# Terms that have fallen out of fashion **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 6, 2012, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938 "2012-03-06T16:39:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/61 "2012-03-07T02:59:08Z")
Watching _Face the Nation_ on CBS a few Sundays ago, I noticed they were really pandering to the over 65 _Sunday Morning_ demographic: the program “\*originated \*in Washington, DC.” How long has it been since any TV or radio show “originated”? It smacks of long distance lines and coaxial cables. ---
**Author:** ![florez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9e5f3/32.png) [@florez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/florez)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/62 "2012-03-07T03:31:18Z")
culottes for skirt pants pantaloon for combo slip and girls long underwear knee breeches ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/63 "2012-03-07T03:52:24Z")
For some reason, psychopaths became sociopaths somewhere along the way. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/64 "2012-03-07T03:53:18Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Do you remember eating gorp? > > … > > How about rubbers? Long before they became condoms, they were called galoshes. I’ve never heard of gorp. What is it? Rubbers were used when I was in primary school to rub out my many, many errors. ---
**Author:** ![lew\_cody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e274bd/32.png) [@lew\_cody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lew_cody)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/65 "2012-03-07T06:41:17Z")
“Motoring” as a synonym for “driving to”. I still hear this–very occasionally–from older people. “Sheik” referring to a handsome young man. “Trade-last”. Mary Pickford offered Buddy Rogers a trade-last in MY BEST GIRL (1927) and it took me a while to figure out what it meant, but here’s how a trade-last works: Person A has overheard a favorable remark about Person B. Person A offers to share that remark with Person B if Person B in turn has heard a favorable comment about Person A. “Platters” or “plates” referring to phonograph records. “Hooey” or “applesauce”–inanity, nonsense. To give someone “the ritz”–act snobbish. “Glad rags”–formal dress. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/66 "2012-03-07T07:42:07Z")
> [@jabiru](#): > > I’ve never heard of gorp. What is it? Good Old Raisins n Peanuts My not be THE original sweet+salty snack, but it’s always been my favorite! ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/67 "2012-03-07T09:11:33Z")
> [@Taomist](#): > > Good Old Raisins n Peanuts > > My not be THE original sweet+salty snack, but it’s always been my favorite! Hmmmm. Sounds like something I’d like. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/68 "2012-03-07T09:18:35Z")
Regarding “Davenport”. it is not only a sofa, it is also a small writing desk. The term, although not common, is in use today in the furniture trade. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 10:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/69 "2012-03-07T10:04:41Z")
> [@lew\_cody](#): > > “Glad rags”–formal dress. Oh thank you. Now I understand the song “Handbags and Gladrags” better. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/70 "2012-03-07T10:10:50Z")
> [@Infovore](#): > > You spoony bard! > > It’s not really a term, but I do wonder how long it’ll be before the kids have no idea what that little icon is on their documents that’s supposed to represent “save” (it’s a 3.5" diskette). What kids? Most of my clients don’t know it, and I’m at the point where half of them are older than I am… ---
**Author:** ![Rich\_G7subs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85e7bf/32.png) [@Rich\_G7subs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rich_G7subs)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/71 "2012-03-07T10:40:17Z")
A couple of 80’s exclamations that I can remember that have died out. (Thank GOD, what were we thinking?) - Radical! " Did you see the new Nike’s? They are Radical, man!" - Groty (SP?) " He had spinach stuck in his teeth, it was, like…so groty!" A grandma-ism I just remembered. When we would play a practical joke on Grandma as a young kid. "You Rat Finks! " ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/72 "2012-03-07T10:42:35Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > It’s interesting that we still talk about _dialing_ phone numbers. I think there are people alive who have never literally _dialed_ a phone in their life - they just push the buttons. And when your computer program crashes and saves all its memory to a file for post-mortem analysis, they still call that a _core dump_ and always will. When was the last time a computer had _core_ memory? When was the last time anybody even knew what _core memory_ was or [looked like](http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=15859)? > [@DMark](#): > > When was the last time you said you wanted to buy a new “color” TV? > > Does anyone brag they flew in a “jet” to Hawaii? Back when the full-color broadcasts began with a picture of a cartoon peacock and the announcement: “The following program is brought to you in living color.” Those jets also flew your _air mail_ to Hawaii. (ETA: Providing, of course, you put an _air mail stamp_ on that letter!) They did this way back even before there were jets! > [@cjepson](#): > > I think “stereo” as a noun is pretty much kaput. (Come to think of it, “kaput” is probably pretty much kaput too.) > > Here’s a real old one – “motorcar.” We used to listen to music on the _hi-fi_ That “motorcar” used to be a _horseless carriage_ ---
**Author:** ![Rich\_G7subs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85e7bf/32.png) [@Rich\_G7subs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rich_G7subs)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/73 "2012-03-07T10:52:15Z")
“Rabbit Ears” as a slang for the TV Antenna “I had to adjust the Rabbit Ears on the tube. Mannix was all snowy.” ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/74 "2012-03-07T11:11:43Z")
> [@MichaelEmouse](#): > > Insults tend to fall into and out of fashion. > > Harlot! Strumpet! Trollop! > > Rascal! Rather charmingly, English-language newspapers in the Indian subcontinent sometimes say things like: “In Khulna yesterday three dacoits beat passers-by and robbed them of their treasure. Later the rascals were apprehended.” For me, I listen to the radio, but my grandfather never used any other word other than wireless. I think I shall adopt this. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/75 "2012-03-07T11:24:25Z")
I’ve mentioned this before in another thread, but for a while in the 80’s and into the early 90’s desktop PCs were called IBM compatibles. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/76 "2012-03-07T12:06:43Z")
When my father-in-law (who will be 82 this month) whole-heartedly agrees with something, he’ll say “Right on!!” most enthusiastically. I don’t think he’s even in the demographic that popularized the phrase back in the 60s or 70s. I’m pretty sure he thinks he’s “hip” or “with it” when he says that. What about the various “ins” of the past: sit-in, love-in, be-in… ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/77 "2012-03-07T14:06:28Z")
> [@jabiru](#): > > I’ve never heard of gorp. What is it? I’ve never heard of **Taomist** ’s explanation before, but it makes sense. Like I said in the OP, it’s now called trail mix, and typically has M&Ms in it as well. The idea behind it was to give you a shot of energy while hiking or camping. Going camping for the weekend? Be sure to bring a flashlight, a sleeping bag, and plenty of gorp! Can’t go camping without a lot of gorp. ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/78 "2012-03-07T14:13:29Z")
I agree - GORP is good old raisins and peanuts. II was a Girl Scout leader and the troop often ate GORP. I just listened to Elvis singing In the Ghetto. I don’t hear the word ghetto used anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/79 "2012-03-07T14:21:16Z")
> [@Rich\_G7subs](#): > > - Groty (SP?) " He had spinach stuck in his teeth, it was, like…so groty!" Grody, I believe. In extreme cases, “grody to the max!” Also, snazzy. That’s a snazzy outfit. You’ll really cut a dash. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2012, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938/80 "2012-03-07T14:21:25Z")
Ghetto? Frigid? Air Mail? When did those fall out of use? I still hear them all the time. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terms-that-have-fallen-out-of-fashion/614938.md?page=5)