1972 slang

I was born about a month before the 1970's ended. My WIP takes place in 1972, and in parts deals with teenage characters. I've spent hours on Google looking for clues as to which terms were in heavy usage at the time. Unsurprisingly, what one find's, for the most part, is a cadre of lists of slang used throughout the entire decade rather than specific to 1972. I don't want my characters in the early 70's using terms that weren't popular until the disco era.

Will this matter to most readers? Probably not, but if I were reading a book that took place in 1992, and some kid called something "sick" instead of "awesome," I'd call BS immediately. That term wasn't popular until I was in high school (mid to late 90's.)

So do any of you have first-hand or other reliable knowledge about which terms were en vogue in 1972? I know all these great slang terms from the 60's and 70's, but I'm afraid to use any of them, because I don't know which I'd be using anachronistically.

Thanks!

 

It wasn't restricted to 1972, but people definitely said, "Groovy" in that time. I can see Marcia Brady saying it.

 

Hello! This is my first post. It's important to know where your characters are, circa 1972, as these things can vary tremendously depending on location, especially back in the day before the internet. If your teenage character is a white guy who lives in the country in the midwest chances are he's not referring to his friends as "blood" or "brother", that sort of thing.

Far out- which may or may not be too "far out" an expression for your character. Out of sight. (I'm following the trajectory of groovy).

What kind of slang are you looking for? Insults or name calling? I'd recommend doing some exploration on YouTube or somewhere and picking up some shows or films that came out within a couple years of 1972. Particularly something more relevant to your story. If I think of anything else I'll add it but more detail about what you need would be helpful .

 

Location has a lot to do it. Northeast USA class of 76 Wicked Cool, from the Boston Area, Minga, another phrase for cool. Pissa another one meaning cool.

 

I was 10 at the time, but my memory isn't very precise on matters like this. I can remember slang, but it's more by decade than precise year. I'd say you're a lot better off looking into 60's slang, since it takes a few years for a new decade to define itself clearly from the previous one.

I'm trying to remember slang used when I was in grade school but not in high school. There were things like 'red', short for redneck, but really it meant asshole. If we called somebody a redneck it didn't mean he was a country bufoon, but that he was a jerk. And often we'd just say "Dude, that was pretty red." Gay of course meant stupid with the addition of being sort of lightweight or not very masculine, as in "Don't be gay" or "That's pretty gay." The peace sign was really in vogue, as was just saying "Peace." Hippie slang in general was in. Just listen to an interview of Jimmi Hendrix. Though he used to say 'cats' a lot (referring to people), and I didn't know anybody who talked like that.

Oh, anything that today would 'rock' (meaning it's really cool) would 'jam' back then. Instead of awesome we'd say jammin', or "That jams, man!" It came from rock and roll, where people would get together and have a jam session. Badass music was music that really jammed. Pretty sure Bitchin' was around, but that might be from later.

By the early 70's long hair on guys was starting to become normalized to the extent that you wouldn't get beat up or sent packing if you had it. A decade earlier you might get shot ala Easy Rider if you were in the wrong town or area. But as most things that begin as radical it becomes little more than a fashion statement a decade later.

"That's insane", and "That's wild" were pretty big I think. "Gnarly" for sure. Oh, and "For sure" meant yes. Righteous. Catch ya later. And if you were a kid "Catch ya later alligator—after while, crocodile."

 

Slang was very location dependant in the early 70s. On the west coast, Dude was almost like Mandran, in that it changed meanings with tone. You could have a conversation using that one word in different tones.

 

I wasn't aware of using "gay" in the way it's used more recently to imply stupid, specifically since gay wasn't nearly as mainstream as it is now so I mean I guess maybe but that seems incredibly more recent. If anything, more commonly (that I can recall) was using the term "homo" but as in wuss. Dynamite was pretty popular. Boss was too early. Fly.

 

Oh yeah, plus we'd say "You fag!" but it didn't mean homosexual at all, it was more like "You idiot!" Feels so wrong to say all this now, but it was totally innocent then.

 

You could also look at various media from the period, maybe even interviews and documentaries. It may be time consuming and challenging at times though to determine which ones were really prominent for the time period/region.

First thing I thought of, for no known reason was 'All the Young Dudes' which was coincidentally released in 1972 but I'm not sure how much of the lyrics are representative of slang of the time (particularly Britain) versus metaphorical/part of the Ziggy Stardust mythology (since David Bowie wrote it).

'what a drag' is still slang today, but not as common. I had no idea that 'boat race' was British slang for 'face' until I saw this thread and looked it up.

 

Thank, y'all. Yes, I get that slang can be regional, (especially in the North East, for some reason) but most of it comes from pop culture everyone was privy to. I remember 80's and 90's slang around here (also pre-internet.) I can't tell you this for sure, but I don't think much of it was regional, at least not the hip, new lingo. There are regional colloquialisms too, but they're less generational. Most of those haven't changed much since I was a kid. So I'm looking for generic, American slang, or possibly California, because that always bleeds right through to everyone else. If it helps though, the story takes place in a small town in West Texas. I just didn't mention that, because I doubt anyone here spent 1972 in the South Plains/Caprock/Lubbock area.

It's funny that a few of you mentioned using 60's slang, and one of you even mentioned Easy Rider in another context. See, I get that terms usually stick around for several years, so the best source I've found close to 1972 is Easy Rider from 1969. From there, I can guess that "groovy," "you dig," "dude" and "hip" were probably still in use. They even felt the need to explain the meaning of a few terms in that movie. I also, from Dennis Hopper's character, know that "like" and "I mean" and "man" were good place holders for that authentic stoner persona, which is perfect for a few of my characters. If y'all can think of any other authentic or influential movies from around that era that might help, I'll check them out.

 

Not made at the time, but set in 1976 (just a few years later), and pretty authentic—Dazed and Confused.

 

You could also look at Billy Jack and Dirty Harry, but not sure how accurate either of them are.

For some reason I just thought of Punishment Park, also from 1971, but it's not very famous and probably doesn't have much slang due to the (fictional) documentary style of the film.

 

A movie called Two Lane Blacktop was made in '71, and feels really authentic to the times. I'm not sure there's a lot of slang in it, except maybe from the girl, unless it's car or racing related.

I was thinking That 70's Show, and I know each season represents a different decade, but I just checked and it started with 1976.

 

Later, Later days, I'm Audi (like I'm outa here. It might have been I'm Outie, but I think it was Audi). And the word Book meant leave. As in "Welp, we're gonna book." Or sail, or cruise. Calling shotgun was a thing if you were going somewhere in somebody's car. Whover said "Shotgun!" got to sit in the passenger's seat, everybody else got in the back. And 'crash' meant fall asleep. Like "Can I crash at your place?" I guess that one's still current. Crash out. Crash pad was the place you sleep. Your place was your pad or you crash pad. Scarf meant eat, as in to stuff your face. "Man, he was scarfin' hard!" Or "Scarf it down!" Duh and Durr and I think Dar were in. Of course it was kids and teens who talked this way, and adult hippies.

A weird thing to think about—in the 70's the old people were born in like the 1890's or early 1900's. Some of them were immigrants or first/second generation, and a lot of them talked and acted like it was the 50's, or even the 20's or 30's. You'd frequently see classic 50's cars on the road, some still in mint condition, and occasionally something from the 30's or 40's. Those might have been show cars though, or restored classics.

 

Anybody remember any negative terms, like bummer, harsh, etc.? I don't know if those two are era appropriate or not.

Also, drug terms would be helpful. I know some of the pot terminology: grass, dope, lids. Does anybody know any more? Coke terms would be especially helpful. I know coke was a super-expensive luxury item in 1972, but it's integral to the story.

 

Yeah, Bummer was definitely in. That sucks, F**k me running, Mother F**er, Son of a b*tch. Most of the classics haven't changed since then. Ain't that a pisser?

Weed, Pot, Grass, Mary J, Mari-ja-wana (works better spoken than written). Mary Jane. In those days the green stuff was homegrown, and it was harsh and not very good. The good stuff had names like Acapulco Gold, Panama Red, Kona (grown on the slopes of volcanos in Hawaii supposedly). A nickel bag cost $5 (hence the name) and a dime bag cost $10. But of course if it was the good stuff you get less for your money. Big fat joints were called logs or fatties and little thin ones were skeeters. An ounce bag was $30 base price for normal stuff, and went up for the really good stuff. "Man, don't bogart that!" meant don't smoke it all, let the rest of us have some. A person who tended to do that was a Bogart. Or you could shorten it to Bogin' "Man, why you bogin' all the good stuff dude?" Closely related to bogus, though I don't remember if that term was around in the early 70's or not. It could also be used as a general negative, like "You're bogin' me out man!" The stub of a joint was a roach, and alligator clips you could hold them with to finish smoking them were roach clips. Some came with telescoping handles for easier passing around. Police were cops, pigs, fuzz, The Boys, 5-0 (the show Hawaii 5-0 was still on tv all the time). Terminology for getting high included partying. "You want to party tonight?"

Scopin'. Scope it out. Check it out. They both mean looking at something. Somebody would say it when they show you the bag they just bought, or a sweet ride rollin' down the street, or a real fox. Maybe just "Scope it man!" Or if somebody whipped out a bag when it wasn't cool you'd say "Chill out man!" Oh, There was a way to hold a joint while it's lit sort of hidden inside your hand called Cuffing. "Cuff it." Or Cup it. People got pretty good at always holding it like that and passing it to each other secretly. Everybody had a stash or a few, where they keep the paraphernalia and the weed. "Is he cool?" pretty much means does he get high, or is he a narc (somebody who will tell on you). "Don't narc me out man!" "He narced on me!" Burnout was a complicated term. It could be a good thing—"Yeah he's cool man, he;'s a real burnout." I guess it's like Dude, in that it depends on the situation and vocal tone. It can mean he gets high (burns doobies), or it canmean he got too high too many times and now he's all burnt out. And you could do burnouts on the street with your car too. Very versatile term. "Coppin' a buzz" meant you were "Buzzin'", that you were high. Then after a while you'll start to come down. "Don't bring me down man" was like don't be a buzzkill, back when that really meant something. Don't kill the buzz was also pretty common slang.

I don't know coke terminology.

 

Stogie! That's one that kept teasing at the corners of my mind earlier but I couldn't pin it down. Trying to think of it I came up with Bogart though. A stogie is a big fat joint.

And Jonesin'. I'm jonesin' for a hit, or for some munchies. It means you really want it.

Cottonmouth. When you smoke of the weed your mouth gets dry. When your mouth is dry, you're plenty high (as George informs us). And there's an actual ringing in the ears or in the head. That's the buzz. It's a literal thing.

 

I was in high school from 1970 to 1973. I said "groovy" exactly once in my life in the seventh grade in 1967. Groovy was dead in the San Joaquin Valley by the early 70s. Saying "groovy" was uncool. Slang varied from place to place. I recall kids who moved over from San Jose using "boss" and "gas" and thinking what lame terms they were, but even they didn't say "groovy."

I don't recall using a lot of slang. "Cool," of course. "Neat" was acceptable, as was "peachy keen" if one wished to be ironic. "Far out" was in common usage until John Denver overdid it and ruined it for everyone. "Outrageous" was used to express an uncommonly amazing experience or feeling. When I adopted jeans, a leotard, and a blue chambrey workshirt as my daily costume, a friend told me I looked "so status" which was a good thing. Calling someone "turkey" was a friendly or not so friendly epithet depending on tone of voice. Girls were still occasionally "chicks" (which I hated) and guys were addressed as "man" as opposed to "dude."

 

I wouldn't say it was addressed to anybody, or to males in particular. It was like the way dude or 'Hey guys' is used now, it's just a replacement for something like Well or OK. A placeholder or an attention-getter before you speak.

And I want to add, some of the drug terminology I posted above might have been from later, I was 10 in 72. I did have an older friend who was probably already into it, and his older brother definitely was, and they used all that terminology. But that stuff was like alien gibberish to me when I was 10, I didn't know what the heck they were talking about. I probably didn't start hearing it more commomnly until I was 14 and in high school. But I don't think most of it changed much in the interim (hard to say of course).

 

As has been noted above, slang is intensely regional, so your best bet would be to seek out media that came not only from that time but from the place and culture where your story takes place. (An example would be American Graffiti, which takes place in northern coastal California and seems pretty authentic for that time and place.)

I would caution you that if you misuse slang, putting it into the mouths of people who would never use it, you run the risk of derailing your story. An example would be Ian Fleming's attempts to render American speech, which now come across as painfully inappropriate. He was a great plotter of action novels, and his descriptions of locales and cuisine was masterful, but he couldn't write American dialect for sour apples. His British readership couldn't care less, of course, because they hadn't had a lot of exposure to American English. But when I read it, I wince.

 

Just a thought-rather than check out movies, why not check online for interviews with musicians/actors from that era. Movie scripts could be a version of what someone not from California thinks someone from California might say, some of those loose, casual interviews might give a different insight.

 

It was used in a lot of ways, including the one you mentioned. I referred to a specific situation. Yeah, man, I got addressed as" man" at times, always by a young guy, and man, that just frosted my apricots.

 

Though by '72 we were using it ironically.

 

Okay, that was my HS graduation year. I'd have to haul out my journal for the full glossary, but here's a few off the top of my head:

Turkey--- Someone, usually a guy, who was being a pain in the butt
Swift--- As in, "That was really swift." I.e., just the opposite. More like klutzy and stupid.
Klutz--- An ungraceful, clumsy person. Don't let him carry your illicit six-pack of Heineken
Giving s/o the shaft--- Giving someone what was coming to them; getting them good
Shafted--- Screwed, out of luck, having bad things happen the recipient feels they didn't deserve
"Go find a doorknob"--- I.e., go contract a social disease from dirty surfaces in the bathroom. Though that may have been peculiar to my school. Same with "God bless America!" Cried out in frustration or hurt, when you've stubbed your toe or somebody's being dense. If it's really bad, the speaker will continue on to " . . . land that I love!!!"
Dense--- Stupid, thickheaded, unwilling to understand
Hippie rag--- A girl who wears hippie-type or folky clothing (granny gowns, that sort of thing). Not a compliment.

We still used "dig" as in like, be interested in, understand, as well as "Far out!" and "Outta sight!" for things that were marvelous and exciting. But as with "groovy," for the Class of '72 these terms were slipping into irony.

I can add more when I think of them. Keep in mind the environment is American Midwestern, middle to upper middle class, and predominantly white.

Our class picked up a lot of slang from figures like the Firesign Theater and George Carlin. If your characters are into certain music or if they've acted in a play or if a novel in English class has caught their imagination, they could make up their own jargon and stock phrases from there.

One thing that strikes me is that though we were an urban high school with over 2,500 students, I never heard anyone use the F-word in general conversation. Maybe in private? But not in school. "Frick" would be used instead.