Slang Terms By Decade

July 17, 2020 · CLASSMATES FUN

We all use slang, whether we realize it or not. We’ve adopted certain words or phrases over the years that wouldn’t make sense out of context, most becoming popular due to what was going on in society at that time. For instance, the terms “moonshot (an ambitious project),” “spacey (out of touch with reality),” and “far out (cool)” originated from the space race, and the phrase “having a meltdown” came from the arrival of atomic power. “Going postal (uncontrollable and angry)” originated from a series of incidents in the 1980’s in which several United States Postal Service employees shot and killed their managers and fellow coworkers. And if you’ve ever used the phrase “warp speed” to describe something moving fast, you can thank Star Trek for bringing it to fruition.

Here are some other popular slang words from past decades, some still used and others obsolete.

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From the 1920’s

  • 23 skidoo: “To go away,” or “to get moving,” This term is most likely a variant of the word “skedaddle” from the 19th
  • The Real McCoy: “The real thing.”
  • Gams and Dogs: “Legs and Feet.”
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From the 1930’s

  • Girl Friday: A Secretary or Female Assistant.
  • Skivvies: Men’s underwear.
  • Juke joint: A casual establishment with drinking, dancing, and music. The word “juke” most likely comes from the Gullah (Creole) word joog or jug, meaning “rowdy” or “disorderly.”
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From the 1940's

  • Blockbuster: A word meaning something that is a huge success. However, the word originally started during World War 2, when it was used to describe a high-explosive bomb.
  • “Keeping up with the Joneses”: A phrase to describe somebody who competes to have a lifestyle as good as or better than their neighbor’s. This originated from a comic book of the same name.
  • “Sitting in the hot seat”: An uncomfortable or embarrassing situation, or when someone is faced with harsh criticism. This phrase is the extension of “hot seat,” which is slang for an electric chair.
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From the 1950's

  • Ankle-biter: A small child.
  • “Back seat bingo”: To make out in the back seat of a car.
  • Paper shaker: A Cheerleader.
  • “To bash ears”: To talk too much.
  • Fat city: A great city or place.
  • Passion pit: A drive-in movie theater.
  • “Ain’t that a bite”: A phrase meaning “that’s too bad.”
  • Big tickle: Something that’s really funny.
  • “To flip your lid”: A phrase meaning to “go crazy.”
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From the 1960's

  • “Outta sight”: A phrase explaining something that is so great or unbelievable that it’s hard to take it all in.
  • “Groovy”: A word describing something or someone who is cool.
  • Choice: Specifically, it means a pretty girl, but the word is also used to explain something that is cool.
  • Square: Someone who is uncool.
  • Tooling: Driving around.
  • To beat feet: To leave quickly.
  • “All show and no go”: A phrase referring to someone who looks good superficially.
  • To chop: To cut someone down verbally.
  • Cool head: A nice guy.
  • “Don’t flip your wig”: A phrase meaning “Don’t be upset.”
  • Bean wagon: A term referring to a cheap restaurant.
  • To sponge: To live off someone else.
  • Cherry: Something that is in mint condition.
  • “Five finger discount”: The act of shoplifting.
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From the 1970's

  • “I gotta skinny”: A phrase meaning “I have to hurry.”
  • “Later days”: An expression meaning “goodbye.”
  • “Let’s blow this taco stand”: Another way to say “let’s get out of here.”
  • “What’s your 20?”: Another way to ask “where are you?”
  • Good vibes: Positive energy.
  • Shaggin’ wagon: A decked out van that had a bed in the back.
  • Threads: Another word for “clothes.”
  • “Aww sooky sooky”: A funny way to say “aww yeah, baby!”
  • Colder than a deuce: This phrase has no real meaning and is used to add emphasis to something. For example, “it’s colder than a deuce in here.”
  • Confab: A word that means to have a conversation.
  • Copacetic: Alright.
  • Flat leaver: To ditch someone to hang out with someone cooler.
  • To the max: A phrase meaning “all the way.”
  • “That was the joint”: A party that was awesome.
  • “Are you jivin’ yet?”: A question that asks, “are you more relaxed?”
  • Close the shades: Essentially telling someone to shut up.
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From the 1980's

This decade used a lot of words for emphasis that all meant the same thing. For example:

  • Words that mean yes: Big time, cheeuh!, “no doy,” and “yes way.”
  • Words that mean no: “No can do,” tough, and psych.
  • Words that mean good: Stellar, wicked, fantabulous, bodacious, and schweet.
  • Words that mean “more of”: Mega, totally, and major.

Other common words and phrases used in the 1980’s were:

  • “Bag your face”: An insult calling somebody ugly.
  • “Barf me out”: A statement that something disgusts you.
  • Blar: disgust
  • Clydesdale: Somebody who is large and unattractive.
  • Mall-maggot: An unpleasant person who hangs out at a mall.
  • Narbo: An idiot.
  • Betty: An attractive woman. This word most likely came from the character Betty Rubble on The Flintstones.
  • Brill: A word short for “brilliant.”
  • B-Boy: A term referring to a male who performs breakdancing.
  • Cold lampin’: Relaxing at home or laying low.
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From the 1990's and 2000's

  • Po-po: A nickname for the police.
  • Senior moment: An expression if you have momentarily memory loss.
  • Holla: To call on somebody, mostly on the phone.
  • Paper: Another word for money.
  • Peeps: Friends or a group of people.
  • “Ride or die”: A friend who’s with you no matter what.
  • Tat: Short for “tattoo.”
  • Cougar: An older woman dating a younger man.
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From the 2010's to present

  • Extra: An adjective to describe somebody who is trying too hard or is being over-the-top. This word’s definition has more recently changed to mean “doing the absolute most for no reason.”
  • Adulting: When somebody is behaving like an adult by taking care of everyday tasks like laundry, errands, and bills.
  • Flex: To show off.
  • Lit: When something is lit, it means it’s exciting or excellent.
  • To be shook: To be shocked, scared, unable to cope, or to be shaken up.
  • Fam: Short for “family.” It refers to a person or group of people who are close friends.
  • Bromance: A close friendship between two men.
  • Mood: Used to express that something is relatable. It’s another way of saying “same” when in agreement.

 

These are just some examples of slang and how it’s developed over the years. What are some funny phrases you remember learning while growing up?

 

Sources:

https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/slang/history-of-american-slang-words.html

https://www.insider.com/best-slang-words-2010s-we-love-2019-11#extra-1

https://justenglish.me/2014/05/05/53-slang-terms-by-decade/

Wikipedia.org

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dictionary

 

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