# What do you call that thing in your back pocket where you keep your cash, cards, etc. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 6, 2005, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802 "2005-11-06T17:27:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/1 "2005-11-06T17:27:30Z")
Billfold or wallet? ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/2 "2005-11-06T17:37:18Z")
Wallet. ---
**Author:** ![Idlewild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8491ac/32.png) [@Idlewild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idlewild)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/3 "2005-11-06T17:48:56Z")
That’s my purse. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/4 "2005-11-06T17:49:56Z")
You keep your purse in your back pocket? ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/5 "2005-11-06T17:57:08Z")
Wallet, but I’ve never kept it in my back pocket. Not only do you have to sit on it, it’s easier for it to be stolen or to fall out. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/6 "2005-11-06T18:00:14Z")
Well, mine is in my \*front \*pocket, but I know what you mean… Wallet. ---
**Author:** ![liberty3701](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@liberty3701](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/liberty3701)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/7 "2005-11-06T18:03:10Z")
wallet ---
**Author:** ![Idlewild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8491ac/32.png) [@Idlewild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idlewild)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/8 "2005-11-06T18:09:54Z")
Friedo - yup. It’s another whacky language thing. He asked what we called it. That’s what I call it. A “purse” in American parlance is a handbag to me, and a woman’s wallety thing is a purse. ---
**Author:** ![Meaty\_Beaty\_Big\_and\_Bouncy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Meaty\_Beaty\_Big\_and\_Bouncy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meaty_Beaty_Big_and_Bouncy)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/9 "2005-11-06T18:11:46Z")
wallet ---
**Author:** ![Governor\_Quinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@Governor\_Quinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Governor_Quinn)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/10 "2005-11-06T18:13:10Z")
Wallet ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/11 "2005-11-06T18:38:26Z")
My wallet is in my front pocket. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/12 "2005-11-06T19:44:07Z")
It’s a wallet. To me, a billfold is something that holds only paper money. The guy who carries one has his IDs and credit cards in a card case. I keep all that stuff, along with a list of phone numbers, membership cards, and a picture of my wife, in a wallet. It’s a trifold, and it does not have a Gromis. (Wallet and Gromis:D) ---
**Author:** ![the\_brave\_navel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ee59a6/32.png) [@the\_brave\_navel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_brave_navel)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/13 "2005-11-06T20:01:19Z")
I’ve often wondered what the difference is. “Billfold” because that’s my dad called his. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/14 "2005-11-06T20:19:38Z")
> [@the brave navel](#): > > I’ve often wondered what the difference is. > “Billfold” because that’s my dad called his. That’s kind of the reason I started this thread. My dad calls it a billfold too. I call it a wallet, btw. ---
**Author:** ![MsMitey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f19dbf/32.png) [@MsMitey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsMitey)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/15 "2005-11-06T20:34:06Z")
I always thought billfold was a midwestern thing. My dad was from out east, and he said wallet, but most guys I knew growing up said billfold. I stick to wallet. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/16 "2005-11-06T20:44:02Z")
It’s a wallet over here. ---
**Author:** ![MsMitey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f19dbf/32.png) [@MsMitey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsMitey)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/17 "2005-11-06T20:49:36Z")
I always thought billfold was a midwestern thing. My dad was from out east, and he said wallet, but most guys I knew growing up said billfold. I stick to wallet. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/18 "2005-11-06T21:13:30Z")
Wallet. “Billfold” would be considered an American usage. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2005, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/19 "2005-11-06T23:23:21Z")
Wallet. In the front pocket, for the reasons that **matt\_mcl** mentioned. A billfold would hold only folding paper money. Although I have occasionally seen one in a catalogue, I have never seen anyone actually using one. I have seen the expression used for _greeting cards_ designed to hold money: billfold greeting card. The thing I put my change and keys in, a rectangular leather thing with a zipper, is my change pouch. (A change _purse_ has an opening with a hinged frame and a clasp.) Purse = handbag for me, and is for women; handbag is the less common expression. A similar bag for men is a bookbag or a messenger bag (and I’ve only seen ‘messenger bag’ in catalogues; I’m not sure it’s a live expression here). ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802/20 "2005-11-07T00:01:09Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > Wallet. > > In the front pocket, for the reasons that **matt\_mcl** mentioned. > > A billfold would hold only folding paper money. Although I have occasionally seen one in a catalogue, I have never seen anyone actually using one. I have seen the expression used for _greeting cards_ designed to hold money: billfold greeting card. > > The thing I put my change and keys in, a rectangular leather thing with a zipper, is my change pouch. (A change _purse_ has an opening with a hinged frame and a clasp.) > > Purse = handbag for me, and is for women; handbag is the less common expression. > > A similar bag for men is a bookbag or a messenger bag (and I’ve only seen ‘messenger bag’ in catalogues; I’m not sure it’s a live expression here). Your definitions are interesting, but I think the terms [‘billfold’](http://www.answers.com/billfold&r=67) & [‘wallet’](http://www.answers.com/wallet) are a little more interchangable than that. Or could it be that a wallet is sometimes a billfold, but a billfold is never a wallet? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-that-thing-in-your-back-pocket-where-you-keep-your-cash-cards-etc/329802.md?page=2)