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"Hosed" etymology - When did this phrase come into use?

At what point did the phrase "I'm/you're/we're hosed" come into play in the US vernacular? Earliest record? From pop culture somewhere? Are there regions of the US that did not ever use this turn of phrase?
posted by juniperesque on May 17, 2013 - 17 answers

 

Do I really want to know what a man's "jolt" is?

What would it have meant in the mid-twentieth century to "shake another man's jolt"? [more inside]
posted by dinger on Apr 30, 2013 - 11 answers

Jag söker svenska idiomen!

I'm learning Swedish in advance of a trip to Stockholm to visit friends this summer. (Yes, I know Swedes generally speak excellent English; learning languages is a hobby.) When I'm there, I'd like to pepper some of my conversations with colorful sayings, slang, and idioms. Kan du hjälpa mig? [more inside]
posted by Admiral Haddock on Mar 7, 2013 - 5 answers

Hokis - Armenian slang?

Trying to find out more about what the word Hokis, which seems to be a slang term, means in Armenian. Not very googlable, or not for me. Any help would be much appreciated.
posted by jitterbug perfume on Feb 3, 2013 - 5 answers

Oy-yey Lady? Oyez Man?

My grandmother (born in 1905) used to refer to herself as the "Oy-yey Lady" (I'm spelling phonetically here) every time she had to clean up something particularly gross (usually animal related). I'm wondering if it's a real word or something she made up. [more inside]
posted by Sweetie Darling on Jan 17, 2013 - 13 answers

AskMezza

What is the etymology of British nicknames ending in -zza/-zzer? [more inside]
posted by catlet on Nov 30, 2012 - 21 answers

Well, it's not below the Mendoza Line.

Is/Are there term(s) to describe the threshold at which a person can see their own breath outside ? [more inside]
posted by fizzix on Nov 13, 2012 - 4 answers

Help me sound out-dated!

I'm looking for an online dictionary (or even a simple list) of zoot-suit (Pachuco) culture/era slang. My Google-fu is weak. Help? [more inside]
posted by scaryblackdeath on Nov 9, 2012 - 4 answers

What do you call an overly protective facebook creeper?

What is the name for the phenomenon of creepy guys being overly protective of women they barely know on the internet, in particular on facebook? [more inside]
posted by albrecht on Oct 31, 2012 - 14 answers

"Man, I need to find a johnny on the spot right now!" "What?"

Is "Johnny-on-the-spot" a common nickname for a portable toilet throughout the US, or it it just a regionalism? [more inside]
posted by zsazsa on Oct 26, 2012 - 65 answers

Tolmasos? Vignazos?

Canarian Spanish slang filter: On a recent trip to rural Tenerife I found some graffiti on a water pumping station wall. It reads: "Tierra Guanche - only local - no nos hacemos responsables de posibles tolmasos o vignazos" 'Tierra Guanche - only local" seems pretty clear; a (possibly non-literal) identification with the Guanche (pre-Castilian indigenous people of Tenerife) and a comment on tourism or immigration. My rudimentary Spanish says the rest runs "we take no responsibility for possible ..." but 'tolmasos' and 'vignazos' seem to be local slang. Does anyone know what they mean? There's a photo (not mine) here.
posted by cromagnon on Oct 15, 2012 - 4 answers

Me talk pretty one day?

My informal English is boring! I'd like to make it more interesting by incorporating new and/or local (to Philadelphia) linguistic features to it. [more inside]
posted by Deathalicious on May 22, 2012 - 18 answers

Having gone to school in California, I assume we just liked saying "weed" as often as possible.

Past and current university students: Did you ever use the specific term "weeder class" during your academic career? If so, where did you study? [more inside]
posted by C^3 on Apr 25, 2012 - 65 answers

Like awesome dude... Slang from the 90s

Looking for examples of late 20th century slang/lingo has fallen out of common usage? [more inside]
posted by kreestar on Apr 18, 2012 - 55 answers

Must I Holler? Must I Shake 'Em On Down?

Calling Bluesologists and/or Language Historians: Want interpretations of the meaning of a song, or more specifically, a specific phrase used in that song. [more inside]
posted by mreleganza on Feb 21, 2012 - 5 answers

Two unidentified words from Bill Moyers' Colbert interview

What is Bill Moyers talking about at 16:30 in this recent Colbert Report episode? [more inside]
posted by Who_Am_I on Jan 12, 2012 - 2 answers

What are "susans?"

"Ladies with their 'susans' showing?" My google-fu failed this one! What is a susan, if it's not lazy and not an actual person's name? [more inside]
posted by Rosie M. Banks on Aug 29, 2011 - 17 answers

Maybe We Can Eventually Make Language A Complete Impediment To Understanding.

I'm working on a comic that's a parody of detective noir comics. I want the most obscure, antiquated, and obfuscating slang from early 20th century America. [more inside]
posted by cmoj on Aug 8, 2011 - 10 answers

The feds in a unitary state

In recent coverage of the Mark Duggan shooting and subsequent riots, I've seen a few instances of people referring to the police as "feds". Obviously in Britain there are no actual feds since there's no federal government, so what's the story here? [more inside]
posted by strangely stunted trees on Aug 7, 2011 - 7 answers

I deserve to ask a question because I paid my $5.

What does it mean to "deserve" something? [more inside]
posted by Pastor of Muppets on Jun 16, 2011 - 36 answers

Hello, Pete!

Have you heard "Hello, Pete!" used as an exclamation? [more inside]
posted by something something on Jun 2, 2011 - 16 answers

Help me find an M.I.A. mashup?

I'm looking for a specific mashup, and suggestions for similar mashups. [more inside]
posted by herrdoktor on Apr 20, 2011 - 5 answers

Springtucky Derby

I'm trying to gather a list of regional pejoratives for cities and suburbs. Like here in Oregon USA, we refer to Springfield as "Springtucky," and Clackamas as "Clackansas". In Denver they call Aurora "Saudi Aurora" or "Guadalaurora". "Spocompton" is a common epithet for Spokane, WA. [more inside]
posted by yalestar on Apr 18, 2011 - 217 answers

Readin' time's here!

Do you know of any written stories, fiction or otherwise (but not movies) with language usage similar to that in Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome or The Dark Knight Returns? Example of what I'm looking for are after the break. [more inside]
posted by Brandon Blatcher on Mar 23, 2011 - 30 answers

Are there any slang terms for the cervix?

Are there any slang terms for the cervix?
posted by gregr on Mar 4, 2011 - 20 answers

What does "FER-MAY-GHEN" mean?

German speakers, please tell me what this word means (and how it's actually spelled). [more inside]
posted by Srudolph on Feb 19, 2011 - 29 answers

Do Yhoo Knoww Thee Answerrr?

Whyy Do Teenagerss on Facebook An Bebo Typee Likee Thiss? Where did it come from? Here's an example. [more inside]
posted by mippy on Dec 3, 2010 - 66 answers

Gumbo in the UK

Does the word gumbo have a slang meaning in the UK / London? Specifically, when referring to a person, as in "Hey gumbo..."
posted by doowod on Nov 17, 2010 - 7 answers

Calm. At Ease.

Do you have any quick phrases or slogans that you like to repeat yourself to get yourself to calm down (or at least NOT panic) when entering an anxiety-inducing situation? [more inside]
posted by AlbatrossJones on Aug 30, 2010 - 95 answers

Meaning of "pochée" in context of japanese pattern book

[JapaneseLanguageIdiomFilter] What might "Pochée" mean in the context of a japanese language sewing book? [more inside]
posted by Rube R. Nekker on Jul 23, 2010 - 4 answers

Uh, I am pretty sure it doesn't mean consuming pebbles in any literal sense.

So . . . drug slang. "Eating rocks." Does that mean doing crack? [more inside]
posted by liketitanic on Jun 23, 2010 - 28 answers

Whence "didn't know from" ?

What is the meaning and origin of "I didn't know from ___"? [more inside]
posted by qxntpqbbbqxl on Jun 6, 2010 - 6 answers

Mocking and Celebrating Chicago's Hoods via Slang

Please help me research and invent nicknames for the neighborhoods of Chicago. Examples include Wrigleyvile, Hans Christian Andersonville, The Crotch, Wes Andersonville, and El Crotcho. [more inside]
posted by Juliet Banana on May 19, 2010 - 15 answers

What's your evil?

I should be able to let things like this go, I know, but a Facebook friend wrote a status update containing a phrase I've never heard, and not knowing what she meant is driving me nuts. I'm 44 and the opposite of "street." She's in her 20s -- a hip New Yorker. This sort of thing happens to me all the time, but usually googling or Urban Dictionary helps me. Not this time. So, is this a real phrase or is it some quirky thing she made up: "What's your evil?" [more inside]
posted by grumblebee on Apr 29, 2010 - 48 answers

Slang for "white trash with high-class attitude?"

Does anyone know any American slang (preferably country or southern) that is for this concept: "poor people/lower socioeconomic class people who behave in upper class ways" ? [more inside]
posted by mscottveach on Mar 28, 2010 - 60 answers

Ivy Jivey

A Princetonian character in The Dud Avocado (set in Paris in the 50s) is described as saying mostly "zop zop". Was this a real thing? Part of ivy/preppy or Paris-based emigrant slang? Part of a larger lexicon of nonsense? No one in the novel (thus far) seems to think it remarkable. [more inside]
posted by kenko on Mar 25, 2010 - 10 answers

Slang for "Napolitano"?

I was chatting with a fella from Rome a few years back and mentioned that my father's parents emigrated from Napoli. He said, "you're a ____!" which was apparently a slang term for somebody from Naples-and no, it's not "Napolitano" or anything close to that. Anybody know what he said?
posted by ethnomethodologist on Mar 9, 2010 - 15 answers

Daaaang.

What slang words have gone out of date within the past 10 years or so? [more inside]
posted by naju on Mar 7, 2010 - 82 answers

How did "sugar" come to mean "diabetes"?

So what do you know about "sugar", "sugar diabetes", or "the sugar" being used as synonyms for "diabetes"? And how did that meaning come to be, exactly? [more inside]
posted by skoosh on Mar 6, 2010 - 32 answers

Bagpipe face?

Can any German speakers shed light on the supposed German word 'Backpfeifengesicht'? [more inside]
posted by squarehead on Feb 22, 2010 - 11 answers

Billions and billions

Given that Federal bailout monies are being tossed around to banks like sacks of rice from an aid truck, are there any emergent slang terms for one billion dollars? [more inside]
posted by Burhanistan on Jan 15, 2010 - 14 answers

everywhere else it's coke

In Chicago the standard term for bags of heroin sold on the street is "blows." I've also heard the word used as a verb, e.g. "You blow?" Does anyone have any clue as to the origin of the term?
posted by generalist on Dec 9, 2009 - 8 answers

How can I talk like a 17th century tavern wench plague victim?

I need help with slang for a 17th century tavern wench plague victim! [more inside]
posted by KathyK on Oct 26, 2009 - 8 answers

Affirmative interjection: "right?"

I've noticed an informal language convention, usually among younger people, but not always. It's a kind of affirmative interjection: "Right?". For example:

Me: I'll be glad when this heat wave ends.
Interlocutor: Right? (variation: "I know, right?")

My question: Does this type of expression have a name? I initially filed it with tag questions like "innit", but it's not really a question, it's more like "totally!" with a high rising terminal. Bonus points for any links to discussion of this particular expression; a casual search at Language Log yielded nothing.
posted by everichon on Sep 1, 2009 - 33 answers

I Haven't Had So Much Fun Since the Pigs Ate My Brother

"I Haven't Had So Much Fun Since the Pigs Ate My Brother." Aside from this post, what year and where was the first time you heard this phrase? [more inside]
posted by eccnineten on Aug 23, 2009 - 11 answers

THE SECRETS HE KEPT HIDDEN ALL THOSE YEARS! MUM SEZ: NOT MY BOY!

How would this tabloid technique be called in Fleet Street? [more inside]
posted by OctopusRex on Aug 19, 2009 - 3 answers

What does "pea green pink Irish Catholic" mean?

"Pea green pink Irish Catholic" - what, if anything, does this phrase mean and/or refer to? [more inside]
posted by MaudB on Jun 24, 2009 - 17 answers

New Slang

I love slang and colloquialisms. Where can I go to pick up more? [more inside]
posted by god particle on Apr 28, 2009 - 9 answers

A case of mistaken definitions?

What the f*ck is a hobknocker? Sounds dirty but was apparently used on a kids show... [more inside]
posted by radioamy on Apr 17, 2009 - 11 answers

What does 'binned' mean?

What does 'binned' mean in UK slang? [more inside]
posted by coryinabox on Apr 15, 2009 - 25 answers

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