"a snake in the grass" "make a monkey of" "fish story" "crazy like a fox" "like a lamb to the slaughter" "wolf in sheep's clothing" "wild goose chase" "dark horse" "look a gift horse in the mouth"
rad "x-ray dose unit," 1918, shortened form of radiation (q.v.). As shortened form of radical (n.), it is attested in political slang from 1820. Teen slang sense of "extraordinary, wonderful" is from late 1970s (see radical).
Teen slang sense of "extraordinary, wonderful" is from late 1970s (see radical). [/i]
Wicked
A word I often use and got summarily clowned for over the phone by a fellow Strutter while I was distressed and stranded in a cab-less Brooklyn. Degrassi Junior High was mentioned.
Teen slang sense of "extraordinary, wonderful" is from late 1970s (see radical). [/i]
Wicked
A word I often use and got summarily clowned for over the phone by a fellow Strutter while I was distressed and stranded in a cab-less Brooklyn. Degrassi Junior High was mentioned.
Haha....
In college my Pennsylvania/Western New York peers would use it to death.
I dunno if any of y'all know or care, but this term has real orgins. To inspect a horse/see how healthy it is, you open it's mouth and look at its teeth to determine overall fitness. I guess along the lines of "beggars can't be choosers", it is poor form to "look a gift horse in the mouth" because it was free.
I dunno if any of y'all know or care, but this term has real orgins.
don't a lot of these old timey idioms have origins, tho?
like "balls-to-the-wall" has nothing to do with dude anatomy, but is an aviation term and the balls refer to knobs on top of the throttle control handles. i was surprised when i heard that because i always thought it had to do with when a cop arrests and cuffs somebody while pushing their face (and possibly balls) up against the wall.
I dunno if any of y'all know or care, but this term has real orgins.
don't a lot of these old timey idioms have origins, tho?
like "balls-to-the-wall" has nothing to do with dude anatomy, but is an aviation term and the balls refer to knobs on top of the throttle control handles. i was surprised when i heard that because i always thought it had to do with when a cop arrests and cuffs somebody while pushing their face (and possibly balls) up against the wall.
seriously.
Thats funny.
I never really thought of a lot of these as being 'old time' expressions though.
The other day I was trying to think of what they used to call "Army Green" back when I was in the Army. I couldn't remember it for the life of me. I did a little internet searching and it's "OD Green". I never stopped to wonder what OD stands for, but it turns out it just stands for Olive Drab.
Also Uncle Sam = U.S.
G.I. = General Issue, which I guess was supposed to imply that soldiers were just equipment, property of the US govt.
Also, GIs aren't supposed to get tattooes, the urban legend being that it is considered destruction of government property.
I dunno if any of y'all know or care, but this term has real orgins.
don't a lot of these old timey idioms have origins, tho?
like "balls-to-the-wall" has nothing to do with dude anatomy, but is an aviation term and the balls refer to knobs on top of the throttle control handles. i was surprised when i heard that because i always thought it had to do with when a cop arrests and cuffs somebody while pushing their face (and possibly balls) up against the wall.
seriously.
I had heard that before, but I guess could use the refresher. I like your idea for the orgin better though.
Comments
"a snake in the grass"
"make a monkey of"
"fish story"
"crazy like a fox"
"like a lamb to the slaughter"
"wolf in sheep's clothing"
"wild goose chase"
"dark horse"
"look a gift horse in the mouth"
crikey dick
put up your dukes
is 'rad' old people slang too? or just out of date?
Is Rad a 70's thing or an 80's thang?
West Coast Linguists.....explain pleez.
Well, I am a certified linguist and resident of the west coast, so let me answer this.
Yes, people still say rad. Well, white people anyways. I say it all the time. And I am a white people.
I've hear my father use 'dumb like a fox' to describe a seller who is pretending they dont know anything about the item they are selling.
what about: 'RATS!'
tuff
swell
swanky
Reading this thread, I am discovering that I may very well be a 70-yr old white woman from the Southern West Coast!!
I know a white peoples still use it but Id like to know if its comes out of the 70's surfer crowd or the 80's mall crowd.
rad
"x-ray dose unit," 1918, shortened form of radiation (q.v.). As shortened form of radical (n.), it is attested in political slang from 1820. Teen slang sense of "extraordinary, wonderful" is from late 1970s (see radical).
Wicked
A word I often use and got summarily clowned for over the phone by a fellow Strutter while I was distressed and stranded in a cab-less Brooklyn. Degrassi Junior High was mentioned.
Haha....
In college my Pennsylvania/Western New York peers would use it to death.
Its wasnt heard like that in NYC.
I dunno if any of y'all know or care, but this term has real orgins. To inspect a horse/see how healthy it is, you open it's mouth and look at its teeth to determine overall fitness. I guess along the lines of "beggars can't be choosers", it is poor form to "look a gift horse in the mouth" because it was free.
hahaha
file under: Sousaphone Star
don't a lot of these old timey idioms have origins, tho?
like "balls-to-the-wall" has nothing to do with dude anatomy, but is an aviation term and the balls refer to knobs on top of the throttle control handles. i was surprised when i heard that because i always thought it had to do with when a cop arrests and cuffs somebody while pushing their face (and possibly balls) up against the wall.
seriously.
I never really thought of a lot of these as being 'old time' expressions though.
The other day I was trying to think of what they used to call "Army Green" back when I was in the Army. I couldn't remember it for the life of me. I did a little internet searching and it's "OD Green". I never stopped to wonder what OD stands for, but it turns out it just stands for Olive Drab.
Also Uncle Sam = U.S.
G.I. = General Issue, which I guess was supposed to imply that soldiers were just equipment, property of the US govt.
Also, GIs aren't supposed to get tattooes, the urban legend being that it is considered destruction of government property.
Didley squat
I had heard that before, but I guess could use the refresher. I like your idea for the orgin better though.
Stuff always sounds better out of place.