Over time, some popular expressions cease to be used, making room for others. However, when seeking to know the Slang of a time, we can understand how our family members communicated.
Therefore, we have prepared a history that shows the chronology of the main old slang from each decade.
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Portuguese mistakes: 11 words often pronounced wrongly…
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50's slang
Check the main ones 50's slang:
- Barber – person who drives poorly;
- bafafa – confusion, mess;
- chair tea – waiting for a long time;
- to chip the pipe – when something is very bad;
- Mark cap – miss an opportunity;
- in the waiting mouth – when the person is close to achieving something.
Curiosity: the slang “barber” refers to the time when barbers, in addition to cutting people's hair, also extracted teeth, removed calluses, among others. However, because they were not specialized, they generally did not provide good service.
In this way, the expression came to be used to refer to some activity that was conducted in a bad way.
60's slang
Check the main ones 60's slang:
- good looking – similar to saying that someone is beautiful;
- borogodo – charm, sensuality;
- Bud - beautiful girl;
- bubblegum – means the same as nothing, nothing;
- corny – something unfashionable, tacky;
- give board – when someone refuses to dance;
- I doubt it – used when someone strongly doubts something;
- fire on clothes – complicated person or situation;
- Crazy – used to say that someone is crazy, crazy;
- Bread – expression used to refer to handsome men;
- Bullshit – idle talk that will lead nowhere;
- Sebum on the shins! – used to say that someone has to run, hurry up.
Fun fact: a few years ago, many boys' races were held in the Ceará. Over time, people discovered that by rubbing lamb tallow on children's legs, they ran faster.
It turns out that the material started to heat up and burn the boys' skin, but if they were faster, the wind eased the pain. Hence the slang “Sebo na shins!”.
70's slang
Check the main ones 70's slang:
- Archibalds – supporters watching matches from the stands;
- heavy bar – difficult situation or person to deal with. It can also indicate danger;
- cricket – hippie people, who like to stay in nature;
- bidu – smart person;
- grimace – used to define a conservative person;
- get-together - small talk;
- boring galoshes – expression used to define an extremely annoying person;
- chuchu beauty – used to say that everything is fine;
- enter through the pipe – get hurt;
- cricket – angry or suspicious of something;
- goofy – group of friends;
- tutu - money.
Curiosity: the expression “boring galocha” came about because of the galoshes of rubber which were worn over shoes on rainy days to avoid getting dirty.
The slang referred to those who entered people's homes without removing their galoshes, leaving the entire path dirty with mud.
80's slang
Check the main ones 80's slang:
- goat – being a goat means being in a bad mood;
- in a nice – it means that someone is relaxed, calm;
- travel in mayonnaise – imagine absurd things;
- brat – boring, irritating person;
- split the beak - laugh a lot.
Curiosity: there are many versions about the origin of the slang “traveling in mayonnaise”. Some believe that it came about on account of a trip promised by a manufacturing factory. mayonnaise that never happened.
On the other hand, some people say that the expression is self-explanatory, since the term “travel” can be used in the sense of “delirious”, and mayonnaise is something made from many mixed ingredients.
90's slang
Check the main ones 90's slang:
- tuned in – someone who is on top of things;
- Old woman's arch – something very old;
- jinx – flirt;
- baranga - ugly woman;
- hefty – upset, angry;
- switch - flirt;
- by law – something that always happens the same way;
- take off – arrange something;
- preppy – boy who walks well groomed and is all right;
- preppy – female version of “mauricinho”, used for rich girls;
- pay mico – to be ashamed;
- pindaiba – being short of money;
- burn the film – going through something embarrassing that will spoil the image;
- xylindró – prison, jail;
- To joke - make fun of or make fun of someone. Also used of mess.
Curiosity: the expression “pay mico” came from an old children's deck called Jogo do Mico.
The cards had pictures of animals and people needed to find male and female pairs for each species. However, the monkey card doesn't have a pair, so whoever ends up with it in their hand ends up losing the game.
Slang of the 2000s
Check the main ones 2000s slang:
- Shake – the same as killing it, making a good impression;
- Gown - nice outfit;
- pumped up – lively place, with a lot of people;
- Bus - bus;
- caôzeiro – liar;
- pass the squeegee – stay with a lot of people;
- It's dominated – is the same as saying that something is under control;
- Are you connected? – is the same as “understand?”;
- X9 - Informant, finger.
Curiosity: the term “X9” came from the name of one of the pavilions of the extinct Carandiru, Sao Paulo prison. The pavilion received prisoners who were informers to the police, so they had a reward.
See too:
- mining slang
- Bahian slang
- Ceará slang
- northeastern slang