In researching various subjects in the early 1900s, I have come across a number of unique words and phrases that appeared in local newspapers, personal written and oral histories, and other accounts.
When encountering them, I have written them down and researched their meaning(s) at the time. Here are a few of them that I have come across. I am going to give you the definition of the first two, and then let you see how many of the other 25 you know. Note: Where it is a phrase or saying, I will denote it with “ “ marks. I will post the definitions of the remaining words/phrases in a couple of days.
Good luck!
Flivver: Initially the word meant a Ford model T, or an automobile with running boards. As the years went by the word came to mean a cheap car or one that had not been well taken care of.
Gullywasher: A sudden violent rainstorm resulting in flooding.
Here are the remaining 25:
1. Dead Soldier
2. Wesenheimer
3. Hawkshaw:
4. “Butt me”
5. “Duck soup”
6. Moll
7. Grifter
8. Glad rags
9. “Bank’s Closed”
10. Flapper:
11. “Butter and egg man”
12. Cattywampus
13. Collywobbles
14. Malarkey
15. “The cat’s meow”
16. Jitney
17. “The bee’s knees”
18. Hoosegow
19. “Shut your yap”
20. “On the take”
21. Meathook
22. “Don’t throw out the baby with the bath water”
23. Blotto
24. “On the make”
25. Juice joint
This article was researched and written by Byron Wilkes. Full credits will be provided at the end of part 2.
???? I knew all of those! Most were still in use in the 1950s.
Congrats on knowing all of them. The terms were discovered in my reading many years before the 1950s. The meanings of the words can change and or a word can have multiple meanings with nuances by region. That is why the English language is so difficult to learn.
I used to work with a woman who often said “cattywompus.”