0-9
- 86
- 1. Soda-counter term meaning an item was no longer available [6]
- 2. "Eighty-six" means to discard, eliminate, or deny service [6]
Excerpted from:
Fitzgerald: My Lost City, Personal EssaysThe tempo of the city had changed sharply. The uncertainties of 1920 were drowned in a steady golden roar. But the restlessness of New York in 1927 approached hysteria. The parties were bigger, the pace was faster, the shows were broader, the buildings were higher, the morals were looser, and the liquor was cheaper. but all those benefits did not really minister to much delight.
Contents
– F. Scott Fitzgerald [1]
This glossary of early twentieth century slang in the United States is an alphabetical collection of colloquial expressions and their idiomatic meaning from the 1900s to the 1930s. This compilation highlights American slang from the 1920s and does not include foreign phrases. The glossary includes dated entries connected to bootlegging, criminal activities, drug usage, filmmaking, firearms, ethnic slurs, prison slang, sexuality, women's physical features, and sports metaphors. Some expressions are deemed inappropriate and offensive in today's context. Like a Dragon
While slang is usually inappropriate for formal settings, this assortment includes well-known expressions from that time, with some still in use today, e.g., blind date , cutie-pie , freebie , and take the ball and run . [2]
These items were gathered from published sources documenting 1920s slang, including books, PDFs, and websites. Verified references are provided for every entry in the listing.
Melodrama films captivate the audience by weaving narratives that evoke intense emotions. These films primarily focus on family dynamics, centering around characters who face adversity and exploring themes of duty and love. The melodramatic format portrays characters navigating their challenges with unwavering determination, selfless acts, and bravery. Movie critics and theater owners often use the certain expressions to describe the movies they are reviewing or showing. [3] [4] [5]
Example
A "cotton glaumer" picks cotton, an "apple knocker" picks apples and other fruit— 1923 book by Nels Anderson [14]
Area in the south and midwest where fundamentalism flourishes [25]
Prison [31]
Tough guy or strong man; see also hard-boiled Bruno [8]
An appointment is set for a show or dance where your partner is someone you don't know, usually a friend of a friend [38]
Give me a cigarette [8]
Example
I jammed the roscoe in his button and said, "Close your yap, bo, or I squirt metal."— In his article for the Ottawa Citizen, William Denton mentioned Sam Spade, the famous detective character from Dashiell Hammett's works, quoting him as saying: [20]
Example
"It calls for a picked clientele of fans who are able to visualize and distinguish mortal from immortal as portrayed in the flesh. It will not appeal to the Flapper, the Lounge Lizard and Cake Eater, nor to the less intelligent."
Example
The Rent Collector (Vitagraph), with Larry Semon — A scream, a whirlwind, a cyclone of fun. For action and real fun his comedies are the snake's hips and the cat's meow.— 1923 Exhibitors Herald Patron's Movie Review [97]
Example
Browne finds a dead woman, whose jewels are missing. Foumier discovers that Browne is a cocaine fiend, and . . .
Example
Wanted: Love *** Abe has Coin *** Girls Kid him— 1915 Article Headline of Abe Deuce's letter to the editor of Los Angeles Record [118]
Example
Newspaper article states addicts are nicknamed according to the kind of drug they use e.g.one addicted to cocaine is called a cokehead,coke,snowbird,sniffer.— 1923 newspaper article explaining drug usage and terms [82]
Example
They Like 'Em Rough,' with Viola Dana. – Comedy-drama in which a husband uses cave man tactics to make his flapper wife come to time— 1922 Exhibitors Herald Movie Review [121]
Example
. . .Audrey to get her some coke. Audrey calls Max, the piano player, and he gives her a deck, which Cleo pretends to take
Example
After his arrival, Dippy filches many of the guests of their valuables— 1922 Exhibitors Herald Movie Review [166]
Example
They Like 'Em Rough,' with Viola Dana – Comedy-drama in which a husband uses cave man tactics to make his flapper wife come to time— 1922 Exhibitors Herald Movie Review [121]
Example
Flyers made from San Francisco to Hawaii. It is just a hoak meller that will, for the better part, carry in some of the smaller grindhouses.— 1926 Variety Movie Review [205]
Example
flyers made from San Francisco to Hawaii. It is just a hoak meller that will, for the better part, carry in some of the smaller grindhouses.— 1926 Variety Movie Review [205]
Example
. . . where Nazimova comes to a house of refuge, not knowing that Sills is there, and is pronounced dying by physicians, but is saved by Sills' prayer. To us who make and sell pictures, this "saved by prayer" situation registers as hokum, but just the same it has a genuine wallop for most of your customers, and consequently this final sequence effectively tops a very good red meat dramatic yarn.— 1924 Wid's Movie Review [238]
Example
In the park awaiting her train home she meets Forrest Chenoworth, a rich idler, whose money has gotten him into trouble with a lady named Jane.— 1920 Wid's Daily Movie Review [253]
Example
"His thousands of admirers are happy to know that no anti-toxin has yet been discovered to cure this master jazzman of his 'illness!'"— 1926 newspaper article praising band leader Fred Hamm [262]
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Example
It calls for a picked clientele of fans who are able to visualize and distinguish mortal from immortal as portrayed in the flesh. It will not appeal to the Flapper, the Lounge Lizard and Cake Eater, nor to the less intelligent.— 1923 Exhibitors Trade Review Movie Review [85]
Example
She plays a young wife whose husband falls for the assiduous attentions of a jazzy willo' the wisp. Many of the situations are mawkish and over sentimental, but Lila makes it all possible by her sincerity and poise.— 1924 Photoplay Movie Review [307]
Example
Reviewing the 1928 "The Racket" – Eight January Chicago, racketeers who, for various good reasons, or on the lam and temporarily going straight in Los Angeles, we're rounded up and induced to work and this crook melodrama.— 1928 Motion Picture Classic Movie Review [331]
Example
Dorothy Davenport handles the part of Violetta in an appealing manner, obtaining considerable pathos in the latter scenes
Example
but the pickpocket upsets the boat by relieving a number of the guests of their valuables, and then being obliged to flee— 1916 The Moving Picture World [166]
Example
I jammed the roscoe in his button and said, "Close your yap, bo, or I squirt metal."— In his article for the Ottawa Citizen, William Denton mentioned Sam Spade, the famous detective character from Dashiell Hammett's works, quoting him as saying: [20]
Example
The two sharpers escape and join another member of the confidence game.— 1916 The Moving Picture World [399]
Example
I jammed the roscoe in his button and said, "Close your yap, bo, or I squirt metal."— In his article for the Ottawa Citizen, William Denton mentioned Sam Spade, the famous detective character from Dashiell Hammett's works, quoting him as saying: [20]
Example
. . . where Nazimova comes to a house of refuge, not knowing that Sills is there, and is pronounced dying by physicians, but is saved by Sills' prayer. To us who make and sell pictures, this "saved by prayer" situation registers as hokum, but just the same it has a genuine wallop for most of your customers, and consequently this final sequence effectively tops a very good red meat dramatic yarn.— 1924 Wid's Movie Review [238]
Example
In the park awaiting her train home she meets Forrest Chenoworth, a rich idler, whose money has gotten him into trouble with a lady named Jane. . . The alderman's son, a waster, is acquainted with Jane— 1920 Wid's Daily Movie Review [253]
Example
I am a one-sided person—what you call, perhaps, a wet blanket. I don't smoke, I don't drink, I don't gamble, I don't dance. I like my home. I do not like boldness, lack of restraint.— 1923 Photoplay interview of Joseph Schildkraut [470]
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Shit is an English-language profanity. As a noun, it refers to fecal matter, and as a verb it means to defecate; in the plural, it means diarrhea. Shite is a common variant in British and Irish English. As a slang term, shit has many meanings, including: nonsense, foolishness, something of little value or quality, trivial and usually boastful or inaccurate talk or a contemptible person. It could also be used to refer to any other noun in general or as an expression of annoyance, surprise or anger.
"Cunt" is a vulgar word for the vulva in its primary sense, but it is used in a variety of ways, including as a term of disparagement. "Cunt" is often used as a disparaging and obscene term for a woman in the United States, an unpleasant or objectionable person in the United Kingdom and Ireland, or a contemptible man in Australia and New Zealand. In Australia and New Zealand, it can also be a neutral or positive term when used with a positive qualifier. The term has various derivative senses, including adjective and verb uses.
Pussy is an English noun, adjective, and—in rare instances—verb. It has several meanings, as slang, as euphemism, and as vulgarity. Most commonly, it is used as a noun with the meaning "cat", "coward", or "weakling". In slang, it can mean "vulva or vagina" and less commonly, by synecdoche, "sexual intercourse with a woman". Because of its multiple senses including both innocent and vulgar connotations, pussy is often the subject of double entendre.
Substance intoxication is a transient condition of altered consciousness and behavior associated with recent use of a substance. It is often maladaptive and impairing, but reversible. If the symptoms are severe, the term "substance intoxication delirium" may be used. Slang terms for the state include: getting high (generic), and being stoned, cooked, or fried.
Flappers were a subculture of young Western women prominent after the First World War and through the 1920s who wore short skirts, bobbed their hair, listened to jazz, and flaunted their disdain for prevailing codes of decent behavior. Flappers were seen as brash for wearing excessive makeup, drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes in public, driving automobiles, treating sex in a casual manner, and otherwise flouting social and sexual norms. As automobiles became more available, flappers gained freedom of movement and privacy.
This is a list of British words not widely used in the United States. In Commonwealth of Nations, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand, India, South Africa, and Australia, some of the British terms listed are used, although another usage is often preferred.
Yo is a slang interjection, commonly associated with North American English. It was popularized by the Italian-American community in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the 1940s.
Dude is American slang for an individual, typically male. From the 1870s to the 1960s, dude primarily meant a male person who dressed in an extremely fashionable manner or a conspicuous citified person who was visiting a rural location, a "city slicker". In the 1960s, dude evolved to mean any male person, a meaning that slipped into mainstream American slang in the 1970s. Current slang retains at least some use of all three of these common meanings.
LGBTQ slang, LGBTQ speak, queer slang, or gay slang is a set of English slang lexicon used predominantly among LGBTQ+ people. It has been used in various languages since the early 20th century as a means by which members of the LGBTQ+ community identify themselves and speak in code with brevity and speed to others.
The Spanish language employs a wide range of swear words that vary between Spanish speaking nations and in regions and subcultures of each nation. Idiomatic expressions, particularly profanity, are not always directly translatable into other languages, and so most of the English translations offered in this article are very rough and most likely do not reflect the full meaning of the expression they intend to translate.[c]
Taking the piss is a colloquial term meaning to mock at the expense of others, or to be joking, without the element of offence. It is also sometimes phrased as a question, 'are they taking the piss?', when referring to an individual who takes above and beyond what is thought acceptable, similar to the expression, 'give them an inch and they take a mile.' It is a shortening of the idiom taking the piss out of, which is an expression meaning to mock, tease, joke, ridicule, or scoff. It is not to be confused with "taking a piss", which refers to the act of urinating. Taking the Mickey, taking the Mick or taking the Michael are additional terms for making fun of someone. These terms are most often used in the United Kingdom, Ireland, South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia.
Singlish is the English-based creole or patois spoken colloquially in Singapore. English is one of Singapore's official languages, along with Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil. Although English is the lexifier language, Singlish has its unique slang and syntax, which are more pronounced in informal speech. It is usually a mixture of English, Hokkien, Cantonese, Malay, and Tamil, and sometimes other Chinese languages like Teochew, Hainanese, Hakka, Hockchew, and Mandarin. For example, pek chek means to be annoyed or frustrated, and originates from Singaporean Hokkien 迫促. It is used in casual contexts between Singaporeans, but is avoided in formal events when certain Singlish phrases may be considered unedifying. Singapore English can be broken into two subcategories: Standard Singapore English (SSE) and Colloquial Singapore English (CSE) or Singlish as many locals call it. The relationship between SSE and Singlish is viewed as a diglossia, in which SSE is restricted to be used in situations of formality where Singlish/CSE is used in most other circumstances.
British slang is English-language slang originating from and used in the United Kingdom and also used to a limited extent in Anglophone countries such as India, Malaysia, Ireland, South Africa, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, especially by British expatriates. It is also used in the United States to a limited extent. Slang is informal language sometimes peculiar to a particular social class or group and its use in Britain dates back to before the 15th century. The language of slang, in common with the English language, is changing all the time; new words and phrases are being added and some are used so frequently by so many, they almost become mainstream.
In the field of criminal law, there are a variety of conditions that will tend to negate elements of a crime, known as defenses. The label may be apt in jurisdictions where the accused may be assigned some burden before a tribunal. However, in many jurisdictions, the entire burden to prove a crime is on the prosecution, which also must prove the absence of these defenses, where implicated. In other words, in many jurisdictions the absence of these so-called defenses is treated as an element of the crime. So-called defenses may provide partial or total refuge from punishment.
Redneck is a derogatory term mainly, but not exclusively, applied to white Americans perceived to be crass and unsophisticated, closely associated with rural whites of the Southern United States.
Coprophilia, also called scatophilia or scat, is the paraphilia involving sexual arousal and pleasure from feces.
A girlfriend is a woman who is a friend, acquaintance or partner to the speaker, usually a female companion with whom one is platonically, romantically, or sexually involved. In a romantic context, this normally signifies a committed relationship where the individuals are not married. Other titles, for example "wife" or "partner", usually signify that the individuals are legally married.
Jive talk, also known as Harlem jive or simply Jive, the argot of jazz, jazz jargon, vernacular of the jazz world, slang of jazz, and parlance of hip is an African-American Vernacular English slang or vocabulary that developed in Harlem, where "jive" (jazz) was played and was adopted more widely in African-American society, peaking in the 1940s.
Dumb Dora is a comic strip published from 1924 to 1936 distributed by King Features Syndicate. The term "dumb Dora" was a 1920s American slang term for a foolish woman; the strip helped popularize the term.
Slang of the 1920's The twenties were the first decade to emphasize youth culture over the older generations, and the flapper sub-culture had a tremendous influence on mainstream America; many new words and phrases were coined by these liberated women. Many of these are still used today!
Dictionary.com is the world's leading digital dictionary. Dictionary.com's main, proprietary source is the Random House Unabridged Dictionary and supplemented with established sources including American Heritage and Harper Collins
Compiled by William Denton
Listing copied from the authentic 1922 Flapper's Dictionary by Ella Hartung
The first known use of belly laugh was in 1916
Green's Dictionary of Slang is the largest historical dictionary of English slang
Abe Deuce's letter to the editor of Los Angeles Record
Dictionary.com is the world's leading digital dictionary
Slang of the 1920's The twenties were the first decade to emphasize youth culture over the older generations, and the flapper sub-culture had a tremendous influence on mainstream America; many new words and phrases were coined by these liberated women. Many of these are still used today!
Ordinary Production Given to Very Convenient Melodrama
Reviewed by Robert C. McElravy.
Green's Dictionary of Slang is the largest historical dictionary of English slang
Green's Dictionary of Slang is the largest historical dictionary of English slang
Green's Dictionary of Slang is the largest historical dictionary of English slang
Green's Dictionary of Slang is the largest historical dictionary of English slang
Green's Dictionary of Slang is the largest historical dictionary of English slang
Speakeasies and Jazz
Speakeasies and Jazz
Green's Dictionary of Slang is the largest historical dictionary of English slang
Green's Dictionary of Slang is the largest historical dictionary of English slang
Green's Dictionary of Slang is the largest historical dictionary of English slang
penlighten is a website about books
Books
Abridged edition of the New Dictionary of American Slang
Unabridged copy of 1996 Meriam-Webster publication of the same name
contents of original Joseph Sullivan's criminal slang: a dictionary of the vernacular of the underworld, first published by the detective pub company in 1908 and edited by Bill LeFurgy.
Glossary of Hard-Boiled slang of the 1920s through the 1940s
Web Slang Dictionaries and PDFs
Green's Dictionary of Slang is the largest historical dictionary of English slang
Slang of the 1920's The twenties were the first decade to emphasize youth culture over the older generations, and the flapper sub-culture had a tremendous influence on mainstream America; many new words and phrases were coined by these liberated women. Many of these are still used today!
Websites
