The flavor of speech and language in the nineteenth century was quite unique and, from the
rich to the poor, each had their own way of expressing phrases. The Victorians were more
prim and spoke with more delicate words. No proper lady would use 'colorful' language and
no gentleman would swear in the company of a lady. Westerners wrote and talked this way
with slang, although some words that we use today were considered rude and vulgar. Most
of the swear words (as well as the much vulgar words) used today have been around since
the mid-19th century, some dating back earlier. However, they are rarely found in print during
later half of 19th century, due to the Comstock Law of 1873 banning the mailing of materials
found to be "Obscene."
In case yer wonderin' where I gathered these Old West Slang, they come from diaries, letters, stories and my travels and research of the 19th century. If you've got an authentic Old West saying you'd like to add here, give me a holler.
I do update this page as much as time allows, because, well, you know, I'm always finding
more slang '-)
Enjoy! And remember: Speak your mind and ride a fast horse.
- Lady Belle
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Ace high: a winning hand at poker.
All-fired: hell-fired.
All to pieces: completely, absolutely.
Almighty: huge.
Bad egg: a bad person.
Barkin' at a knot: doing something useless; wasting your time.
Bee: a gathering of friends, family and neighbors to get a specific job
done. ( A quilting bee.)
Bee in your bonnet: an idea.
Biddy: hen.
Biggest toad in the puddle: the most important person in a group.
Body: person.
Bosh: nonsense. "It was absolute bosh what he said."
Buzzard food: dead.
Buckaroo: a cowboy from the desert country of Oregon, Nevada,
California or Idaho.
Buck up: cheer up; chin up.
Cooling yer heels: staying for a while. "He'll be cooling his heels in
the pokey."
Coot: an idiot; simpleton; a ninny.
Cold as a wagon tire: dead.
Cotton to: To take a liking to.
Crazy as a loon: very crazy.
Daisy: good; excellent.
Don't get your dander up: anxious; excited.
Douse-the-lights: lights out. Time to hit the hay.
Ducky: used in early century as term of endearment.
Feller: fellow. "That big feller over there is the sheriff."
Fetch: bring, give. "Fetch me a cuppa water."
Fixin': intending. "I'm fixin' to get supper started."
G.T.T: Gone To Texas. A common expression in use following the Civil War.
People would find the letters G.T.T. carved into their doors, left by a kin. Many outlaws went to Texas.
Galvanized Yankees: former Confederate soldiers who served in the U.S. Army in the West following the Civil War, and during the Indian Wars.
Grassed: to be thrown from a horse.
Good-fer-nothin': someone who is no good, causes trouble.
Hit pay dirt: mining term. To find something of value.
Hold your horses: stay calm. "Hold your horses, we're on our way."
Horse feathers: ridiculous.
Hotter than a burnin stump. -- (from Spike Dykes -Texas Tech Football coach)
Injun: Indian
Jawing: talking. "We sat around the campfire just jawing."
Keep that dry: keep it secret.
Lands sake!: acceptable alternative term of profanity.
Like lickin' butter off a knife: something that is easy; not hard.
Lily liver: someone who is a coward.
Loco: crazy.
Lower than a snake's belly in a wagon rut.
Madder than an old wet hen: "Mama woke up madder than an old wet hen."
Make hay while the sun shines: To make the most of the day, or an opportunity.
Meaner than a one-eyed rattlesnake.
More scared than a chicken in the rain: someone who is very scared.
Muddy end of the stick: short end of the stick.
Notion: idea.
N.G.: no good. "He is n.g. and can't be trusted."
Nosey Parker: someone who is nosey.
Obliged: thankful. Indebted for a favor. "Thank you fer the coffee and eggs, ma'am. Mighty obliged."
On the Dodge: hiding out somewhere; laying low for a while.
Ornery as a fried toad: "He shore is ornery as a fried toad."
Packin': carry a weapon.
Pard: friendly version of partner.
Pass the hat: make a contribution. "They passed the hat and collected money to help the widow." Or it could also be used as, "We passed the hat and it was decided Bill would ride into town."
Pining away for: longing for.
Plumb: entirely, completely. "He's plumb crazy."
Pokey: jailhouse.
Pony up: pay the bill.
Poppet: term of endearment. "Come along, poppet."
Pray tell: tell me. "What do you wish to know, pray tell?"
Pullin my donkey's tail: A much older way of saying "are you pullin my leg" (Thanx to the kind soul who sent this saying to me!)
Purty: pretty. "That woman shore is purty."
Quakin' in your (their) boots: someone who is scared.
Reckon: to guess or think. "I reckon that'll do right fine."
Right as Rain: fine. "After a good night's rest, he'll be right as rain."
Sand: guts; courage; toughness. "You got sand, that's fer shore."
Seegar: cigarette. "I reckon I'll sit on the porch an' smoke a seegar."
Sick as a poisoned coyote pup: "I was feelin' sick as a poisoned coyote pup."
Skedaddle: scurry away (cira Civil War.) "I best skedaddle."
Slack: slow. "This is the slack season."
Slower than molasses in January: slow.
Spell: time; for a while.
Stew in one's own juice: to suffer from one's own action.
Spirits: alcohol. "The men go down to the saloon and git their fill of spirits."
Steamed up: Another version of riled up. "He was all steamed up after comin' back from town.
Strong enough to float a colt: very strong coffee.
Three ways from Sunday: moving quickly; high-tailing it out of there.
Upon surprise - he looked at me like a calf at a new gate.
Windbag: talking nonsense. "If that windbag gets outta hand, you come tell me an' I'll take care of the old coot."
Wipe your chin: be quiet.
Worse than a cat in a roomful of rockers: someone who is really nervous. (Sent in from: Jackie, East Texas)
Yammerin': quit talking. "Drink yer coffee an' quit yer yammerin'."
Yellow Belly: a Coward.
Y'all - (this is actually the correct spelling for it) "Hiya, y'all."
Source for some material on this page:
The Writer's Guide to Everyday Life in the 1800's
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