Historical Dictionary of American Slang

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149 Results 1930-1930

• all nerves
  
  ( np ) Tense, nervous. By the time I got my convertible out of the car wash, I was all nerves.
  1930s
• all-nighter
  
  ( n ) A restaurant that stays open all night. It was 3 AM but they found a little all-nighter on the corner where they could get a cup of java.
  1930s
• bananas
  
  ( adj ) Crazy, insane. The guy went bananas when I asked him to leave.
  1930s
• bang
  
  ( n ) Fun, pleasure. I get a bang out of bungee jumping.
  1930s
• bash
  
  ( n ) A try, an attempt. Move back and let me have a bash at it.
  1930s
• beat all
  
  ( vp ) Be outrageous. Doesn't that beat all?
  1930s
• behind the 8 ball
  
  ( pp ) In trouble; disliked by someone. I forgot Mavis's birthday and now I'm behind the 8 ball.
  1930s
• bent
  
  ( adj ) Upset, angry. After being bent for so many years, Barry is now a broken man.
  1930s
• bill and coo
  
  ( v ) To hug and kiss. Don't you just love to bill and coo with your girl on the beach?
  1930s
• blabbermouth
  
  ( n ) Someone who talks too much. That blabbermouth told my girlfriend that he saw me with another girl.
  1930s
• blimp
  
  ( n ) A very fat person. I hate to have a blimp sitting next to me when I fly.
  1930s
• boff
  
  ( v ) To hit. He gets into trouble at home when he boffs his brother.
  1930s
• boogie-woogie
  
  ( n ) Jazz of the 30s and 40s. Boogie-woogie is really cutting the rug!
  1930s
• boondoggle
  
  ( n ) A con game, a deceitful transaction. Government contracts are often thinly veiled boondoggles.
  1930s
• boondoggle
  
  ( v ) To swindle or cheat. Heathcliff was boondoggled into selling his car for half of its value.
  1930s
• broke
  
  ( adj ) Without money. I'm broke man; don't ask me for money.
  1930s
• buck
  
  ( np ) Money. I need to make a quick buck.
  1930s
• buddy
  
  ( int ) Form of address for a male in the South. Hey, buddy, can you spare a dime?
  1930s
• burn up
  
  ( v ) Make angry, mad. That really burns me up!
  1930s
• bust out
  
  ( v ) To escape. His mother and three of her buddies busted out of prison but was caught 3 days later.
  1930s
• certifiable
  
  ( adj ) Crazy, insane. Stay away from that woman; she's 100 percent certifiable.
  1930s
• chintzy
  
  ( adj ) Cheap. That really was a chintzy present you got him.
  1930s
• cool
  
  ( v ) To kill. The mob cooled him a year or so ago.
  1930s
• cracker
  
  ( n ) A white person (offensive). That cracker just doesn't get jive.
  1930s
• cram
  
  ( v ) To study hard. He didn't study all semester and had to cram before exams.
  1930s
• cuddle
  
  ( v ) To hug and kiss. Let's go over to my front porch and cuddle some.
  1930s
• cut
  
  ( v ) To dilute. They cut the whiskey with water at that bar.
  1930s
• dead
  
  ( adj ) Quiet. This disco is really dead tonight.
  1930s
• deep pockets
  
  ( np ) Much money. Her boyfriend has deep pockets.
  1930s
• dibs
  
  ( n ) A claim. I have dibs on the shotgun seat.
  1930s
• dip
  
  ( n ) A stupid or foolish person. The guy who flunked four out of five classes is really a dip.
  1930s
• drop
  
  ( v ) To knock down. Say another word and I'll drop you.
  1930s
• Drop dead!
  
  ( int ) Absolutely not! Drop dead! I'll never go out with you.
  1930s
• duds
  
  ( n ) Clothes. I see you got some new duds for the dance.
  1930s
• dust off
  
  ( v ) To kill. The mob dusted him off when he ratted on them.
  1930s
• fade
  
  ( v ) To leave. I have homework to do, man, let's fade.
  1930s
• flivver
  
  ( n ) A broken down car. Stewart will never get me into that old flivver his father drives.
  1930s
• gasser
  
  ( n ) A great time, something hilarious. The new comedy on TV is a real gasser.
  1930s
• get first base
  
  ( vp ) Have initial success trying to seduce someone. He couldn't get to first base with her, let alone score.
  1930s
• ginchy
  
  ( adj ) Sexy. She is the ginchiest girl I've ever seen.
  1930s
• go bananas
  
  ( vp ) To lose control of yourself, go crazy. I am going to go bananas if I don't have a vacation soon.
  1930s
• go steady
  
  ( vp ) To date only one person. They went steady for a year, then broke up.
  1930s
• goof
  
  ( v ) Loaf, waste time. They used to goof on their way home from work.
  1930s
• goon
  
  ( n ) A stupid thug or bodyguard. The mob boss was accompanied by a couple of his goons.
  1930s
• guts
  
  ( n ) Courage. It takes a lot of guts to give the boss your true opinion.
  1930s
• hep cat
  
  ( np ) A cool jazz-lover. Nathan is the hep cat who took me to Birdland for the first time.
  1930s
• on the take
  
  ( pp ) Taking bribes. You'll have to find a judge on the take to get out of this one.
  1930s
• history
  
  ( adj ) Over, done with. I don't have any idea where my old boyfriend is. He's history.
  1930s
• hot
  
  ( adj ) Stolen. The police stopped them because they thought the car was hot.
  1930s
• hot seat
  
  ( np ) A critical position with great pressure for success. Dwayne is in the hot seat now: if he doesn't make his quota, he is history.
  1930s
• hotshot
  
  ( n ) A person who thinks he is very important. Look at Bud with his collar up; he thinks he is such a hotshot.
  1930s
• jerk
  
  ( n ) A stupid or foolish person. The jerk left his date at the party.
  1930s
• keen
  
  ( adj ) Wanting to, excited about {British}. I'm keen to go to the motion pictures.
  1930s
• keister
  
  ( n ) The buttocks. Llewelyn slipped on the wet floor and fell on his keister.
  1930s
• lick
  
  ( n ) A short musical improvisation. He isn't that creative a trumpeter; he gets most of his licks from others.
  1930s
• lightweight
  
  ( n ) Someone who cannot get things done. You don't want to give a job this important to a lightweight.
  1930s
• Mack
  
  ( int ) Form of address for a male. Hey, Mack, where is the nearest truck stop?
  1930s
• malarkey
  
  ( n ) Nonsense. He said he aced the chem exam. What malarkey!
  1930s
• Mickey-Mouse
  
  ( adj ) Minor, unimportant. Boswell ran some Mickey-Mouse radio station in Florida for a few years.
  1930s
• minxy
  
  ( adj ) Alluring, seductive. She is a totally minxy fox.
  1930s
• Monday morning quarterback
  
  ( np ) Someone who offers advice when it is too late. Fritz is a Monday morning quarterback who is never there when you need him.
  1930s
• mule
  
  ( n ) A carrier of illegal drugs. The cartel uses her as a mule to get their drugs into the country.
  1930s
• nogoodnik
  
  ( n ) A bad or worthless person. So then the nogoodnik tramped across my clean kitchen floor in his muddy boots.
  1930s
• odd ball
  
  ( np ) An eccentric. Freddie is a sort of odd ball who likes to take walks in the park.
  1930s
• on edge
  
  ( pp ) Nervous. All this waiting to hear from the doctor has me on edge.
  1930s
• P. I.
  
  ( abb ) A private investigator. Serena hired a P. I. to tail her husband.
  1930s
• piece of cake
  
  ( n ) Something easy. Working on a computer for me is a piece of cake.
  1930s
• pill
  
  ( n ) Anything difficult. Paying $1200 in taxes is a tough pill to take.
  1930s
• puke
  
  ( v, n ) To vomit. I feel like I am going to puke.
  1930s
• punch-drunk
  
  ( adj ) Crazy, insane. Don't listen to that punch-drunk bum; he's crazy.
  1930s
• put a bee in your bonnet
  
  ( vp ) Tell something interesting. Why are you grinning? You look like somebody's put a bee in your bonnet.
  1930s
• Put 'em up!
  
  ( vp ) To raise your hands. Drop that gun and put 'em up!
  1930s
• put-on
  
  ( n ) A deception. It was an elaborate put-on which I almost believed.
  1930s
• queer
  
  ( adj ) Counterfeit. Watch him; he's known for passing queer money.
  1930s
• raunchy
  
  ( adj ) Dirty, grimy. Get out of those raunchy clothes and take bath.
  1930s
• riot
  
  ( n ) A great time, something hilarious. The comedy program was a real riot.
  1930s
• rip-snorter
  
  ( n ) Something excellent, outstanding. His party last night was a rip-snorter.
  1930s
• rip-snorting
  
  ( adj ) Excellent, outstanding. Let me tell you, it was a rip-snorting party.
  1930s
• scag
  
  ( n ) An ugly female (offensive). He was seen last night in a sketchy part of town with a scag.
  1930s
• Shoot!
  
  ( int ) An interjection of disappointment (euphemism for s - - -). Shoot! I just ripped my pants.
  1930s
• short
  
  ( n ) A car. He was trying to sell a hot short to a salesman on a car lot.
  1930s
• shotgun wedding
  
  ( np ) A wedding forced by pregnancy. The marriage didn't last because it started out in a shotgun wedding.
  1930s
• skip
  
  ( v ) To miss, to not attend. Let's skip chemistry today and go to the library.
  1930s
• slap-happy
  
  ( adj ) Crazy, insane. Roland has been slap-happy ever since he left the ring.
  1930s
• snoot
  
  ( n ) Nose. She popped him on the snoot.
  1930s
• So what?
  
  ( int ) I don't care. So, Nellie got into Smith. So what?.
  1930s
• solid
  
  ( adj ) Excellent, outstanding. That bash at her house was solid!
  1930s
• soup up
  
  ( v ) Increase the power and speed of a car. Sure, he wins the drag races: his car is souped up.
  1930s
• soused
  
  ( adj ) Drunk, intoxicated. He came home soused and his wife locked him out.
  1930s
• speedo
  
  ( n ) Speedometer. The speedo was showing 35 mph but we seemed to be going much faster.
  1930s
• spook
  
  ( v ) To scare, frighten. A snake spooked the horse and he threw his rider.
  1930s
• spot
  
  ( v ) To loan. Could you spot me $10 until payday?
  1930s
• squad car
  
  ( np ) Police car. There is no way out; the house is surrounded by squad cars.
  1930s
• stick
  
  ( v ) Force someone to do something unpleasant. He left early and stuck me with cleaning up the house.
  1930s
• tag along
  
  ( vp ) Come with. Mind if I tag along for the ride?
  1930s
• take a hike
  
  ( v ) To leave. I am tired of all your complaining. Take a hike!
  1930s
• the word
  
  ( n ) The latest news or gossip. Say, what's the word on Jenny?
  1930s
• throw a bone
  
  ( vp ) Help out with something small. Look, if you make a lot of money, throw your old friend a bone.
  1930s
• tied to an apron string
  
  ( vp ) Dominated by the wife or a woman. Fred can't go fishing on the weekend; he's tied to his wife's apron string.
  1930s
• tomato
  
  ( n ) A female. That Shelly's one red hot tomato.
  1930s
• torch
  
  ( n ) An arsonist, someone who starts fires illegally for money. Burnham Goode was a torch for the mob until the police collared him on the job.
  1930s
• torch
  
  ( v ) To commit arson, to burn down illegally. I hear Burnham Goode torched his own restaurant for the insurance money.
  1930s
• twit
  
  ( n ) Petty, immature brat. The little twit barfed all over her date at the pizza parlor.
  1930s
• twit
  
  ( n ) Superficial person. She is such a twit who spends most of her time shopping.
  1930s
• welch
  
  ( v ) To fail to meet an obligation. He welched on his promise to help paint my house.
  1930s
• What's with you?
  
  ( phr ) What is wrong with you? Hey, what's with you, man. You're really bent.
  1930s
• whiz
  
  ( n ) Talented person. He is a whiz at the computer.
  1930s
• doodly-squat
  
  ( n ) A small, worthless amount The president doesn't know doodly-squat about running a country.
  1930s
• lame-brain
  
  ( n ) A stupid or foolish person. This lame-brain thinks it is the Umpire State Building in New York.
  1930s
• lame-brained
  
  ( adj ) Stupid or foolish. I've never heard such a lame-brained idea in my life.
  1930s
• thingamajig
  
  ( n ) An object for which a name is unavailable. What was that thingamajig he was holding?
  1930s
• fly
  
  ( v ) Be workable Your idea doesn't have legs; it won't fly.
  1930s
• fly the coop
  
  ( vp ) To leave, elope, or escape. When he saw you coming up the walk, he flew the coop.
  1930s
• drip
  
  ( n ) A weak, indecisive person. That drip doesn't know how to tie his shoes.
  1930s
• spiv
  
  ( n ) Slick con man. Some worthless spiv married Myrtle, took her money, and left her.
  1930s
• dish
  
  ( n ) Something you like. Playing quoits on a Sunday afternoon is not quite my cup of tea.
  1930s
• dish (out)
  
  ( v ) To serve, to do something hard or harsh. Tommy isn't afraid of flamers; he can dish it out with the best of them.
  1930s
• cup of tea
  
  ( np ) Something you like. Playing quoits on a Sunday afternoon is not quite my cup of tea.
  1930s
• jitterbug
  
  ( n ) A nervous person. Calm down, Donny, don't be such a jitterbug.
  1930s
• crunch
  
  ( n ) Climax, critical point. Bertie is someone you can count on in a crunch.
  1930s
• pooch out
  
  ( v ) Stick out, protrude. Millie, why is your stomach pooching out like that?
  1930s
• cheesecake
  
  ( n ) Photography of well-proportioned women. Betty Grable was a popular piece of cheesecake during World War II.
  1930s
• gun
  
  ( v ) To accelerate something suddenly. When Pedro saw Maria down the road, he gunned his old jalopy.
  1930s
• wrap up
  
  ( v ) To finalize, bring to an end. Merlyn wrapped up his presentation with a chorus of "Happy Days" played on the piano.
  1930s
• plugged nickel
  
  ( np ) Something worthless. That car of his isn't worth a plugged nickel.
  1930s
• payola
  
  ( n ) A bribe to promote a song on radio or TV. It is hard to believe that most of the songs we sing are popular only because disc jockeys received payola.
  1930s
• savvy
  
  ( n ) Brains, intelligence Ask Jean-Phillippe; he has a lot of savvy when it comes to car engines.
  1930s
• Yikes!
  
  ( int ) Interjection of surprise. Yikes! That was a close call!
  1930s
• shot
  
  ( adj ) Tired, exhausted; worn out, broken down. I can't go anywhere tonight: me and my car are shot.
  1930s
• out of this world
  
  ( pp ) Excellent, outstanding. Maggie's gown for the prom is out of this world.
  1930s
• nelly
  
  ( n ) Male homosexual That sweet old nelly wouldn't hurt a fly.
  1930s
• bats
  
  ( adj ) Crazy, insane. You're completely bats if you think I'll lend you $5.
  1930s
• crate
  
  ( n ) An old car or plane. You can always find some schnook to sell that old crate of yours to.
  1930s
• lug
  
  ( n ) A thug; a dumb but nice guy. The big lug never forgets my birthday.
  1930s
• snazzy
  
  ( adj ) Smart, stylish, nice looking. Did you see that snazzy new car Sue Barew is driving around in?
  1930s
• corny
  
  ( adj ) Simple-minded, trite. I get so tired of Hugh Jeego's corny jokes I don't know what to do.
  1930s
• boob
  
  ( n ) A stupid or foolish person That boob O'Reilly picked his nose three times at the dinner table.
  1930s
• plonk
  
  ( n ) Cheap wine, wine of poor quality. Mable, we can't serve plonk with these bugers; they deserve better.
  1930s
• groove
  
  ( n ) A situation in which you feel comfortable, competent. I just can do this, man; I'm not in my groove.
  1930s
• hoo-ha
  
  ( n ) An uproar, commotion. Why all the hoo-ha over calling my secretary "Sweetie-pie"?
  1930s
• scrag
  
  ( v ) To kill. Maxi got scragged in a car accident
  1930s
• belt
  
  ( n ) A drink of hard liquor. After a day like today, I need a belt before going to bed.
  1930s
• bop
  
  ( v ) To hit. Frannie bopped me on the head, mommy!
  1930s
• wheel-horse
  
  ( n ) An important, visible, hard-working member of an organization. Correy Publican was a wheel-horse of the GOP before her arrest.
  1930s
• can
  
  ( n ) The buttocks. Frieda slipped on a banana peel and fell on her can.
  1930s
• umph
  
  ( n ) umph Couldn't you get a little more, I don't know, umph into this ad campaign?
  1930s
• oomph
  
  ( ) Spirit, strength, power. You need to sing that song with a little more oomph to get it across.
  1930s
• crooner
  
  ( n ) A man who croons. (Bing Crosby was the first crooner.) That raspy-voiced Rusty Horne thinks he's a crooner!
  1930s
• kiss off
  
  ( vp ) Leave, dismiss, kill. Why don't you just kiss off if you don't want to work.
  1930s