The 1960s brought with it bellbottom pants, The Beatles, the “sit-in” movement and the festival of all festival’s… Woodstock. In a decade of peace, love and understanding, the '60s had some slang words and terms that are still used to this day.
1. Ankle Biter – This 60’s slang term was used to describe a young child referring to not only their short stature, but their desire to sometimes bite the ankles of adults. I.e. “Toddlers are notorious ankle biters.”
2. Drag – Used to express disappointment in someone of something. “That night was such a drag.”
3. Cruising – This slang was used to describe a pass time of teenagers in the '60s to cruise up and down a singular street in their car to find car races, girls, guys or other forms of entertainment. I.e. “Jenny and I went cruising with the boys last Friday night.”
4. Gimme Some Skin – This '60s slang term was used to ask to shake hands in hello, goodbye or as a way of arranging a deal. I.e. “Hey man, how’s it going… gimme some skin.”
5. Hang Loose – A term used to describe relaxing, taking it easy, etc. I.e. “I decided to just hang loose today instead of going out on the town.”
6. Jam/Let’s Jam – This '60s term was used in two different ways: 1) to describe a group of musicians playing music together or 2) to describe leaving a place very quickly. I.e. 1) “I was jamming with The Beatles in the music studio today.” 2) “That’s the cops, let’s jam!”
7. Keen – Used to describe being excited about something or to describe a person who is great, awesome, etc. I.e. “That Lucy was pretty keen, wasn’t she?”
8. Outta Sight – This slang term was used when someone wanted to express amazement, excitement, etc. I.e. “This new car is outta sight, man!”
9. Primo – The 60’s slang word was used when someone wanted to say that something or someone was the best, awesome, first class, high quality, etc. I.e. “That new song from the Beach Boys was primo!”
10. Going Steady – As a slang term, this was used to describe two people who were dating exclusively. I.e. “Mary and Johnny are going steady.”
11. Lay It on Me – This slang term from the 60’s was used to ask someone to tell them something or to speak their peace. I.e. “I know you want to talk to me, so lay it on me.”
12. Split – This '60s slang word was used to leave the scene or area, to cut out, etc. I.e. “As soon as they heard the cops coming they split.”
(via
Coolest Words)
