words your grandparents used (meaning, quote)

[skippercollector]

If I had my druthers
Raising Cain (a favorite phrase of my father's)
Pater Noster (the name of The Our Father/The Lord's Prayer in Latin)
Holy Ghost (in the Catholic Church, he's been the Holy Spirit for decades now)
thongs (referring to flip-flops)
highball (a cocktail my mother liked)

And don't forget--yet another bodily function term:
wee-wee

[in_newengland]

smitherines=I'll beat him to smitherines

finagle= I'm gonna finagle a way to get out of doing this

the peanut gallery

[Ohiogirl81]

Originally Posted by JustJulia

How about ornery?

I hear that, but more often than not I hear it being mispronounced as "ahnry."

Here's something my mother said to me when she wanted me to mind my own business: I'd say "What's that, Mom?" and she'd reply: "Cat fur to make kitten britches."

I had no idea what "catfer" was, and didn't figure out what she was talking about until I was at least 25.

Which, of course, was her intention.

There probably is enough cat fur around here to stitch up a few pair of kitten britches ...

[saucywench]

Nickelodeon



I wonder if jukebox has gone by the wayside, in favor of CD player or Digital player.


I will forever call it a jukebox. I'm stuck in the WABAC machine.

[Cunucu Beach]

"Chilblains" - I never did know what that one was.

"Carbon copy"

"Addlepated"

"Mind your own beeswax" - means MYOB

"Go fly a kite" - a dismissive phrase used sarcastically when you don't give any credence to what someone has just said.

[Docendo discimus]

"REDUCING" for "trying to lose weight"

I just watched the movie Grand Hotel and there's a scene between Joan Crawford (Flaemmchen) and John Barrymore (Baron):

BARON
Oh... poor child. If you were free,
I'd ask you to come and have some
tea -- but --

FLAEMMCHEN
Tea would spoil my dinner.
One meal a day, I'd hate to spoil
it.

BARON
Reducing?

FLAEMMCHEN
No -- why? -- should I?

BARON
Lord no -- charming -- but why one
meal a day?

FLAEMMCHEN
Money -- Ever heard of it?

[Green Irish Eyes]

Originally Posted by skippercollector

thongs (referring to flip-flops)

I tell my students that when I was their age, I used to wear thongs. Of course, they all respond "Eeeeuuuuuwwwwwww" -- and then I point out that, back in the day, "thongs" were what's now called flip-flops.

"Ohhhhhhhhhh ....." they say.

[Cunucu Beach]

Originally Posted by Dark of the Moon

I tell my students that when I was their age, I used to wear thongs. Of course, they all respond "Eeeeuuuuuwwwwwww" -- and then I point out that, back in the day, "thongs" were what's now called flip-flops.

"Ohhhhhhhhhh ....." they say.

And underwear thongs were called "G-strings".

That's what strippers wore.

Another old phrase....."save for a rainy day".

[Ketabcha]

I'm surprised at how many of the words that have been mentioned are ones I still use.

My grandmother used to say "Please carry me to the store." That may be southern and it means "take."

"Yonder." I still use that one. It's over yonder.

Middy Blouse

Step-ins (underwear)

[skippercollector]

dadburnit
dagnabbit (don't the Looney Tunes characters say this?)
the dickens
phooey