Slang time machine
Every English slang term has a moment it first showed up in print or on someone's lips. We've tagged 1,000 terms with a first attested decade — from 18th-century thieves’ cant through to 2020s internet vocabulary. Pick a decade below.
1930s — 26 terms
Showing top 26 by views30
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dunny
1933🇦🇺 Australian & NZ slang
🔊gaff
1930🇬🇧 British & Irish slang
🔊daks
1930👗 Fashion & Lifestyle
🔊Mabo
1936🇦🇺 Australian & NZ slang
🔊Belisha beacon
1934🇬🇧 British & Irish slang
🔊sellotape
1937🇦🇺 Australian & NZ slang
🔊jailbait
1934🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊absobloodylutely
1935🇬🇧 British & Irish slang
🔊George
1931⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
bluesky
🔊woke
1930🔥 Gen Z & TikTok
tiktok
🔊schmear
1930🍔 Food & Drink
🔊not in Kansas anymore
1939🗺️ Regional & Other
bluesky
🔊pantech
1930🇬🇧 British & Irish slang
🔊payola
1938🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊A-2
1931⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
🔊chantoosie
1932🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊tenderoni
1930🎤 Black culture & AAVE
🔊pendent jurisdiction
1933⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
🔊big mama
1930🎤 Black culture & AAVE
bluesky
🔊Adam and Eve on a raft
1930🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊A-list
1930⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
bluesky
🔊deep-fry
1930🍔 Food & Drink
🔊jockey briefs
1934🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊AA
1935⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
🔊buster
1930⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
bluesky
🔊Adrian Quist
1930🇦🇺 Australian & NZ slang
🔊woodshed
1930🎵 Music & Lyrics
🔊pull one's head in
1930🇦🇺 Australian & NZ slang
🔊pablum
1931🗺️ Regional & Other
bluesky
🔊racist
1932🌐 Internet & Memes
bluesky
🔊pavlova
1930🇦🇺 Australian & NZ slang
🔊crumpet
1936⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
bluesky
🔊swinging
1930🎵 Music & Lyrics
bluesky
🔊Eirean
1937🇬🇧 British & Irish slang
🔊Antifa
1932🗺️ Regional & Other
bluesky
🔊ute
1930🇦🇺 Australian & NZ slang
🔊Ameche
1939🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊boondoggle
1935⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
bluesky
🔊Ivy League
1933🗺️ Regional & Other
bluesky
🔊Cobb salad
1937⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
🔊local
1938🌐 Internet & Memes
bluesky
🔊Johnny-one-note
1937🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊dil-ya-ble
1930🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊Sadie Hawkins dance
1937🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊fuck the dog
1935🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊freeloader
1930⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
bluesky
🔊Gordon Bennett
1937🇬🇧 British & Irish slang
🔊cuddly-wuddly
1938🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊Palko test
1937⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
🔊dreamboat
1930⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
bluesky
🔊amateur hour
1935🗺️ Regional & Other
bluesky
🔊Green River Ordinance
1931⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
🔊piffy on a rock bun
1930🇬🇧 British & Irish slang
🔊Blockburger test
1932🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊hero sandwich
1937🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊bupkis
1931🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊frammis
1930🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊indict a ham sandwich
1930🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊pocketbook
1939🇬🇧 British & Irish slang
bluesky
🔊diddly-squat
1934🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊spelunker
1930🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊bicycle monarchy
1938🇬🇧 British & Irish slang
🔊chow mein bun
1930🍔 Food & Drink
🔊barrow boy
1939🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊submarine sandwich
1930⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
🔊biffy
1935🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊friend of Dorothy
1939🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊bazillion
1939🗺️ Regional & Other
bluesky
🔊cup of joe
1931🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊Dorothy dollar
1939🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊Taswegian
1930🇦🇺 Australian & NZ slang
🔊honey joys
1930🇦🇺 Australian & NZ slang
🔊chopped liver
1930🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊don't touch that dial
1939⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
🔊Daily Heil
1930⚡ Tech, Dev & AI
🔊bullpup
1930🗺️ Regional & Other
🔊knickerbocker glory
1930🇬🇧 British & Irish slang
🔊moxie
1930🗺️ Regional & Other
bluesky
🔊fitness
1935🗺️ Regional & Other
bluesky
🔊More on how slang travels through time
The lifecycle of a slang word
Mint, scale, ironize, retire — how every viral term moves through the same five stages.
Where slang is born now
The platforms and subcultures that mint vocabulary in 2026 — and why TikTok shifted everything.
AAVE and internet slang
The single biggest source of new mainstream English vocabulary, and why most of the words you used today started here.
Attestation dates come from etymologies originally sourced from Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0) and editorial expansion authored on Slangora. They reflect the earliest documented use we found for each term, not necessarily the moment it was coined.