the irish lass

Rat Pack Lingo

Do you need some new vocab?

18 KARAT
All the way, full-out: “An 18 karat idiot.”

BABY
Used as an exclamation as well as a term of endearment.

BAG
As in “my bag,” a person's particular interest.

BARN BURNER
A very stylish, classy woman.

BEARD
A male friend who acts as a 'cover', usually for extramarital affairs.

BEETLE
A girl who dresses in flashy clothes.

BIG-LEAGUER
A resourceful man who can handle any situation.

BIRD
A “suitcase” word sometimes used in reference to the pelvic section.

BOMBSVILLE
Any kind of failure in life.

BROAD
Affectionate term for a girl or woman with sex appeal.

BUM
A person who is despised, most frequently linked to people in the media.

BUNTER
A man who fails in almost everything he does, the opposite of gasser.

CASH OUT
Leave, as in “Cash me out of this party” = “I'm leaving.”

CHARLEY
A general term for anyone whose name has been forgotten. See also Sam.

CHARLIES
Admiring word for a woman's breasts.

CHICK
A young and invariably pretty girl.

CLAM-BAKE
A party or get-together.

CLYDE
A word used to cover a multitude of personal observations: viz “I don't like her clyde” means “I don't like her voice,” etc.

COOL
A term of admiration for a person or place. An alternative word meaning the same thing is crazy.

CREEP
A man who is disliked for any reason whatsoever.

CROAKER
A derogatory term for a doctor.

CRUMB
Someone for whom it is impossible to show respect.

DAME
A generally derogatory term for a probably unattractive woman. The word dog is also sometimes substituted.

DIG
A term of appreciation for a person or thing, as in “I dig her,”

DIMMERS
Eyes (as in “I gotta see the croaker about my bad dimmers.”)

DYING
As in “I'm dying” which means “I'm slightly upset.”

END
A word to signify that someone or something is the very best.

ENDSVILLE
A term to express total failure, and similar to bombsville. See ville.

FINK
A man who cannot be relied upon, whose loyalties are suspect.

FIRST BASE
The start of something, usually applied in terms of failure when someone has failed to reach it.

FRACTURE
As in “That fractures me,” meaning “That's an amusing joke.”

GAS
A great situation as in “The day was a gas.”

GASOLINE
A term for alcohol, more specifically, Frank's favourite drink, Jack Daniel's Bourbon Whisky.

GASSER
A man or woman highly admired, considered to be the best or “The End!”

GOFER
Someone who does menialjobs or runs errands, as in “go for drinks,” etc.

GOOD NIGHT ALL
A term of invective to change the subject of conversation.

GROOVE
As in “in the groove,” a term of admiration or approval.

HARVEY
A man or woman who acts in a stupid or naive fashion; sometimes shortened to a “Harve.”

HACKED
A word used to describe someone who is angry, as in “He's hacked off.”

HELLO
A cry of surprise to no one in particular when a beautiful woman is seen.

HEY-HEY
We better let Frank explain this one.

HUNKER
A jack-of-all-trades rather like the gofer.

JOKES
A term used to describe an actor's lines in a film script.

LET'S LOSE CHARLEY
A term used among intimates who want to get rid of a bore in their company.

LOCKED-UP
As in “All locked-up,” a term for a forthcoming date or engagement, private or public.

LOSER
Anyone who has made a mess of their life, drinks too much, makes enemies, etc.

MISH-MASH
Similar to loser but refers specifically to a woman who is mixed up.

MOUSE
Usually a small, very feminine girl who invites being cuddled.

NOWHERE
A term of failure, usually applied to a person, viz “He's nowhere.”

ODDS
Used in connection with important decisions, as in “The odds aren't right,” meaning not to go somewhere, accept anything or buy something.

ORIGINAL LOSER
A man or woman without talent; sometimes more fully expressed as ”He (she) is the original Major Bowes Amateur Hour loser.”

PLATINUM
Having a big heart, generous. “You're platinum, pussycat!”

PLAYER
Term for a man who is a gambler by nature, who makes friends easily, and never gives up trying.

PUNKS
Any undesirable, in particular mobsters, gangsters or criminals.

QUIN
Derisive term for any girl or woman who is an easy pick-up.

RAIN
As in “I think it's going to rain” indicating that it is time to leave a dull gathering or party.

RING-A-DING!
A term of approval for a beautiful girl, viz “What a ring-a-ding broad!”

SAM
Used in the same way as Charley for a person whose name has been forgotten, most often applied to females.

SCAM
To cheat at gambling, as in “Hey, what's the scam?”

SCRAMSVILLE
To run off.

SHARP
A person who dresses well and with style.

SMASHED
A word used to describe someone who is drunk. On occasions it has been replaced with “pissed.”

SOLID
Definite, reliable. (Note: this was also used by Linc in “The Mod Squad.”)

SQUARE
A person of limited character, not unlike a harvey.

SWING
v. To hang out and drink, smoke, sing, generally get real loose.

TOMATO
As in “a ripe tomato” a woman ready for seduction or even marriage.

TWIRL
A girl who loves dancing. An alternative word with the same meaning is a “Twist.”

VILLE
A suffix used to indicate changes in any given situation. See endsville, etc.

WITCHDOCTOR
Member of the clergy.

WOW-EE WOW WOW
figured importantly in the Rat Pack lexicon for a while in the late 50s and early 60s. It was an expression of glee, joyful anticipation and a euphemism for lubricious fun.