What if you could talk to someone who lived at the time of the Civil War? You would probably have a hard time understanding some of the things they said. Below is a list of words and phrases used during the Civil War, and their meanings. Where do the terms come from? Which ones are still in use? What new words or phrases do we use today that mean the same things?
** Note to teachers: Students can practice incorporating these slang terms in conversation or letter writing activities. Copies of the information should be given to each student to use in combination with their broadcast notebook to produce a soldier’s journal from the perspective of the individual soldiers they were assigned. Another fun activity is to provide students with just the slang term and see if they can guess the meanings.
SLANG and MEANING
"chief cook and bottle washer": person capable of doing many things
"sheet iron crackers": hardtack
"sardine box": a cap box
"bread basket": stomach
"greenbacks": Union money
"graybacks": Southern soldiers; also a term for lice
"Arkansas toothpick": a large knife
"pepperbox": a type of pistol
"fit to be tied": angry
"horse sense": smart, on the ball
"top rail": first class
"hunkey dorey": feeling great!
"greenhorn", "bugger", "skunk": insult to a poor soldier. Sometimes meant for officers
"shoulder boards", "brass": officers
"snug as a bug": comfortable, cozy
"sawbones": a surgeon
"skedaddle": run away or scatter from battle
"hornets": bullets in flight
"bully": brave or worth cheering for
"possum": a buddy or pal
"blowhard": a big shot
"fit as a fiddle":in good shape, healthy
"uppity": conceited
"scarce as hen’s teeth": rare or scarce
"grab a root": have dinner, have a potato
"tight", "wallpapered": drunk
"bark juice", "tar water", "nokum stiff", "joy juice": nicknames for liquor, usually whiskey
"hard case": a tough fellow
"bluff": a cheater
"jailbird": criminal
"hard knocks": beaten up
"been through the mill": experienced a lot, or had a rough day
"quick-step": diarrhea
"played out": exhausted or worn out
"toeing the mark": doing the job
"Jonah": a man who is bad luck
"goobers": peanuts
"Sunday soldiers", "kid glove boys", "parlor soldiers": insults intended for other soldiers
"fresh fish": raw recruits or new soldiers
"whipped": beaten
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