, a killjoy.
Wet State: A U.S. State selling alcohol.
What's eating you?: What's wrong?
Whoopee: To have a good time.
X.
Y.
You (kill/slay) me: That's funny.
Z.
Part 2: Racial Slurs
Yes, this needs a separate bit for the disclaimer.
Unfortunately, the 1920s was a very racist era, and there were derogatory terms aplenty for non-Americans. To not include any would to be unfaithful to the era and to characters that would freely use these.
The list is endless, but we are attempting to be sensitive and trying to use only words that could be considered ‘light’ to try not to cause any offense. If you find any of the words on here too offensive, let us know immediately and we will sort it out.
African Americans: Negro, Darkie, Coon (Cajun oriented)
Asian: Chink*
Irish: Mick
Italian: I-tie, Greasball
Jewish: Hymie
Hispanic: Wetback
*In 1882 the U.S. passed the Chinese Exclusion Act. The law's name means exactly that. It basically banned Chinese immigrants from entering the U.S. The Immigration Act of 1924 extended this act and it was not repealed until 1943.
The twenties were the first decade to emphasize youth culture over the older generations, and this had a tremendous influence on mainstream America. Many new words and phrases were coined by younger people and the flapper sub-culture.
This is an alphabetical listing of some of the slangs, idioms and historical terms from the era.
A.
Ab-so-lute-ly: Affirmative.
All Wet: Describes an erroneous idea or individual, as in, "he's all wet."
And How: I strongly agree!
Applesauce: An expletive same as horsefeathers, as in "Ah applesauce!"
Attaboy: well done!; also Attagirl!
B.
Baby: Sweetheart. Also denotes something of high value or respect.
Balled Up: Confused, messed up.
Baloney: Nonsense!
Bank's Closed: No kissing or making out - i.e. - "Sorry, Mac, the bank's closed."
Bearcat: A hot-blooded or fiery girl.
Beat it: Scram or get lost.
Beat one's gums: Idle chatter.
Bee's Knees: An extraordinary person, thing, idea; the ultimate.
Beef: A complaint or to complain.
Beeswax: Business, i.e. None of your beeswax."
Bell bottom: A sailor.
Berries: That which is attractive or pleasing; similar to bee's knees, As in "It's the berries."
Bible Belt: Area in the South and Midwest where Fundamentalism flourishes.
Big Cheese: The most important or influential person; boss. Same as big shot.
Big six: A strong man; from auto advertising, for the new and powerful; six cylinder engines.
Bimbo: A tough guy.
Bird: General term for a man or woman, sometimes meaning "odd," i.e. "What a funny old bird."
Blind Date: Going out with someone you do not know.
Bluenose: An excessively puritanical person, a prude, Creator of "the Blue Nozzle Curse."
Bootleg: Illegal liqour.
Bootlegger: The middleman who procures illegal liquor and sells it.
Breezer: A convertible car.
Bronx Cheer: A loud spluttering noise, used to indicate disapproval. Same as raspberry.
Bull: (1) a policeman or law-enforcement officer including FBI
(2) nonsense
(3) to chat idly, to exaggerate.
Bull Session: Male talkfest, gossip, stories of sexual exploits.
Bum's rush: Ejection by force from an establishment.
Bump Off: To murder, To kill.
Butt me: I'll take a cigarette.
C.
Cajun: An ethnic group descended from Acadians who migrated from Nova Scotia to Louisiana. The dialect they speak is derived mostly of Cajun French and English.
Caper: criminal act or robbery.
Carry a Torch: To have a crush on someone.
Cash: A kiss.
Cash or check?: Do you kiss now or later?.
Cat: A man. Also known as a bull, buck, lad, sheik, daddy, palooka or fella.
Cat's Meow: Something splendid or stylish; similar to bee's knees; The best or greatest, wonderful.
Cat's Pajamas: Same as cat's meow.
Chassis: The female body.
Cheaters: Eyeglasses.
Check: kiss me later.
Chicago Typewriter: Thompson sub-machine gun, also called a Tommy gun or chopper.
Ciggy: Cigarette.
Clam: A dollar.
Copacetic: Wonderful, fine, all right.
Crush: An infatuation.
D.
Daddy: A young woman's boyfriend or lover, especially if he's rich.
Dame: A female.
Dapper: A Flapper's dad.
Darb: An excellent person or thing (as in "the Darb" - a person with money who can be relied on to pay the check).
Dead soldier: An empty beer bottle.
Deb: A debutant.
Dick: A private investigator.
Dogs: Feet.
Doll: An attractive woman.
Dolled up: Dressed up.
Don't know from nothing: Don't have any information.
Don't take any wooden nickels: Don't do anything stupid.
Double-cross: To cheat, stab in the back.
Dough: Money.
Drugstore Cowboy: A guy that hangs around on a street corner trying to pick up girls.
Dry Sate: A U.S. State enforcing Prohibition.
Dry up: Shut up, get lost.
Ducky: Very good.
Dumb Dora: A stupid female.
E.
Earful: Enough.
Edge: Intoxication, a buzz. i.e. "I've got an edge."
Egg: A person who lives the big life.
Establishment: Ambiguous term for a Speakeasy operation.
F.
Fall Guy: Victim of a frame.
Fire extinguisher: A chaperone.
Fish: (1) a college freshman.
(2) a first timer in prison.
Flat Tire: A dull witted, insipid, disappointing date. Same as pill, pickle, drag, rag, oilcan.
Flivver: A Model T.
Flapper: A girl who behaves and dresses according to the fashions and youth sub-culture of the 1920s. A stylish, brash, hedonistic young woman with short skirts & shorter hair.
Fly boy: A glamorous term for an aviator.
Frame: To give false evidence, to set up someone.
Fuzz: Police.
G.
Gams: A womans legs.
Get a wiggle on: Get a move on, get going.
Giggle Water: An intoxicating beverage; alcohol.
Gin Mill: An establishment where hard liquor is sold; bar.
Glad rags: "Going out on the town" clothes.
Gold Digger: A woman who associates with or marries a man for his wealth.
Goofy: In love.
H.
Hair of the Dog: A shot of alcohol.
Handcuff: An engagement ring.
Hard Boiled: A tough, strong guy.
Hayburner: (1) a gas guzzling car
(2) a horse one loses money on.
Heebie-Jeebies: The jitters.
High-Hat: To snub.
Hit on all sixes: To perform 100 per cent; as "hitting on all six cyclinders"
Hooch: Bootleg liquor.
Hood: Hoodlum; a gangster.
Hoofer: Dancer.
Horsefeathers: an expletive; same usage as applesauce.
Hotsy - Totsy: Pleasing.
I.
Iron: A gun, as in 'packing iron'.
Ishkabibble: A slang term used to dismiss something as trivial. 'That's ishkabibble.'
It: Sex appeal.
J.
Jack: Money.
Jake: OK, as in , "Everything is Jake."
Jalopy: Old car.
Jane: Any female.
Java: Coffee.
Jazz Age: Refers to the period between WWI and WWII, encompassing the Roaring 20's and the Great Depression, during which jazz music became immensely popular.
Jitney: A car employed as a private bus. Fare was usually five cents; also called a "nickel"
Joe: Coffee.
John: Toilet.
Joint: An establishment, usually selling alcohol.
Juice Joint: A speakeasy.
K.
Keen: Attractive or appealing.
Kisser: Mouth
Kitten: A woman. Also known as a bearcat, tomato, dame, doll, jane, vamp or sheba.
L.
Left holding the bag: (1) to be cheated out of one's fair share (2) to be blamed for something.
Level with me: Be honest.
Line: Insincere flattery.
Live wire: A lively person.
M.
Middle Aisle: To marry
Mrs. Grundy: A priggish or extremely tight-laced person
Moll: A gangster's girl
Muddy Miss: The Mississippi River. Also known as Old Man River or the Big River.
Mais: 'Well', a common way for a Cajun to begin a sentence.
N.
Neck: Kissing with passion.
New Rich: A family/person who recently gained wealth.
Nifty: Great, excellent.
"Now you're on the trolley!": Now you've got it, now you're right!
Nobody Home: Describes some one who is dumb. "There's nobody home."
O.
On the lam: Fleeing from police.
On the level: Legitimate, honest.
On the up and up: On the level.
Orchid: An expensive item.
Ossified: Drunk. Also called splifficated, tanked, hosed, zozzled, plastered, or embalmed.
Owl: A person who's out late.
Old Rich: A family/person with inherited money.
Old Man River: The Mississippi River. Also known as the Muddy Miss or the Big River.
P.
Palooka: (1) a below-average or average boxer
(2) a social outsider, from the comic strip character Joe Palooka.
Pet: Same as neck, but more so.
Piker: (1) a cheapskate
(2) a coward.
Pill: (1) a teacher
(2) an unlikable person.
Pinch: To arrest.
Pipe down: Stop talking. Opposite of 'pipe up'.
Pushover: A person easily convinced or seduced.
Putting on the Ritz: After the Ritz hotel in Paris; doing something in high style.
Prohibition: The period of US history between 1919 and 1933 during which the sale, import and manufacture of alcohol was made illegal as outlined by the Volstead Act and established by the 18th Amendment to the Constitution. The production and sale of alcohol became an underground business as a result of the legislation and a trend of unprecedented organized crime followed.
Q.
R.
Ragamuffin: A dirty or disheveled individual.
Razz: To make fun of.
Real McCoy: The genuine article.
Ritzy: Elegant (from the hotel).
Rube: (1) A derogatory term commonly used by city-dwellers to refer to unsophisticated country folk.
(2) Money or dollars.
Rumrunner: one who smuggles illegal liquor across borders, usually by boat.
S.
Sap: A fool.
Says you: A reaction of disbelief.
Scram: Ask someone to leave immediately.
Sheba: A woman with sex appeal (from the move Queen of Sheba) or (e.g. Clara Bow).
Sheik: A man with sex appeal (from the Valentino movies).
Shiv: A knife.
Sinker: A doughnut.
Speakeasy: Also called a 'gin mill' or 'joint', a speakeasy is an illegal, secret place to partake of a drink (or more.) During Prohibition, speakeasies came in all shapes, sizes and degrees of sophistication. They could be found in cellars, abandoned buildings, privately owned homes, barns or any number of other discreet places.
Spifflicated: Drunk. The same as canned, corked, tanked, primed, scrooched, jazzed, zozzled, plastered, owled, embalmed, lit, potted, ossified or fried to the hat.
Spiffy: An elegant appearance.
Spoon: To neck, or at least talk of love.
Springfield : Springfield M1903 rifle.
Struggle Buggy: The backseat of a car. A parent's worst nightmare.
Stuck On: Having a crush on.
Swanky: Ritzy.
Swell: Wonderful. Also: a rich man.
T.
Take for a Ride: To drive off with someone in order to bump them off (kill them).
Tiddlywinks: Invented in the 1890's, the object of the game is to use a disk called a squidger to flip some smaller disks, called winks, into a cup.
Tin Pan Alley: The music industry in New York, located between 48th and 52nd street.
Tomato: A female.
Torpedo: A hired gun.
U.
Upchuck: To vomit when one has drunk too much.
V.
W.
The Great War: World War I.
Wet Blanket: A solemn person, a killjoy.
Wet State: A U.S. State selling alcohol.
What's eating you?: What's wrong?
Whoopee: To have a good time.
X.
Y.
You (kill/slay) me: That's funny.
Z.
Part 2: Racial Slurs
Yes, this needs a separate bit for the disclaimer.
Unfortunately, the 1920s was a very racist era, and there were derogatory terms aplenty for non-Americans. To not include any would to be unfaithful to the era and to characters that would freely use these.
The list is endless, but we are attempting to be sensitive and trying to use only words that could be considered ‘light’ to try not to cause any offense. If you find any of the words on here too offensive, let us know immediately and we will sort it out.
African Americans: Negro, Darkie, Coon (Cajun oriented)
Asian: Chink*
Irish: Mick
Italian: I-tie, Greasball
Jewish: Hymie
Hispanic: Wetback
*In 1882 the U.S. passed the Chinese Exclusion Act. The law's name means exactly that. It basically banned Chinese immigrants from entering the U.S. The Immigration Act of 1924 extended this act and it was not repealed until 1943.