I’m a giant fan of hard-boiled detective novels. I highlighted my favorites in a earlier article.
The factor about hard-boiled detective novels is that the characters typically use slang phrases that had been in frequent use within the Nineteen Thirties, 40s, and 50s, however are now not a part of our well-liked vocabulary.
There have been a number of instances once I’ve been studying a Raymond Chandler or John McDonald novel the place the dialogue left me scratching my head.
A whole bunch of hard-boiled slang phrases have been recorded and compiled. Beneath, I’ve highlighted my favorites from this class of vernacular. You’ll possible discover that there are quite a lot of completely different phrases for “detective.” It took me some time to determine {that a} “shamus” was a detective. My absolute favourite of those slang phrases are the greetings (“How’s methods?” “What’s the rating?”) and the methods to inform individuals to get misplaced (“Go fry a stale egg!”).
Hopefully, reviewing this listing will enable you higher perceive the subsequent hard-boiled detective novel you learn. And possibly you’ll even sprinkle a few of these phrases into your every day vocab to combine issues up with some gritty old-school lingo.
Huge home. Federal jail.
Fowl. Particular person, both male or feminine, however incessantly feminine.
Chunk an egg. Take breakfast.
Blow. To depart.
Bo. Generic deal with; man; jack; pal.
Booby-hatch. Psychological hospital.
Bull. Cop.
Butter and egg man. Sugar daddy; implication is one pretty free along with his cash.
Buttons. Cops.
Buzzer. Police badge; identification.
C-note. Hundred-dollar invoice.
Chicago overcoat. Coffin.
Chiseler. Low-life; hanger-on; any person chiseling cash from others.
Dance on air. Grasp, as from a noose.
Darb. An individual with cash, who might be relied upon to pay a examine.
Lifeless soldier. Empty liquor bottle.
Deadpan. Bodyguard; powerful man; gunny with a sheen of respectability.
Dip the invoice. To have a drink.
Dish. Engaging lady.
Draw quite a lot of water. To have quite a lot of affect; to exert nice affect.
Drop the arm. Arrest; nab; apprehend; snatch.
Dry-gulch. To ambush; shock; sneak assault or assault from behind.
Dumb onion. A idiot; dupe; fool.
Mud. Take a hike; get misplaced; drift.
Fakeloo artist. Conman; faker; liar; pretender; deceiver.
Fin. $5 invoice.
Flatfoot. Detective; shamus.
Flim-flam: Dupe; deceive; trick; soak up.
Floaters. Corpses within the water; individuals useless by drowning.
Fog. Riddle somebody with bullets.
Gat. Gun.
Gee. Man; fellow.
Gill. A drink.
Go fry a stale egg. Get misplaced; go soar in a lake.
Goose-berry lay. Stealing garments from clotheslines.
Gumshoe. Detective/non-public dick/PI/and many others.
Gunny. Hired gun; thug.
Gunsel. Hired gun.
Hackie. Taxi driver.
Onerous boy. Tough man; bodyguard; employed thug.
Onerous quantity. Robust man.
Hay. Useless scrip/faux payments/and many others.
Heel. Jerk; low life; scumbag.
Heeled. Packing; carrying a gun.
How’s methods? A greeting, akin to “How’s it going?”
Jake [also jakeloo]. Fine; okay; acceptable; no massive deal.
Jasper. Man; good-looking fellow.
Keyhole peeper. Detective/non-public dick/PI/and many others.
Loogan. A man with a gun.
Lug. A man; generic deal with for a person; connotation of thick-headedness or restricted capability/usefulness; not essentially connoting goon, thug.
Lulu. -looking lady.
Make with the toes. Get misplaced; scram.
Mauler. Brass knuckles.
Mickey Finn (mickey). A surreptitiously adulterated drink (or the drug added to the drink to make it so) given to any person for the aim of rendering them insensible or unconscious.
Miscount the trumps. To miss one thing.
Moll. Gangster’s girlfriend/lady/accomplice.
Mugg. A person (typically referring to dumb ones), man, particular person; doable connotation of not being solely on the up-and-up.
Muggle-smoker/muggle. Pothead; druggie.
Nevada gasoline. Cyanide.
Newshawk. Reporter.
No cleaning soap. No luck.
Nuts to you. Go to hell (delicate).
Pie-eyed. Very drunk.
Piker. Amateur; small-time operator.
Polish an apple: Discuss up; chat up; suck as much as.
Prowl automobile. Police automobile.
Actual cream. A good particular person.
Rodded. Carrying a gun (rod).
Rooster. Man who picks a combat, or any person who carries himself like a rooster; confrontational.
Sap. Idiot; fall-guy; love-struck sucker.
Sawbuck/double sawbuck. 10 {dollars}/20 {dollars}.
Shamus. Detective/non-public dick/PI/and many others.
Sharper. Detective; non-public operator.
Sitting on dynamite. Within the crosshairs; in the midst of a (figuratively) explosive scenario.
Slip (one’s) clutch. Losing it.
Good little egg. A idiot; dupe; fool.
Sneezer. Jail.
Squibbed (off). Okayilled.
Stool-pigeon. Rat; fink; an informant; legal who talks to the cops.
Take a flutter (at one thing). To make a passing try.
Twist. Woman, with doable connotation of girlfriend, or any person seen on the aspect.
Typewriter. Machine-gun.
What’s the rating? What’s occurring; what’s up; and many others.
World-beater. Any person higher than the remainder; able to taking over the world; an individual in excessive esteem.
Yard. One hundred {dollars}.
