Can You Complete These Old-Fashioned Slang Phrases?

The phrase "cruisin' for a bruisin'" is a classic bit of slang from the 1950s and 1960s, combining an existing slang term into a rhyme. Cruising was a term used to describe the activity of driving slowly, looking for something, usually something fun. Thus, cruisin' for a bruisin' is looking for a chance to be badly beaten. More commonly, the expression meant that someone wasn't being careful or safe.

"Crash pad" is a term coming out of mid-century America, referring to a place you can sleep safely but that isn't necessarily your home or even a home at all. It originated in the Beatnick culture of the 1950s but still pops up today from time to time, showing that some old slang has the power to endure.

"Johnny on the spot" is a slang expression originating in New York City in the late 1800s. The precise origin of the expression is unclear, but it may have come from someone actually named Johnny. The phrase is a way of calling someone a professional who is ready to act when needed, as in "Doctor Sarah Walters is a Johnny on the spot in the Emergency Room."

The origins of the slang phrase "Indian Summer" go back a long way. In 1778, a book published in the U.K. quoted an American as describing an autumn like the one described above, using the term "Indian summer." What's interesting is that, being British, most people reading it interpreted the term to mean it came from India, not North America. Of course, since the term "Indian" used in this context can be very charged, it's not an expression that remains in much use, though many will recognize it.

You may be familiar with the phrase "to jump bail," but did you know this expression goes back more than a hundred years, appearing in slang dictionaries way back to the middle of the 1800s? Bail, for those unfamiliar with the term, is a fee payable by defendants who would otherwise be held in prison. The deal is that they will return to face charges. Bail bondsmen are people who loan money for bail, which works like any loan. Jumping bail refers to the practice of paying bail and leaving the jurisdiction, regardless of where the bail came from.

"Outta sight" is a saying that came into use in the 1950s but reached its peak usage in the 1960s. It means "something is so amazing, there is no way to absorb it all; the eyes are incapable of seeing all of it because it's so huge." While this saying still pops up now and then, it's usually either used ironically or to evoke something specific about the age from which it comes.

The middle of the 20th century saw an explosion of slang because of the falling cost of printing, the advents of broadcast TV and radio, and greater engagement in the monoculture, allowing slang to spread. One expression that benefitted from this was "too cool for school," a saying that refers, somewhat ironically, to the act of dropping out of beneficial activities, like attending school.

"A-go-go" first appears around 1965, according to Merriam Webster. Being slang, its meaning can be a fickle and protean thing, but generally, it's a positive suffix, meaning that the thing preceding it is either current and cool or at least of high quality. Thus, a dance party could be a "dance party a-go-go" or, more ironically, an election debate could be an "election debate a-go-go."

While people still use the phrase "up to snuff," it is becoming an increasingly old fashioned phrase. The good news is that you can still use it, because most people today know it means "having the required skills or qualities for a task." As far as we know, the saying dates back to 1811, in John Poole's play Hamlet Travestie.

The expression "no sweat" can be traced back as far as a book about the Korean War, published in 1951. The speaker in this case insists that the task at hand is not difficult and thus will not elicit perspiration from the task's doer.

The slang phrase "Jack Ketch" is very, very old. its use can be traced all the way to 1682 when it was cited in a story as the actual name of a specific hangman. The name became a synonym for hangmen and executioners, falling out of use by 1900, in favor of better-known dangers to criminals, many of them local to the criminals' location.

The original uses of the sentiment "keeping one's hands clean" have nothing to do with the law, as it might be used now. It had to do with something one might do on one's own that the Victorians wouldn't approve of. When the slang came to America, it became more about noses than hands, but the meaning is the same: stay out of trouble.

The saying "to go up a blind alley" refers to the act of engaging in a course of action that is simultaneously hopeless and without any possible solution. The expression has its roots in 15th-century translations of Virgil, but the first recorded uses of it in common use come from American newspapers in the late 1800s. Next time you want to sound sophisticated and a little old fashioned, use this phrase.

The phrase "pearls before swine" is an interesting construction because "before" in this instance means "in front of," not "preceding." Thus, this phrase means a thing of great value given to those who do not appreciate its value. One could therefore say that a great actor in a bad movie could be pearls before swine.

The phrase "to trip the light fantastic" has its origins with Milton and meant to dance well with music. "Trip" in this usage has origins in dancing, not falling over. Times change, though, and more recently, the saying has a slang meaning too. More commonly, it means to dance in a way that is awful, unusual and noteworthy. Think of Elaine's dancing on "Seinfeld."

Interestingly, the old meaning of "wall-flowers" is "old or second-hand clothing," according to "The Rogue's Lexicon." While the term "wallflower" as referring to "someone who sits on the sidelines at a party" is still in use, it dates back to at least the 1820s, meaning that use is both contemporary and very old. An important distinction, however: Wall-flowers (plural, hyphenated) can mean either the people or the clothes, but wallflower (singular, no hyphen) only indicates the person.

"Racing for pinks" is an expression popular among 1960s racers, meaning "to engage in a race in cars, in which the stakes are the cars' titles." The exact origin of this expression is unclear, and while it is in limited use today, it isn't a common saying anymore.

The saying "get in the groove" is an old one, though you do still hear it from time to time. Its origins are with records. To play a record, the record player's needle needs to fit into the record's grove. "Get into the groove" thus means to lock in so everything is working properly. Similarly, this is the root of the expression "groovy."

"Fine words butter no parsnips" is as much proverb as slang and dates back to England in the 1600s. Lots of expressions and slang had to do with butter back then, but this saying, the earliest example of which comes from a book titled "Paroemiologia," focuses the buttery preoccupation of authors of slang, turning butter into a metaphor for action. Clever.

The expression "to keep your powder dry" is old military slang. Originally, it was likely linked to the need to keep gunpowder dry for it to work when needed. More colloquially, it means to hold back and keep your resources in reserve so you can act decisively when you want to.

The Tyburn was first known as the name of a small river in London. By the time of the Industrial Revolution, it was known as the place of execution for thousands of criminals who were hanged on the massive Tyburn Triple Tree, a gallows capable of hanging 15 men at once. The expression "Tyburn Blossom" far outlived that brutal time and became a colorful way of describing someone as a young thief.

In the phrase "make a clean breast," the final word refers to the seat of emotion — the heart, not an outer part of the body. To make a clean breast is to have a clean conscience, to have made amends or confession in such a way as to pay for one's actions. This saying can be dated back to as early as the 1700s, in English, though there may be similar expressions in other languages.

The expression "Go boil your head" is a wonderfully colorful expression that, while not in use much today, has parallels with other expressions we do use. Often used in writing on the opinions of others, it means essentially the same thing as the modern slang "Delete your account." It means "I think you are an idiot and you are wrong in every way."

A "flash man" is a man who outwardly lives a lifestyle that suggests he has a lot of money but who is actually totally broke. The saying dates back well over a century, though its use has tailed off in recent years. Interestingly, calling something "flash" or "flashy" still means "looking overtly expensive," so the expression is still alive with us today.

Just like we call people "The LeBron James of Hockey" or "The Steven Spielberg of radio," for many decades after the Napoleonic Wars, calling someone "the Napoleon of X" was a way of saying someone was the best, the greatest, the most undisputedly best at X. This is one of the reasons for Sherlock Holmes calling Professor Moriarty the Napoleon of crime.

If you want to describe a rural environment free of the intensity of city life, with all its people, then this is the slang for you. This turn of phrase dates back to 1751, in a poem by Thomas Hardy. While this phrase is still in use by the especially literate or erudite, it's obscure enough to be seen as primarily slang from another era. Feel free to use it, but don't expect everyone will understand you. Also, madding is, apparently, a word.

The phrase "to grasp the nettle" refers to the act of deliberately laying bare hands on the stinging nettle. As the name would suggest, stinging nettles sting, and grasping one is a difficult thing to do, the understood meaning of the phrase today. Early uses of the saying seemed to suggest more of an association with proof of strength or courage, not merely difficulty.

Stamfishing is a colorful expression from the 1800s that means the act of speaking in a way that makes absolutely no sense. It appears to be a portmanteau of "stammering" and perhaps something to do with making a face like a fish. It can be found listed in "The Rogue's Lexicon," which was printed in 1859.

The phrase "beer and skittles" is a way of saying that the thing being compared to beer and skittles isn't easy. Beer and skittles refer to the kinds of things people do at a pub, with skittles referring to a precursor of bowling. Thus, saying one's job or one's life isn't beer and skittles is like saying that one's life isn't all wine and roses.

"Flashing one's ivories" is a saying you still hear now and then, but it appears in slang dictionaries dating back well over a hundred years. In case you've never heard it, it means "to show one's teeth, usually in a grin." Flashing your ivories is a sure-fire way to make people think you're friendly; just don't leave them out there too long. It's a flash, and that's all!

"On with the motley" is a very old slang expression with its roots in theater. Its slang meaning is "get on with it," but its roots go back to at least the late 1800s when it appeared in the opera "Pagliacci." "Motley" refers to a type of performer found in Western Europe in the Middle Ages, often seen in a type of clothing called a motley, usually made of scraps of mismatched cloth. The word for the show a motley would put on was also "a motley," and thus, "on with the motley" meant "begin the show."

"Springing the plant" is one of many slang expressions from the late 1800s. It refers to the act of revealing the location of stolen property, or to remove the stolen property from its hiding place.

The saying "as fit as a butcher's dog" is an especially evocative expression you don't hear very much anymore. It literally means "in great health," and the subtext is that the butcher's dog is in great health because the butcher's dog eats scraps of meat, not because the butcher presents the dog with a healthy diet or lots of exercise. If you love dogs, and aren't a vegan, you should consider using it. More butchers should have dogs!

"Full to the gunwales" is an interesting slang expression with a nautical origin. A gunwale (pronounced GUN-ahl) is a surface on a ship, specifically the sort of "railing" along the top edge of a hull. Huge ships have them, as do canoes. When a ship is full to the gunwales, it is full. Generally, this would refer to a ship that transports goods, but it could be applied to people as well. Either way, this phrase uses the ship as a metaphor.

The root expression is "to make hay while the sun shines," meaning "to make use of opportunities when they present themselves." A haymaker is thus someone who makes hay while the sun shines. In boxing, the common situation for the use of this phrase, a haymaker is a big punch delivered when an opening presents itself.