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30 Times People Realized Some Parts Of Their Vocabulary Went Out Of Fashion And Shared It Online
To make the perfect historical movie or TV series, it's not enough to build a flawless set or hire an interior expert to stand behind your CGI artist. It's not enough to give the actors makeup in the spirit of the era and dress them in authentic costumes, sewn using the technology appropriate to the time.
There will always be something that is the most difficult to fake. Language, or rather slang. Perhaps the most accurate mirror in the world, reflecting the specifics of any time. Language lives with us and changes no less often than, for example, fashion, with words coming in and out of vogue. And this viral thread in the AskReddit community is dedicated to examples of such slang words considered 'outdated'.
More info: Reddit
Image credits: Pixabay (not the actual photo)
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#1
I was unaware sweet was out of date. I said sweet to a customer and the tweens thought it was hilarious. Dad said dude. I said sweet. Dad said dude... back and forth until we laughed. Made my day but the tweens looked so confused. #youhadtobethere
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#2
I was at a grocery store a while back and the person working the register was a young 20’s woman. She said something and I responded with “Right on” and she responds with “Oh, I love old timey sayings!” So I guess that’s my old timey saying that I still use.
#3
Dude. I say it all the time...so much so that when my son was 3, he called me either "mommy" or "dude". I ctfu once at the grocery store when we were checking out once and my son said, "Dude, can I have candy?" Cashier looked at me and said, "Did he call you Dude?" Yup.
Yes, it is slang that most accurately reflects the dynamics of the development of any language - because the academic norms of linguistics clearly don't keep up with the rapid fashion for words. Especially with the development of the internet. It is not surprising that it was in 1990, a year before the emergence of the worldwide web, that the American Dialect Society began to determine 'The Word of the Year' in the United States.
#4
Cool beans.
#5
I finish every sentence with Man, and I call everyone Dude. 🤷
#6
I've been known to use the word "copacetic" on occasion.
By the way, the history of words and expressions that became 'The Word of the Year' over the time perfectly illustrates the evolution of our lives. For example, in 1994 it was the word cyber, in 2003 - metrosexual, in 2009 - tweet, in 2020 - Covid, and in 2023 - ens**ttification (the pattern of decreasing quality of online platforms that function as two-sided markets). At the same time, some 'words of the year' are so irrevocably a thing of the past that it's difficult to remember their meaning without the appropriate context.
#7
"thingy" "thingamajig"
David 1 year ago
Of course! You use the thingamajig to fix the thingy by sticking it into the dookicky to get it work
Bender Bending Rodríguez 1 year ago
What how is this obsolete. I use it to describe thingamajigs like every hour.
Anna Drever 1 year ago
My friend, who is several years younger than myself, and I use thingy far tooooo much.
ADDchallengedINFP-T 1 year ago
I use both of those, and even thought I created the word "thingamajig" LOL. And I don't give two hoots, if someone snickers at my word useages.
Georgia Ireland 1 year ago
I've heard my mom say to my dad, "Would you get me the thingamabob that does the thingamajig?" Every time he always knows what she means. Thingamajig and thingamabob are here to stay!
#8
Negating a sentence by end the sentence with “not”. For example: I trust Social Security retirement to be there for the young workers today, not!
#9
Okey-Dokey
“Any language is truly a living, constantly changing structure, especially when it comes to slang,” says Oleksiy Arkhireyev, a Ukrainian copywriter and novelist, who was asked by Bored Panda for a comment here. “And everything really depends on our perception. For example, in the '60s the word 'boomer' was perceived as the personification of everything young, progressive, full of energy, but now it has quite logically changed its meaning.”
“On the other hand, we stop accepting new words in the language where we feel comfortable, and if someone considers, for example, the words 'cool' and 'okey-dokey' to be outdated, then this is not at all a problem for people who actively use them in their speech. In any case, each generation, each year brings us more and more new words - only for them to, after some time, also 'go out of fashion.' This is an objective process - and that’s what makes linguistics so wonderful,” Oleksiy ponders.
#10
I’m the only person I know who responds to something with “Nice!”
#11
heavens to murgatroyd!
Der Kommissar 1 year ago (edited)
That was Snagglepuss's most famous quote, the other being " Exit, stage left ". Last time I mentioned Snagglepuss was the first gay cartoon character and got some downvotes.
#12
Dope Edit: especially feels weird now that I’m almost 40 and use it to describe mundane things like salad dressing.
PeepPeep the duck 1 year ago
Millennials - always over hyping the mundane 😂 I love how we do that
It’s interesting that in this collection I personally found about a dozen words and expressions that I regularly use - and which other people perceive as outdated. Interesting experience, by the way - so please feel free to scroll this list to the very end, read all these stories about 'archaic slang' and maybe add your own examples in the comments below.
#14
Now we’re cooking with gas Good grief I refer to people as cool cats and good eggs
#15
Wicked.
Michael Fernandez 1 year ago
I still say wicked, and with the same inflection I used in junior high in 1973.
#16
I tell people 'peace out' and acknowledge things with 'word'. I'm 43
#17
Nifty Legit had someone ask where I was from one time.
#18
Awesome sauce. I’m 49. I nearly fell over when my 17yo employee said it. She got it from her parents.
#20
I still use jank/janky/janked a lot, which I feel is a bit outdated. And the occasional 'bite me'.
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 year ago
As someone who grew up in the 80s and 90s, I use both of these terms XD I also manage to still slip "your MOM!" into the occasional convo with friends.
#21
Grody instead of gross
Michael Largey 1 year ago
This word was popularized by George Harrison using it as short for "grotesque" in A Hard Day's Night.
#22
Bee’s knees.
#24
Mondo, tubular, groovy, totally colabrafo, radical. I'm basically a Ninja Turtle.
#25
Are the kids still saying yeet these days?
Upstaged75 1 year ago
I think the word yeet is hilarious. I wish more people used it in daily conversation. :)
#26
"take it easy" is my go-to goodbye. I've been told that's outdated.
#28
I’m big on gnarly and solid. I was not around during the timeframe they would’ve been popular. I have no idea why I say them
#29
sick. boss. rad. dude. bro. bruh. half of these i started saying ironically because i hated them, but it turns out i was the douche all along and now they won't leave my vocabulary lmao what a twist for the many people talking about how un-outdated some of my list is: can you not already see i am a dumba**?
allow me to live, brü. i am a 34yo woman/alien and idk what the hell is ever going on lmao EDIT: PLEASE LEARN TO READ LOL i have already said some of these are apparently not outdated!! i wish your reading comprehension was the same BRÜ
#30
What’s crackin
#31
Lately Ive been saying sheesh again and I dont know why
#32
I say “brb” out loud a lot
WindySwede 1 year ago
brb (as in, have you have about the word? But withough i, and using Internet spelling) or as b.r.b? 🤔
#35
Man alive
Richard Graham 1 year ago (edited)
Announcer on a 1939 radio show "Man alive, it's jive arrived. It's swing, it's zing, it's everything! It's boogie-woogie. It's honky-tonky. It's Tommy Dorsey playing 'Zonky'"! I love it!
#38
Coolio when I mean cool. Although I'm not sure that was ever mainstream or just Sarah Chalke on scrubs.
#41
"Fetch"
#42
I still refer to people as "Dog." It started ironically at work, and somehow found its way into my every day speech. I don't even realize I'm doing it anymore.
What do you think ?
wowbagger 1 year ago
"Geez Louise" and "okey-dokey" are the ones that creep into my language. Good lord, I also said "scuttlebutt" the other day, and I was like, where the heck did that come from? I use "cool" a lot, too, but I don't see it on the list. If it's not outdated, it must be one of the most long-lasting slang words ever.
Auntriarch 1 year ago
Cool may not be cool but it's definitely mainstream now
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Der Kommissar 1 year ago (edited)
Great Gosh-A-Mighty. Lawdy mama. Lawd have mercy. Dad nabbit. Golshdarnit. " Swell " ""as in if you could come to the party, that would be swell. ""
Libstak 1 year ago
Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Also, bless you when I really wanna say good riddance.
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Bill Swallow 1 year ago
Hey, everybody in this thread! Check out the movie 'Ball of Fire' (1941), with Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck. A group of professors working on a new encyclopedia (Gary Cooper is researching the topic of 'Slang', a major plot element) while living in a Manhattan mansion take in a mouthy nightclub singer who is wanted by the police to help bring down her mob boss lover. Howard Hawks directed this very entertaining modernization of 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarves'.
ZombieGirl 1 year ago
The kids these days have SO many, too many, slang words. They sound stupid to be honest, lol. Slang words in my day were simple like cool, awesome, dude, etc. I was talking to my niece yesterday and she was going on and on about someone at her school being a bop. I was like....what the heck is a bop? She said it meant hoe. I was like....why don't yall just say hoe? Makes no sense to me lol
Knitting Panda 1 year ago
I mostly use old timey talk with my boi Li'l Tex, the corgi. He's getting up there in years. He's 11, and I like to surround him with comforting words and phrases.
Squirrelly Panda 1 year ago
Gadzooks, this was a sweet read. Stick a fork in it, it's done. Bummer.
Tomato Smudge 1 year ago
I've been told I'm outdated because apparently no one says "gnarly", "hella", or "kick@ss" anymore.
Apatheist Account2 1 year ago
Well 'ard! It means "good" and dates from UK TV show Eastenders in the 1980s, but does make an appearance in the subtitles of Frankie Goes to Hollywood's Two Tribes video (attributed to Yasir Arafat, if I remember correctly).
Roan The Demon Kitty 1 year ago
idk if it's different in London or Cockney slang, but if you refer to someone as "well 'ard" up in Yorkshire, it means they're strong and can beat someone in a fight... except it's usually used in a mocking way when someone beefs themselves up "ooh you're well 'ard you aren't ya" xD
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wowbagger 1 year ago
"Geez Louise" and "okey-dokey" are the ones that creep into my language. Good lord, I also said "scuttlebutt" the other day, and I was like, where the heck did that come from? I use "cool" a lot, too, but I don't see it on the list. If it's not outdated, it must be one of the most long-lasting slang words ever.
Auntriarch 1 year ago
Cool may not be cool but it's definitely mainstream now
Load More Replies... Der Kommissar 1 year ago (edited)
Great Gosh-A-Mighty. Lawdy mama. Lawd have mercy. Dad nabbit. Golshdarnit. " Swell " ""as in if you could come to the party, that would be swell. ""
Libstak 1 year ago
Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Also, bless you when I really wanna say good riddance.
Load More Replies... Bill Swallow 1 year ago
Hey, everybody in this thread! Check out the movie 'Ball of Fire' (1941), with Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck. A group of professors working on a new encyclopedia (Gary Cooper is researching the topic of 'Slang', a major plot element) while living in a Manhattan mansion take in a mouthy nightclub singer who is wanted by the police to help bring down her mob boss lover. Howard Hawks directed this very entertaining modernization of 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarves'.
ZombieGirl 1 year ago
The kids these days have SO many, too many, slang words. They sound stupid to be honest, lol. Slang words in my day were simple like cool, awesome, dude, etc. I was talking to my niece yesterday and she was going on and on about someone at her school being a bop. I was like....what the heck is a bop? She said it meant hoe. I was like....why don't yall just say hoe? Makes no sense to me lol
Knitting Panda 1 year ago
I mostly use old timey talk with my boi Li'l Tex, the corgi. He's getting up there in years. He's 11, and I like to surround him with comforting words and phrases.
Squirrelly Panda 1 year ago
Gadzooks, this was a sweet read. Stick a fork in it, it's done. Bummer.
Tomato Smudge 1 year ago
I've been told I'm outdated because apparently no one says "gnarly", "hella", or "kick@ss" anymore.
Apatheist Account2 1 year ago
Well 'ard! It means "good" and dates from UK TV show Eastenders in the 1980s, but does make an appearance in the subtitles of Frankie Goes to Hollywood's Two Tribes video (attributed to Yasir Arafat, if I remember correctly).
Roan The Demon Kitty 1 year ago
idk if it's different in London or Cockney slang, but if you refer to someone as "well 'ard" up in Yorkshire, it means they're strong and can beat someone in a fight... except it's usually used in a mocking way when someone beefs themselves up "ooh you're well 'ard you aren't ya" xD
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