# Slang terms and idioms that have stood the test of time **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 11, 2022, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317 "2022-02-11T14:40:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/1 "2022-02-11T14:40:06Z")
I thought of this when using the term ‘cool’ the other day. It’s an adjective / modifier I’ve used since I was a little kid. And to this day, it seems, at least to me, to still be, well, ‘cool’ to keep using. Typically slang is a generational thing-- each generation comes up with its own language, which instantly becomes identified as ‘old-speak’ by the following generation. But my kids, 19 and 16 now, though I don’t know if they actively use the term ‘cool’, at least don’t call me out as an old fogey when I use it in speaking to them (and they never hesitate to do so otherwise). Swear words, though I guess they’d count as a type of slang, are different-- they seem to take on an inter-generational immortality. Idioms are a little different. Some can seem very old-fashioned and some can make the generational jump. Speaking of ‘cool’, I used to work with an older woman who often used the expression ‘cool beans’ and I thought that was a pretty quaint term at the time. Then I was watching the show “Pam & Tommy” and the Tommy Lee character used the term ‘cool beans’. Yes, the show takes place in the mid-90s, but it sounded funny: weird, wrong and anachronistic to hear his character use the term. Maybe I’m basing a post around a somewhat flimsy premise, but I’ve always been fascinated with language and how it evolves on its own like a living thing, with little or no conscious intervention from the very people who speak it. Any other good examples? Feel free to offer counter-examples of slang terms and idioms that have aged badly as contrast. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/2 "2022-02-11T16:46:05Z")
Interesting topic. I’m 61 and have used “cool” for decades. I’m not sure if it is experiencing a resurgence, but it seems to me that there was a period - maybe in the 90s or so - when use of “cool” was decidedly “uncool.” I think of a visit to an aged, unwell uncle back in the 80s. His standard phrase was, “I’m hip!” As a young man, I kept thinking, “If there is ONE thing you ARE NOT…!” 😉 ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/3 "2022-02-11T16:55:08Z")
Most of my cellphone conversation is via text. If you look through my text replies there are an awful lot of “cool”, “k”, and " 👍". ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/4 "2022-02-11T16:59:37Z")
Ooookay. Or just OK, but there’s a five letter minimum to posts. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/5 "2022-02-11T17:04:10Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Feel free to offer counter-examples of slang terms and idioms that have aged badly as contrast. Groovy. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/6 "2022-02-11T17:19:01Z")
And then there’s the category of slang that is fun to use BECAUSE it is archaic. Like , “the bee’s knees” ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/7 "2022-02-11T17:26:55Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > > [@solost](#): > > > > Feel free to offer counter-examples of slang terms and idioms that have aged badly as contrast. > > Groovy. Far-out example, man! ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/8 "2022-02-11T17:32:47Z")
Sweet has been a sweet phrase for quite some time. And you can bet your sweet bippy it has and always will be. https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=224&width=400&href=https://www.facebook.com/TimeLifeUS/videos/you-bet-your-sweet-bippy/10155418883272845/ ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/9 "2022-02-11T18:33:38Z")
It’s all bob/Bob’s your uncle ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/10 "2022-02-11T19:27:22Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > I’m 61 and have used “cool” for decades. I’m not sure if it is experiencing a resurgence, but it seems to me that there was a period - maybe in the 90s or so - when use of “cool” was decidedly “uncool.” Hmm…I don’t recall that at all (I’m 46.) Through my formative years in the 80s and 90s, “cool” was always – to my memory – fine. You’d have words like “radical!” or “tits” and “phat!” creep in, but I don’t recall them ever displacing “cool” or making it uncool. ---
**Author:** ![mordecaiB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mordecaib/32/7725_2.png) [@mordecaiB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mordecaiB)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/11 "2022-02-11T19:37:01Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Groovy > [@solost](#): > > Far-out This rang a bell with me. “Groovy! Far Out! Fantastic!” Where is that line from? I’m stuck between _The Brady Bunch_ or the Freak Brothers. > [@Dinsdale](#): > > I’m not sure if it is experiencing a resurgence, but it seems to me that there was a period - maybe in the 90s or so - when use of “cool” was decidedly “uncool.” I’m not so sure it dropped in use, but it’s opposite, “not cool” eclipsed it for a bit. I would have said late nineties so we are pretty close on that. There’s a ton of idioms that have lasted a long time: wild goose chase, hit the sack, burn your bridges… The thing with idioms is that even if you don’t use/hear them regularly, people understand what they mean when they are used. Not sure if those type would qualify. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/12 "2022-02-11T19:47:43Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Hmm…I don’t recall that at all (I’m 46.) Through my formative years in the 80s and 90s, “cool” was always – to my memory – fine. You’d have words like “radical!” or “tits” and “phat!” creep in, but I don’t recall them ever displacing “cool” or making it uncool. I’m a little younger than you (I’ll be turning 42 in a little over a month). And thanks to this discussion a vague memory has resurfaced of a friend telling me that no one says “cool” anymore, they say “radical” or “bad”, which probably would have been in the late 1980s. But I have no idea if that was a widespread cultural phenomenon, or just his own opinion, or if that is all just a false memory that I’ve created. ---
**Author:** ![erysichthon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d07c76/32.png) [@erysichthon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erysichthon)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/13 "2022-02-11T19:59:22Z")
I don’t know if this meets the OP’s criteria, but the first thing I thought of was the use of “suck” and “sucks” to describe something bad, undesirable, unpleasant, etc. I remember hearing it quite a bit when I was in high school (early 1970s), but it had definite vulgar and sexual overtones, and you wouldn’t use it around your parents, teachers, or other polite company. Now you hear it almost everywhere, and it’s considered an inoffensive way to say that you don’t like something. Personally, I hate the overuse of “sucks”—not because of its vulgar origins, but because it’s so vague as to be useless. If somebody says that something “sucks,” it doesn’t tell you a thing beyond “I don’t like this.” It’s lazy, like the frequent use of “fuck” as a meaningless filler word. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.E](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.e/32/8932_2.png) [@Mr.E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.E)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/14 "2022-02-11T20:15:18Z")
The problem is a lot of slang words endure for so long that they’re not even thought of as slang anymore. Take for instance “Gadget” which started as a nautical term in the late 19th century to refer to anything that didn’t have a name (or you just forgot), analogous to “thingy” or 'whatsit". People still use it today, with only a slightly more specialized meaning. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/15 "2022-02-11T20:23:23Z")
> [@mordecaiB](#): > > This rang a bell with me. “Groovy! Far Out! Fantastic!” Where is that line from? I’m stuck between _The Brady Bunch_ or the Freak Brothers. _The Brady Bunch Movie_, if I recall correctly. It’s a line that Greg uses to try to pick up girls: “Hey there, groovy chick. You’re really happening in a far-out kind of way.” ---
**Author:** ![erysichthon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d07c76/32.png) [@erysichthon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erysichthon)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/16 "2022-02-11T20:27:51Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > I’m a little younger than you (I’ll be turning 42 in a little over a month). And thanks to this discussion a vague memory has resurfaced of a friend telling me that no one says “cool” anymore, they say “radical” or “bad”, which probably would have been in the late 1980s. But I have no idea if that was a widespread cultural phenomenon, or just his own opinion, or if that is all just a false memory that I’ve created. For what it’s worth, I also have hazy memories of “cool” briefly falling out of favor. I’m not sure when that was—maybe late 80s or early 90s. ---
**Author:** ![mordecaiB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mordecaib/32/7725_2.png) [@mordecaiB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mordecaiB)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/17 "2022-02-11T20:37:44Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > _The Brady Bunch Movie_ , if I recall correctly. Man, I should have never asked. Now everybody knows I’ve seen _The Brady Bunch Movie_. 😊 ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/18 "2022-02-11T20:43:09Z")
“Cool” ( which probably originated in the 50s), was big in the 60s, but faded away in the 70s. Then it seemed to come back in the 90s, and hasn’t gone away. I remember first hearing it again in the 90s after a long hiatus and being surprised it had come back. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/19 "2022-02-11T20:45:33Z")
“Sick” has stood the test of time, afaik ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317/20 "2022-02-11T20:47:07Z")
Wasn’t “cool” used pretty commonly by Bart Simpson in the early Simpsons episodes? I feel like it was (along with a bunch of slang that fell out of date.) So I feel like “cool” was still considered “of the time” back then. I also seem to remember “cool” being used in various forms in leet speak of that era, typically spelled as “kewl.” Though I suppose that could earn it a point in favor of being “not cool.” The best I can remember is that perhaps there were fresher words to use alongside “cool,” but I do not remember “cool” ever being shunned. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slang-terms-and-idioms-that-have-stood-the-test-of-time/959317.md?page=2)