# Synonyms For Being Fired, You Never Knew **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 23, 2011, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598 "2011-06-23T19:36:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/21 "2011-06-24T05:39:20Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > The other is from the Australian soap opera _Prisoner_ _(Prisoner: Cell Block H_). “My husband is being retrenched” Retrenchment is not just being fired, it’s a bit more like redundancy. As \*\*Giles \*\*noted, it may provide more benefits. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/22 "2011-06-24T05:43:40Z")
There was a high profile legal battle a few years back here concerning the firing of a TV news presenter. Famously, there was an email or similar which referred to her being “rissoled”. I had never heard the expression before, but the term is now commonplace. I assume because of this particular legal battle. ---
**Author:** ![DorkVader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@DorkVader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DorkVader)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/23 "2011-06-24T05:47:52Z")
> [@Morgyn](#): > > In DC, back in, I think, the 80s, a lot of public employees were subject to RIF (Reduction In Force). In the Army if you don’t get promoted fast enough you reach your Retention Control Point and are rcped ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/24 "2011-06-24T05:53:10Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > There was a high profile legal battle a few years back here concerning the firing of a TV news presenter. Famously, there was an email or similar which referred to her being “rissoled”. Wasn’t it “boned”? ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Mondegreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/91b2a8/32.png) [@Lord\_Mondegreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Mondegreen)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/25 "2011-06-24T05:54:48Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > There was a high profile legal battle a few years back here concerning the firing of a TV news presenter. Famously, there was an email or similar which referred to her being “rissoled”. > > I had never heard the expression before, but the term is now commonplace. I assume because of this particular legal battle. Hadn’t heard that one, but there was the Eddie McGuire incident when he said he wanted to “bone” a TV presenter. Given that the presenter in quesstion was Jessica Rowe, some doubted that Eddie meant “fired” in that case. The 12th Man did a CD called “Boned” where the entire cricket commentary team was sacked. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/26 "2011-06-24T06:31:36Z")
Doh! :smack: I’ve totally confused myself. “Boned” it is. Of course, “rissoled” is a good word too. ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/27 "2011-06-24T12:10:42Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > Retrenchment is not just being fired, it’s a bit more like redundancy. As \*\*Giles \*\*noted, it may provide more benefits. Yeah, people are used “fired” (which generally means terminated with cause) and “laid off” (made redundant, let go as part of a reduction in force) as synonyms themselves - which they aren’t. If I were “laid off” I wouldn’t refer to myself as “fired.” ---
**Author:** ![Shark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@Shark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shark)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/28 "2011-06-24T12:23:41Z")
“fixed the glitch” from Office Space You’ll probably never hear of it in an official firing, but that’s how a lot of us refer to it, especially if the person fired was particularly incompetent. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/29 "2011-06-24T12:37:30Z")
Being “sent to the cheese line” was a popular one in the late 90s. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/30 "2011-06-24T12:43:14Z")
I’ve been issued my walking papers. ---
**Author:** ![JuliaSqueezer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/82dd89/32.png) [@JuliaSqueezer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JuliaSqueezer)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/31 "2011-06-24T13:51:15Z")
“De-selected”. Actual term used at an ex-employer. As in “we selected you 10 years ago; now we are de-selecting you.” ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/32 "2011-06-24T14:22:27Z")
“Surplused” ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/33 "2011-06-24T14:22:41Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > Being made redundant is more specific than being fired: it means that your position is being abolished, and they won’t replace you after you leave. In many places, you can get specific compensation for being made redundant that you wouldn’t get if you were being sacked for your personal incompetence or unsatisfactory performance. > > (I know this because I got about 8 months’ pay, and some other benefits, because I was made redundant in Australia about 15 years ago.) And if a company is looking to downsize, they sometimes offer “voluntary redundancy”, i.e. employees can choose to leave so that they have to fire fewer (or no) staff who don’t want to go. To make this option attractive they usually offer a decent payoff. ---
**Author:** ![Surly\_Chick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Surly\_Chick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surly_Chick)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/34 "2011-06-24T14:44:42Z")
Right-sized is a particularly annoying one. Not so right for the person getting shit-canned. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/35 "2011-06-24T15:17:40Z")
> [@Surly\_Chick](#): > > Right-sized is a particularly annoying one. Not so right for the person getting shit-canned. You got that right! Sort of sticking it in and breaking it off, ain’t it? ---
**Author:** ![DivineComedienne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c67d28/32.png) [@DivineComedienne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DivineComedienne)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/36 "2011-06-24T15:28:53Z")
“Involuntary Separation” seems to have replaced “Termination” around here. ---
**Author:** ![Philliam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/philliam/32/3011_2.png) [@Philliam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philliam)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/37 "2011-06-24T17:42:01Z")
When I worked in the ‘oil patch’ years ago it was “run off”. As in “Hey Billy Bob, what happened to Leroy?” “Ah had to run off that damn Coonass an’ he’s gone to the house”. My apologies to anyone living south of Golden Meadows.😃 ---
**Author:** ![MysteryFellow63427](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e4f/32.png) [@MysteryFellow63427](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MysteryFellow63427)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/38 "2011-06-24T20:01:03Z")
“Blow off.” > [@Confessions of a Car Salesman](#): > > Salespeople also got fired at the drop of a hat. This was known as, “getting blown off.” I came into work one morning and heard the guys talking about how another salesman got fired the night before. He had done something to a customer that the GM (general manager) didn’t like. The salesman was called into the tower and he stumbled out moments later in a state of shock. He said to the other salesmen, “I don’t believe it, he just blew me off.” The GM saw the fired salesman talking to the other guys and charged out on the lot, screaming, “Get away from them! I don’t want you talking to anyone!” > **[Behind the Scenes at a Car Dealership | Edmunds](https://www.edmunds.com/car-buying/behind-the-scenes-at-a-car-dealership.html)** > > Do you wonder why it can take hours to buy car? Or what the salesman is doing when he huddles with the manager? We've got answers for you. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/39 "2011-06-24T20:57:33Z")
You will be de-assimulated, resistance is irrelevent. One time I was actually told I could have the rest of the year off. Have a nice day! ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598/40 "2011-06-24T21:09:50Z")
> [@BMalion](#): > > One time I was actually told I could have the rest of the year off. This helps me remember how I was released from employment back in the 60’s. My boss had gotten tired of me and it was no real surprise, but he eased me into my departure by saying, “You’ve got two weeks vacation coming, go ahead and take it. And don’t come back.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/synonyms-for-being-fired-you-never-knew/586598.md?page=3)