Everyday Slang in the 1930s
‘30s folks had casual slang for everyday situations we still use today. Some ‘30s slang is still pretty common—you’ve probably referred to money as “moolah” before or used the phrase “make whoopee” as a silly euphemism for hooking up. Some of these words sound comically uncool now, but they were on everyone’s lips back in the day! Take a look at this list of common 1930s slang words and see how many you recognize: Aces: Excellent Ackamarackus: Nonsense All wet: No good Bash: An attempt or try Barge around: Walk slowly Bazoo: Mouth Beat: Broke Behind the grind: Behind in your work or studies Biff: Failure Blow, split, or scram: Leave Blow your wig: To get excited Bong: To catch on to a joke slowly Boondoggle: An extravagant or useless project Booshwash or bumping gums: Empty talk, bullsh*t Bread, dough, moolah, or bacon: Money Brodie: To take a chance and lose or make a mistake Bug: Difficult to understand Cheaters: Glasses or sunglasses Check or checker: A dollar Cockamamie: Kids’ slang for a temporary tattoo or detail Copacetic: Performing well Dil-ya-ble: A phone call (sounds like “dialable”) Dime a dozen: Anything very common or not very valuable Dog it: To avoid work Dukes, paws, grabbers, or meat hooks: Hands Eggs in coffee: Run smoothly Fade: To leave Five spot or a Lincoln: Five dollars or a five dollar bill Frog: To cheat Gams: Legs Gasser: A great time or something very funny Gobsmacked: Flabbergasted or shocked Gumming the works: To cause something to run less smoothly, to ruin a plan Honey cooler: A kiss Hops: Information Horn or blower: Telephone Hot stuff:The latest news or trend Iron: A car or motorcycle Joed: Tired Juicy: Enjoyable Kibosh: To squelch or put a stop to something Kippy: Neat Low down: All the information Meat wagon: An ambulance Middle-aisle it: Get married Necking: Making out Pitching woo or making whoopee: Making love Plotz: Sit down wearily, slouch, mope around Sawbuck: A ten dollar bill Snipe: Cigarette Somoa: Some more (pronounced like you’re slurring your words together) Speedo: Speedometer Squat: Zero or nothing That way for: Falling in love Tin can or flivver: A car Trip for biscuits: A task that yields nothing Uh-huh: Falling in love Whacky: Crazy Yo!: Yes
1930s Sayings & Expressions
Some ‘30s expressions are straightforward, and some are tough to decode! Take a gander at some of these common sayings from the 1930s—do any sound familiar to you? Abyssinia: “I’ll be seeing you” (pronounced like you’re slurring your words together) Awgwan: “I don’t believe you” or “Oh, go on” Cute as a bug's ear: Very cute Dizzy with a dame: In love with a woman to someone’s own detriment, especially if she's someone else's moll (a gangster’s girlfriend) Fan my brow!: “What a surprise!” Here I is: “Hello” H’roo or hurro: “Hello” I mean and how: “That is so true” Mitt me, kid: “Congratulate me” No soap!: “That isn’t possible” Piss or get off the pot: “Stop wasting time and make a decision” Put a bee in your bonnet: To know something interesting Says which?: “What did you just say?” Shake a leg: “Hurry up” Slip me five: “Shake my hand” What’s the score?: “What are you talking about?” What's your story, morning glory?: “What do you mean by that?” You and me both: “I agree” or “same here” You shred it, wheat: “You said it” Yowsah: “Yes, sir”
1930s Insult Slang
People in the ‘30s had unique (and amusing) terms to mock each other. It seems like every generation comes up with its own words to describe weird, cringey things and people (“chuegy” means what now?). If you need some good historical insults to hurl at your pals, check out this list of 1930s jibes: Abercrombie: A know-it-all Big it: A self-centered or conceited person Boob: A dumb person who makes silly mistakes Can the twit!: Stop that idle talking Cement mixer or deadfoot: Someone who’s bad at dancing Crumb: An unsuccessful or unreliable person, a loser Crust: To insult Dilly: Foolish Dingy: Silly Doggy: Well dressed, but in a self-conscious way Egg: A crude person Gold digger: Someone (typically a woman) who marries for money Greaseball, half portion, wet smack, wet sock, jelly bean: An unpopular person or loser Nitwittery: Stupidity Nogoodnik: A bad or worthless person Off the cob: Corny Pill: A disagreeable or bothersome person Screwball: An odd person (originally from baseball slang) Tightwad: A cheap or stingy person Tin ear or ickie: Someone who doesn’t like popular music Twit: A fool or Idiot Wheat: A person who isn’t used to city life Wise guy: A smart aleck or smart*ss
1930s Dust Bowl & Great Depression Slang
Economic hardship inspired slang for unpleasant circumstances. American life in the 1930s wasn’t easy. In 1929, the stock market crashed and triggered the Great Depression, a major economic downturn that led to severe rates of unemployment and business failures. On top of this, the Dust Bowl began in 1931. The Dust Bowl was a series of droughts during the ‘30s that devastated farmland throughout the Great Plains region, turning workable soil into dust that flew around in dangerous wind storms. The hardships that everyday folks encountered led to a variety of new terms and phrases: Apple Annie: A woman who sold apples on the street to make ends meet Bank holiday: A euphemism for closing a bank that was about to fail Black blizzard or black roller: A dust storm that darkens the sky Blinds: The platform of a baggage car Bone polisher: A vicious or dangerous dog California blankets or Hoover blankets: Newspapers to sleep on or under Chuck a dummy: To pretend to faint to get money from passersby Duster: A dust storm Flip a rattler: To jump into a moving boxcar Gasoline gypsies: Unemployed people living and traveling in their cars looking for work Gunboat: An empty can (usually a coffee can) used for cooking Hobo: A migrant worker, typically without a permanent home Hoover cars or Hoover wagons: Broken down cars pulled by mules Hoover flags: Empty pockets turned inside out Hoover hogs: Wild rabbits that rural people caught for food Hooverville: A temporary shanty town House dog: Someone who offers to do chores for money Hungry town: A town known for being stingy with handouts or aid Jumping the blinds: Catching a ride on the platform of a baggage car Jungle: A rural gathering place for hobos K-balling: Salvaging parts from junked rail cars to build new ones Rent party: A gathering where guests donate money to help with rent Road sister: A female hobo Tin can shows: Movies where viewers bring cans of food for the needy Tin can tourists: Migrants from the Great Plains who arrived in other states by car Yegg: A hobo criminal You gave us beer, now give us water: A Dust Bowl catchphrase and demand to the government by farmers
1930s Slang for People & Places
New, descriptive words for places and people emerged in the ‘30s. Do phrases like "the Big Apple" or "man cave" sound familiar? It turns out they have their roots in '30s slang! Apple: A big city or town Cave: A house or apartment Clip joint: A nightlife establishment or casino where customers get scammed Grifter: A con artist or swindler High-gear road: A road that could be traveled at a steady speed Motor court: An early word for a motel Pip: An attractive person Plenty rugged: Big and strong Smooth: Well-dressed Togged to the bricks: Dressed up in a fancy or alluring way
Slang terms for men Check out these words and phrases used to describe all kinds of men back in the day: Butter and egg man: A man with money who likes to spend it on women Joe: An average guy or man Remittance man: Someone paid by his family to stay away
Slang terms for women Take a look at some popular words for women from the 1930s, including some that are still occasionally used today: Broad, babe, dame, doll, twist, muffin, kitten, or wren: General terms for a woman Dollface: A name for a woman when a man is apologizing or trying to woo her Fem, filly, flame, flirt, or fuss: A girl or woman who is a constant companion to a boy or man Hot mama, looker, butter and egg fly, sweet patootie, dish, or tomato: An attractive or good-looking woman
1930s Slang for Food & Drink
“Hash house” cooks and servers used amusing phrases for diner orders. The 1930s were the peak of diner lingo, or the sometimes crazy-sounding names that diner workers used for customers’ orders. Diners or “hash houses” were popular places to eat in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and customers back then were just as amused with the terms they used as we are today! Sadly, diner lingo phased out as more chain restaurants emerged later in the 20th century. But that doesn’t mean you can’t still have fun with some of these creative (and delicious0 turns of phrase: Adam and Eve on a raft: 2 fried or poached eggs on toast All the way: Chocolate cake or fudge with ice cream Baby: A glass of milk Barrel of black mud: A chocolate milkshake Big four: A duck-egg omelet made with 4 eggs, 4 slices of bacon, and 4 potatoes Black cow: A root beer float Bossy in a bowl: Beef stew Break it and shake it: To put eggs on top of something Cat beer: milk Chaser of Adam’s ale: A glass of water Chewed fine with a breath: A hamburger with onion City juice, dog soup, or dog water: A glass of water (usually referring to city water) Cold spot: Iced tea Coney Island chicken: A hot dog Eighty-six: A restaurant or soda fountain is out of an item (ora customer should be refused service) Eve with the lid on: An apple pie Freak: Orange Coke Hold the hail: No ice Hounds on an island: Hot dogs and beans In the air: In a large glass Mug of murk: Black coffee Nervous pudding: Jello Noah’s boy with Murphy carrying a wreath: Ham and potatoes with cabbage On wheels: To go Punk and gut: Bread and sausage Scandal soup: Tea Slugburger: A hamburger patty made with ground beef stale bread Spla: Whipped cream Stack of bones: Boiled spareribs Thirteen: A boss who is roaming around the workplace Wreck on a raft: Scrambled eggs on toast
1930s Slang for Drugs & Alcohol
Prohibition inspired new, secretive terms for homemade or illegal alcohol. The 18th Amendment to the US Constitution prohibited the making, selling, or transporting of alcohol from 1920 to 1933. This era of Prohibition didn’t stop people from drinking though—many gathered in illegal, secret bars called “speakeasies” to drink, and some went so far as to make their own wine, beer, and liquor (which was often quite strong and low-quality). Even though Prohibition was repealed by the 21st Amendment in 1933, the lingo from the time hung around throughout the decade. Booze, hooch, or giggle juice: Whiskey Cadillac: 1 ounce of cocaine or heroin Gin mill: Any place that serves liquor, sometimes illegally Jive, muggles, or weed: Marijuana Plonk: Cheap or low-quality wine Rotgut: Bad or cheap homemade liquor Speakeasy: A bar disguised as something else or hidden behind an unmarked door Swacked: Drunk, intoxicated
1930s Slang for Law Enforcement & Crime
Gangsters used and inspired slang for violence, crime, and police. From 1924 to 1938, thousands of professional crime rings and gangs were operating in the US, particularly in major cities like Chicago. The gangs, led by iconic figures like Al Capone and Bugs Moran, used money from illegally selling alcohol during Prohibition to pay off politicians or police officers and buy lots of guns. It was a violent time with high murder rates, and law enforcement was woefully unprepared to handle the surge in organized crime. Big house: Prison Bleed: To extort or blackmail Bust out: To escape from jail or prison Buzzer: Police badge Chicago overcoat: A coffin Chicago typewriter or Tommy gun: A Thompson machine gun Chisel: To swindle, cheat, or work an angle Cinder dick: Railroad detective Convincer, gat, heater, or rod: Gun Copper: Police officer Dick, gumshoe, or flatfoot: A detective Drilling, plugging, throwing lead, filling someone with daylight, giving someone lead poisoning: Shooting someone with a gun G-man: A federal agent (coined by Machine Gun Kelly) Goons: Enforcers, tough guys, or henchmen Hotsquat: An electric chair House dick or house peeper: House detective Make tracks: To leave abruptly or in a hurry or put distance between yourself and where you were Micky or Micky Finn: A drink spiked with drugs to knock you out On sus: Suspected of committing a crime On the lam: Fleeing from law enforcement Packing heat or wearing iron: Carrying a gun Patsy: An innocent man framed for a crime Sourdough: Counterfeit money Stool pigeon: An informer or snitch Take for a ride: To drive someone away to murder them Taking the rap or taking the fall: Taking responsibility for someone else's crime Trigger men: Hired gunmen
1930s Pop Culture, Jazz & Radio Slang
Radio entertainment, jazz, and their associated slang dominated the ‘30s. Radio programming boomed in the ‘20s and ‘30s, often broadcasting live performances since the Great Depression made it too expensive to make many records. The ‘30s also encompassed the Swing Era, when big band jazz music was the “pop” music of the time. Major networks played swing music over the radio to lift the spirits of struggling Americans who wanted to dance and forget their economic troubles. Here are some of the pop culture terms that came from the age of jazz and radio: Canary: A female singer Cats or alligators: Fans of swing music Clambake: A wild swing or a radio program that failed due to on-air mistakes Crawk: An animal imitator Crooner: A smooth singer Dillinger: Very hot swing music Dog house: A string bass Ether: Radio waves Gitbox, gitter, or guinea’sharp: A guitar Gob stick or licorice stick: A clarinet Gobble-pipe: Saxophone Grandest Canyon or Hardened Artery: Broadway in New York; Groanbox: An accordion Gut-bucket: Lowdown blues Hep cat: Someone who loves jazz music and exudes the style Hi-de-ho: An exclamation of joy or fun used by jazz and dance bands Hop, rag, jolly up, romp, wingding:: A dance or party Hot band: A band playing improvised jazz Iron horn: A coronet or trumpet Juke joint: A cheap, roadside establishment with music, dancing, food, and drinks Kick out: Improvise Long underwear gang: A sweet band Madame Cadenza: A flighty female vocalist Platter: A record Quit mugging light and mug heavy: Pick up the beat or speed Ring-a-ding-ding: A good time at a party Scat singer: A vocalist who improvises lyrics with nonsense syllables Skin tickler: A drummer Speako: Speakeasy Sweet band: A band playing jazz tunes as written Town crier: A vocalist who sings too loud Wang it: Play louder
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