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Vintage Slang
Vintage slang refers to colloquial words or expressions in the English language, associated with a particular decade. Some examples of this are “catch 22” from the 1970s and “grandstand” from the 1940s.
1,017 Questions
What were the slang terms back in the 1920's?
Again, asking this question is like asking what the slang terms are now. You will get a whole mess of answers, none of which will be wrong, all of which will be incomplete. There's just too much slang, there are too many words, for this to be answered in a note. Here, though, are a few terms, words, phrases, what have you:
apple sauce: flattery, nonsense, i.e.. "Aw, applesauce!"
bearcat: a hot-blooded or fiery girl
big cheese: important person
darb: a great person or thing, i.e. "That movie was darb."
floorflusher: an insatiable dancer
and of course there is a ton and a half more. my secret? here you go: http://home.earthlink.net/~dlarkins/slang-pg.htm
[my other secret? this is a better slang site than many if not most. really good.]
What does it mean when someone says dream better?
"Dream better" is not a common expression in American English. The more familiar expression is "Sweet dreams," often said to someone who is going to bed with a meaning similar to "Good night."
What does it mean when someone says 'Roger that'?
"Roger that" is a slang, usually used in radio transmissions such as military communications, meaning "I understand" or "I hear you."
When someone says "Roger that" it mean he has understood what is being said.
What does the expression 'from the horse's mouth' mean?
In horse racing circles tips on which horse is a likely winner circulate amongst punters. The most trusted authorities are considered to be those in closest touch with the recent form of the horse, i.e. stable lads, trainers etc. The notional 'from the horse's mouth' is supposed to indicate one step better than even that inner circle, i.e. the horse itself.
It is a 20th century phrase. The earliest printed version I can find of it is from the USA and clearly indicates the horseracing context - in the Syracuse Herald, May 1913:
"I got a tip yesterday, and if it wasn't straight from the horse's mouth it was jolly well the next thing to it."
This is not at all correct. In the past, a horses liniage was listed inside it's mouth. Tattoo'd if you will. Everybody tried to lie about a horses liniage, to get a better price. Once it became practice to put the info in the horses mouth, one couldn't get away with it anymore. So when asked about a horses liniage, one could say, " I got it from the horses mouth...". This is also the etomy of the phrase, " never look a gift(ed) horse in the mouth..." meant to mean, that you don't check the horses mouth for liniage, when someone gifts you a horse. This would be rude. Sorry, but the previous could not be more wrong.
What do you mean an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure?
It means that if something develops a fault - a lady's stocking, a misfiring plug in a car engine, a feeling of illness - then it is far better to sort out the remedy straight away rather than let it become worse when; the lady needs a new pair of stockings; the faulty plug causes more serious damage to the engine; what could have been cured with simple means develops into a life-threatening illness. In all these cases, not taking care at the early stage results in more expensive results.
What does it mean when someone says your a chic?
"Chick" is slang for "female, woman, girl." So presumably that's what it means.
What is the definition of suicide in slang?
In contemporary slang, to say a person committed suicide is to say he "offed himself".
What does the phrase 'how is your bum for grubs' mean?
It's an Australian slang term that implies the questions, How are you? Are you well?
Where does the term reaching for the brass ring come from?
Merry-go-rounds (or carousels) used to have a separate device from which hung a brass ring. As the merry-go-round turned quickly, if you could reach out way far and somehow manage to grab the brass ring, when the ride was over, you could show the brass ring to the ride operator and he would either give you a prize or let you ride again for free. It was really hard to get the brass ring. So, reaching for the brass ring means that you try really hard to do something that almost no one else can, just so you can enjoy the praise and reward that comes with it.
Cuz is a slang term for cousin. The word is also used as a slang for because.
The phrase rode hard refers to riding a horse, in a demanding manner; sometimes people ride a horse for a long distance, or at a gallop, which tires the horse out to an unusual degree. That is the literal meaning of riding hard. The term is also used as a metaphor. If anything has been "rode hard" that means you have used it in a particularly stressful manner which may tend to wear it out or damage it.
What the phrase a glint in the milkman's eye means?
It refers to the cliche, that a housewife has sex with the milkman and gets pregnant afterwards. Therefore, the glint in the m. e. Is a very early stage of something, like a newborn child or a project or anything else, something that is far away from being started.
Their are various answers to this question so I'm going to give you a verity of different ways to say goodbye in slang. One way is peace out. Another way is holler at me later also known as "Holla At Me Later. Their is also See ya. And u can always throw the peace sign up which is putting your index finger and your middle finger up at thee same time
Old slang word meaning attractive woman?
old slang for an attractive woman: a bobby dazzler of a vamp
What is the origin of the term cherry picking?
A cherry pick is a logging term and it mean 8 to 9 cords of wood.
What does the saying coating someone off mean?
It means to insult somebody or to talk trash about them. I've only ever heard it used by old Londoners and Essex boys.
E.g. "I'm going to have to have a word because he's been coating me off to all the others."
