In the last quarterly update to the Oxford English Dictionary, more than 900 new words were added (and, thus, 900-plus ways to modernize your vocabulary). And with every new word that enters the cultural lexicon, another is bound to fall by the wayside. (Yes, that's why you're unlikely to hear complaints about "whippersnappers" and "courting" practices among today's courting young whippersnappers.) So, before you bewilder your younger friends and coworkers by trotting out a barrage of woefully antiquated terms, ditch these outdated words that will instantly age. And if you think you know the local lingo where you live, Can You Guess the Most Popular Slang Term in Your State?
1 | "Mobile phone"
The last person to use this phrase and sound cool was Tupac, and he's been dead for 22 years. And for more words you probably should phase out of your vocabulary, These Are All of the Slang Terms You're Too Old to Use After 40.
2 | "Dungarees"
ShutterstockWhether you wear them skinny, baggy, or boot-cut, if you're calling your jeans "dungarees," you're definitely dating yourself.
3 | "Rolodex"
ShutterstockIf you still have one of these on your desk, you might want to consider upgrading to its modern counterpart: the smartphone. And for the grunge enthusiasts out there, check out 20 Slang Terms From the 1990s No One Uses Anymore.
4 | "Card"
ShutterstockToday, typically what people use to play poker and other games with. If you're stuck in the past, however, this seems like a perfectly acceptable way to describe your hilarious friend.
5 | "Stewardess"
ShutterstockDon't be surprised if that call bell goes unanswered for a significant amount of time if you're still using this term to refer to flight attendants. And for more words that will surely show your age, check out The Best Slang Terms from the 1970s That Aren't Cool Today.
6 | "Lousy"
ShutterstockWhether you're using it to explain that someone or something is terrible or saying it to describe an abundance of something—"New York is lousy with hot dog carts," for example—you're definitely making yourself sound way older than you actually are.
7 | "Pictures"
ShutterstockOf course, pictures are still a thing—after all, what else is Instagram for? However, calling movies "pictures" automatically makes you seem older. And if you're feeling nostalgic, This Is the Most Popular Slang Word the Year You Were Born.
8 | "Groovy"
ShutterstockVirtually nothing that's happened this side of the ‘70s should be described as "groovy" anymore.
9 | "Galoshes"
ShutterstockGaloshes and Mackintosh, by today's standards, sound more like a pair of British detectives than they do an outfit that will keep you safe from the rain. And for more helpful information delivered straight to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.
10 | "Clicker"
ShutterstockWhen nobody's helping you on your frantic search for the "clicker," it might help if you referred to it by the more modern "remote" instead.
11 | "Classy"
ShutterstockWhile you may hear this used by your younger friends in jest when someone's doing something particularly unsophisticated, referring to something as "classy" in earnest only makes you sound older. Your grandmother may call wearing a string of pearls a "classy look," but you rarely hear billionaires boasting about their "classy" 17th century villas in the south of France. And, as many a linguist will agree, there's virtually no word that makes you sound less sophisticated like this one.
12 | "Slacks"
ShutterstockYou may claim to put your slacks on one leg at a time, but for the vast majority of people who don't live in the United Kingdom, those garments with two legs that fasten at the waist are called pants.
13 | "Dope"
ShutterstockWhether you're referring to something that's cool or calling your friend who once admitted to smoking pot a "dope fiend," using this word in virtually any context will immediately make you sound older than you actually are.
14 | "Stories"
ShutterstockMost people watch TV shows. Your grandmother still subscribes to TV Guide so she can find out what time her stories are on.
15 | "Scrub"
ShutterstockWhile "scrub" may be a term well-known by kids who grew up listening to TLC in the 1990s and 2000s, using this term to describe a less-than-desirable guy or girl just makes you sound like you're struck in the past.
16 | "Pocketbook"
ShutterstockYour purse is where you keep your phone, keys, and wallet. Your pocketbook is where your grandmother keeps her checkbook and handfuls of hard candies.
17 | "Necking"
ShutterstockUnless you're trying to sound significantly older than you actually are, it's high time you ditched "necking" from your vocabulary. To people born in the past 50 years, it's "kissing" or "hooking up."
18 | "Hottie"
ShutterstockThere are plenty of good ways to describe someone you find attractive, but, unless you're trying to make yourself seem woefully out of touch, "hottie" shouldn't be one of them.
19 | "World Wide Web"
iStockConsidering that most websites no longer need users to input the "www" prefix, describing something as living on the world wide web is more than a little unnecessary.
20 | "Stoked"
Shutterstock/wavebreakmediaThe go-to of excited ‘90s skaters around the world, saying "stoked" today does little more than tell people you're old enough to remember Reagan's first term in office.
21 | "Gal"
iStockShe may be a "great gal" to you, but odds are she'd prefer being referred to as a woman instead.
22 | "Baloney"
iStockWhile its homonym is still a popular lunchmeat throughout the United States, this antiquated term has long since been replaced with "fake news."
23 | "Bosom"
ShutterstockUnless you're quoting some centuries-old piece of literature, you can just refer to them as breasts, like everyone else born since the McCarthy hearings.
24 | "Queer"
ShutterstockWhile many members of the LGBTQIA community have reclaimed this term, if you're using it to refer to something unusual, don't be surprised when you get some strange looks.
25 | "Icebox"
ShutterstockThe icebox was a very specific thing: a means of keeping food cold using ice. Unless you were born in an era that predated household electricity, it's probably time to start calling them what everyone else does: fridges.
26 | "Courting"
ShutterstockSure, the Duggars still refer to it as such. However, unless you're trying to convince someone you're significantly older than you actually are, "dating" tends to be the preferred term.
27 | "Pantyhose"
ShutterstockYes, pantyhose are still a thing, but those flesh-toned stockings are certainly less common today than they were 30 years ago. And no, despite what some people of a certain age might insist, the term isn't synonymous with "anything that covers your legs but doesn't quite meet the criteria for pants."
28 | "Heavens"
ShutterstockThe good thing about using this term when you're surprised by something? Those sweet senior citizen discounts it's bound to open up.
29 | "Percolator"
ShutterstockWhile Twin Peaks may have made the word "percolator" known by a whole new audience, most people just call these coffee makers today.
30 | "Broad"
ShutterstockThe writers and actors on Broad City can use this term as a means of referring to women. Most people, however, should not.
31 | "Cool beans"
ShutterstockRespond "cool beans" to a member of Gen Z and enjoy the blank stare and giggling that commence.
32 | "Phat"
ShutterstockWhile generally intended as a compliment, this ‘90s slang not only has the potential for offense, it definitely makes you seem like you haven't updated your vocabulary in a good 20 years.
33 | "TiVo"
ShutterstockEnjoy the perplexed look you get when you ask someone under 40 to TiVo something for you when you just mean DVR.
34 | "Fiddlesticks"
ShutterstockWhy swear in frustration when you could use this adorably antiquated expression instead?
35 | "Videotape"
ShutterstockWhile videotapes still exist, if you're calling filming something on your iPhone "videotaping," you're definitely not making yourself seem any younger (or more technologically literate).
36 | "Paramour"
iStockParamore is a band. Paramour is about the most outdated way to describe someone you met on Bumble.
37 | "H*lla"
ShutterstockNorthern California's alternative to the word "very," this word is h*lla antiquated.
38 | "Whippersnapper"
ShutterstockA word only used by grandmothers and cartoon characters.
39 | "Going steady"
ShutterstockIt's not exactly like exclusive dating no longer exists, but referring to it as "going steady" has largely gone the way of the dinosaurs.
40 | "Boob tube"
ShutterstockAh, the good old boob tube. Or, as people born in the last 60 years call it, the TV.
41 | "Hip"
ShutterstockIf you're using this word to describe something fashionable or cool, it probably doesn't apply to you.
42 | "Tickled"
ShutterstockWhile the word "happy" probably won't go out of style anytime soon, don't be surprised if people stare at you like you're wearing a poodle skirt and bobby socks when you refer to yourself as "tickled" over something.
43 | "Hooch"
ShutterstockThere's no lack of cheap, low-quality booze in this world, but there's definitely a lack of people under 65 who still call it "hooch."
44 | "Whoopee"
ShutterstockWith so many words for sex out there, why limit yourself to a word most commonly-associated with a cushion that imitates the sound of flatulence?
45 | "Tight"
ShutterstockTight: a descriptor for those skinny jeans you have to lie down to get in. Tight, in your grandparents' day: what you might become after having a few too many martinis.
46 | "Frock"
ShutterstockWhile the word is still used in some contexts, like the defrocking of a priest, it sounds adorably old-fashioned when you're using it to describe what's better known as a dress.
47 | "Stepping out"
ShutterstockUnfortunately, the act of stepping out hasn't gone away, but most people born this side of the bicentennial just call it cheating.
48 | "Gas"
ShutterstockCarbon monoxide is a gas. Your grandma's friend Herb, who she also refers to as a "gas," is just funny.
49 | "Rubbers"
ShutterstockNo matter what you're calling a rubber—boots, erasers, or condoms—using this term makes even a young person sound like they're old enough to remember Eisenhower's presidency.
50 | "Jalopy"
ShutterstockRefer to that beater in your driveway as a jalopy and you'll give the folks on Craigslist even more incentive not to buy it.
