Ab-so-lute-ly – affirmative

All six, hit on – to hit on all six cylinders, 100% percent performance

All wet – describes an erroneous idea or individual, as in, “he’s all wet.”

Applesauce– an expletive same as horsefeathers, As in “Ah applesauce!”

Babe – A woman

Baby – sweetheart. Also denotes something of high value or respect.

Baby vamp – attractive female usually used by college boys – other terms include: angel, thrill, bird, live one, peach, choice bit of calico, sweet patootie, panic

Balled Up – confused, messed up

Bank’s Closed – no kissing or making out – i.e. – “Sorry, Mac, the bank’s closed.”

Bangtail – Racehorse

Bean shooter – a gun

Bearcat: a spirited woman

Beat it – scram or get lost

Beat one’s gums – idle chatter

Beef – a complaint or to complain

Bee’s knees – extraordinary person, thing, idea; the ultimate also “Cat’s Meow”

Beeswax – business, i.e. None of your beeswax.”

Behind the eight ball – in a difficult or precarious position

Bent – Stolen

Berries – That which is attractive or pleasing; similar to bee’s knees, as in “It’s the berries.”

Big house – Jail or prison

Big one, big sleep – death

Big six – a strong man; from auto advertising, for the new and powerful; six cylinder engines

Bird – general term for a man or woman, sometimes meaning strange or odd

Blind, boiled, blotto, bleary-eyed, boiled as an owl, burning with a blue flame – drunk, ossified

Blind Pig – place where illegal alcohol was served, like a speakeasy. Blind Pigs had deceptive or “blank” fronts. They were often were in basements, behind peep-holed doors or in the back of legitimate businesses.

Blow one down – to kill someone

Blow – Leave

Bluenose – An excessively puritanical person, a prude

Bohunk– derogatory term to describe a central European immigrant (used from 1900-1930)

Boiler – a car

Boob – a stupid man

Boozehound – a drunk

Bop – to kill

Bracelets – Handcuffs

Breezer – a convertible car

Bruno – an enforcer; gangster tough guy

Bucket – a large car

Bull – (1) a policeman or law-enforcement officer including FBI (2) nonsense (3) to chat idly, to exaggerate

Bull Session – Male talkfest, gossip, stories of sexual exploits

Bum’s Rush – ejection by force from an establishment

Bump Off – to murder or kill

Bus – old, worn out big vehicle (used from 1915 onwards)

“Butt me!”: “I would like a cigarette.”

Butterfly’s boots, the – anyone or anything that is great or dreamy like the cat’s meow

Buttons – police officers

Button man – a hit man; killer for hire

Buzzer – badge carried or worn by a police officer

Cabbage – Money

Cake-eater – a ladies’ man

Can – Jail or prison

Can opener – safecracker

Canary – a female singer

Canned, corked, corned, crocked – drunk, ossified, bent

Carry a torch – To have a crush on someone

Cash – a kiss

Cash or check? – Do you kiss now or later?

Cast a kitten – to have a fit

Cat – a guy

Cat’s meow – Something splendid or stylish, similar to bee’s knees; the best or greatest, wonderful.

Cat’s pajamas – Same as cat’s meow or cat’s whiskers or gnat’s eyebrows

Chase yourself, go -get lost (from 1900 onwards)

Cheaters – Eyeglasses

Chewing gum – double talk

Chicago lightning – gunfire

Chicago overcoat – a coffin

Choice bit of calico: a desirable woman

Chopper Squad – Guys with machine guns

Clip – to kill

Clip joint – overpriced nightclub

Clubhouse – police station

Cooler – jail

Copacetic – Wonderful, fine, all right

Coffin varnish – bootleg or homemade alcohol, also called horse liniment, stuff, and tarantula juice

Crate – a car

Darb: something deemed wonderful or splendid, similar to “berries”

Darb – An excellent person or thing (as in “the Darb” – a person with money who can be relied on to pay the check)

Dead soldier – an empty beer bottle

Dolled up – dressed up

Dope – drugs

Double-cross – to cheat, stab in the back

Dough – money

Drag – college dance

Drop a dime – to inform on someone; to tell the police who committed a crime

Drum – speakeasy

Dry – person who is against drinking and for Prohibition

Dry up – shut up, get lost

Drake – “that’s so drake”

Earful – enough

Edge, edged, embalmed – intoxication, a buzz

Eel’s hips – variation of cat’s meow

Egg: a person who leads an absurdly wealthy, extravagant lifestyle (see: Gatsby’s “West Egg”)

Finger – Identify

Fried, four sheets in the wind, full, finned – drunk, ossified, bent

Fuzz – police officer

Gum-shoe – Detective

Hair of the dog – a shot of alcohol

Half seas over – thoroughly drunk also known as “half under”

Heel – scoundrelGlad rags – “going out on the town” clothes

Gin mill – An establishment where hard liquor is sold; bar

Giggle water: liquor, alcoholic beverage

Glomming – Stealing

Half-seas over, half-cocked, half-screwed, half-shot, happy, high, hoary-eyed – Drunk

Hayburner – (1) a gas guzzling car (2) a horse one loses money on

Heap – a car

Heebie-jeebies – The jitters, anxiety

Hip flask – small container used to carry alcohol, hidden by the hip or in a big pocket –fad item in 1920’s

Hit on all sixes – to perform 100 per cent; as “hitting on all six cyclinders”

Hokey-Pokey – inexpensive candy or ice cream for children

Hooch – Bootleg liquor

Hooey – nonsense

Horsefeathers – an expletive; same usage as applesauce

Hotsy-totsy: attractive, pleasing to the eye

Hurdy-gurdy – a hand organ often played in the streets

Ice – diamonds

Icy mitt: rejection from the object of one’s affection, as in: “He got the icy mitt.”

In stir – in jail

It – sex appeal

Iron – a motorcycle or car

Jack – money

Jake – all is okay, as in, “Everything is Jake.”

Jane – any female

Jalopy – Old car

Java – coffee

Jitney – a car employed as a private bus. Fare was usually five cents; also called a “nickel”

Joe – coffee

Joe Brooks – someone who is fashionably dressed

Joe Zilch – any male college student also known as Joe College or Joe Yale

Juice joint – a speakeasy

Kitten – a woman

Kisser – mouth

Lathered, liquored, lit, lit up like a Christmas tree, lit up like a store window, lit up like the commonwealth, loaded, loaded for beer, loaded to the muzzle, lubricated – drunk

Milquetoast – timid, mild person

Moll – A gangster’s girlfriend

Moonshine – bootleg alcohol

“Now you’re on the trolley!”: “Now you’ve got it!”

On a toot: On a bender

Ossified, oiled, over the bay, ossified, owled: Drunk

Palooka (1) a below-average or average boxer (2) a social outsider, from the comic strip character Joe Palooka

Paralyzed, plastered, pie-eyed, pickled, piffed, piped, polluted, potted, primed – drunk

Piker – (1) a cheapskate (2) a coward

Pill – (1) a teacher (2) an unlikable person

Pinko – liberal

Pip – extraordinary person or thing, sometimes used sarcastically

Rag-a-muffin – a dirty or disheveled individual

Rube – hick

Rummy – drunk, alcoholic

Sap – a fool

See a man about a dog, have to – phrase to describe “I need to leave now”, often referring to going out and buying bootleg whiskey

Sheba – A woman with sex appeal (from the move Queen of Sheba) or (e.g. Clara Bow)

Sheik – A man with sex appeal (from the Valentino movies)

Skirt – a woman

Spifflicated, saturated, slopped, sloppy, stiff, stinko, soused, squiffy, stewed, sprung, have a snoot full – drunk.

Squeeze – a girlfriend

Stuck On – infatuated, in love with

Tanked, tight – drunk

Tomato – a female

Toot, on a – drinking spree

Under the table – drunk

Up and up – on the level, legitimate

Wall-eyed – drunk

Wet – stupid, unsophisticated also can be someone who is against Prohibition and for the legalization of alcohol

Wet Blanket – a solemn person, a killjoy

Whisper Sister – female proprietor of a speakeasy

Whoopee – To have a good time

Wingding – a party or celebration

Wooden nickels, don’t take any – a fad expression of 1920, that meant “don’t do anything stupid – take care of yourself.”

Woozy – drunk

Zozzled: Drunk