1980's English

Marco: Hello English learners! Welcome back to EnglishPod! My name is Marco.

Erika: And I’m Erica.

Marco: And today we’re gonna be looking at English, slang and informal words used in the nineteen eighties (1980’s).

Erika: So, this is the next part of our decade’s dialogues.

Marco: Exactly, so, the nineteen eighties maybe for many of our listeners is a little bit more familiar and there’re a lot of phrases and a lot of words that were born in this decade and we still use them today.

Erika: So, we’re gonna learn those words and phrases in this dialogue, but before we start we need to preview a couple of words. Let’s go now to “vocabulary preview”.

Voice: Vocabulary preview.

Marco: So, one of the words that we’re gonna hear in our dialogue is ride.

Erika: Is that your ride?

Marco: Is that your ride?

Erika: So, a ride. Normally, we know this word as a verb, right?

Marco: Right, to ride a bicycle.

Erika: Uhu.

Marco: In this context it’s an informal way of referring to your car.

Erika: So, a ride is a car.

Marco: Yeah, so, I just bought a new ride.

Erika: Alright, well, maybe you’ll take me for a ride in your… new ride?

Marco: In your new ride.

Erika: Yeah.

Marco: Alright, and we al… we’re also gonna be looking at this word loaded.

Erika: He’s loaded.

Marco: So, if you are loaded…

Erika: You’re really rich.

Marco: You’re re… you have a lot of money.

Erika: Yeah.

Marco: You are loaded with money.

Erika: Uhu.

Marco: So, loaded and ride, those are two words for vocabulary preview and, well, let’s listen to our 1980’s dialogue and see what happens.

Marco: Alright, so, typical high school students of the decade, right?

Erika: Definitely, very, very Eighties!

Marco: Very Eighties, and, well, of course, you always have the situation with the cool kids and maybe the… the kids that are not so cool and, well, they’re making fun of him, right?

Erika: Yeah, but they used some really cool words, so, let’s look at them now in “language takeaway”.

Voice: Language takeaway.

Marco: Alright, so, the first word that we saw on language takeaway and it was really interesting, this word butt ugly.

Erika: It’s butt ugly.

Marco: That car is butt ugly.

Erika: So, when something is BUTT ugly, it’s really ugly, right?

Marco: It’s very ugly; it’s not…

Erika: Yeah.

Marco: Just ugly, it’s very ugly.

Erika: Uhu, and what would… butt is like…

Marco: Form your…

Erika: Your bottom.

Marco: From your bottom, yeah.

Erika: Yeah.

Marco: So, he said the car was butt ugly and the other guy answered by saying “Hey, don’t be an airhead”.

Erika: An airhead.

Marco: Don’t be an airhead.

Erika: So, an airhead is someone with air in their head.

Marco: In their head. So, they’re not very smart.

Erika: They… they’ve got no brains.

Marco: They’ve got no brains, right?

Erika: Uh.

Marco: So, he said “Don’t be an airhead”, don’t be such an idiot.

Erika: Uhu.

Marco: Alright. Now, for the third word he described his car as being wicked.

Erika: It’s wicked.

Marco: Wicked, that’s wicked.

Erika: It’s gonna be wicked.

Marco: Okay, so, this is a very 80’s way of saying “It’s gonna be cool”.

Erika: Yep.

Marco: It’s gonna be awesome.

Erika: It’s gonna be wicked.

Marco: Alright, and now, when they saw another car pulling up, a new car, he described it as a fresh ride.

Erika: It’s a fresh ride.

Marco: Now, we understand that ride is a car, right?

Erika: Uhu.

Marco: So, a fresh ride.

Erika: It’s another way of saying “cool”.

Marco: Okay, so, kind of similar wicked and fresh.

Erika: Yeah, now finally, at the end of our dialogue they said “You’re a real scumbag, Charlie”. So, this word scumbag is interesting.

Marco: You’re a scumbag.

Erika: A scumbag.

Marco: Yeah, it’s interesting and it’s still used today, I would say.

Erika: Yeah, so, when someone is a scumbag, they’re just really not a nice person.

Marco: Yeah, they’re not nice or they’re not maybe to a certain point honest.

Erika: They’re not kind.

Marco: Exactly, you’re a scumbag.

Erika: Uhu.

Marco: Okay, but it’s not a very harsh word, right? It’s not harsh to say… call somebody a scumbag.

Erika: Well, it’s not like a swearword, but it’s certainly not a nice thing to say to someone.

Marco: Okay, exactly. Alright, so, let’s listen to all these adjectives, that we’ve just looked at right now, again in our dialogue and then we’ll come back and look at some more phrases.

Erika: Okay, well, you know what, Marco, I love the 80’s, I love the language of the 80’s, I love the music of the 80’s and I’m really, uh, loving these phrases from the 80’s.

Marco: Hehe.

Erika: So, why don’t we look at them now in, uh, “fluency builder”.

Voice: Fluency builder.

Marco: Alright, so, on fluency builder today let’s take a look at these phrases that you were talking about. And the first one is very interesting. So, these two guys, they were making fun of this other person that was in this nice car and he called him a major dweeb.

Erika: A major dweeb.

Marco: He’s a major dweeb.

Erika: What a major dweeb?

Marco: Now, let’s break this into two parts first. Um, well, let’s see what dweeb means.

Erika: Well, a dweeb is a very ‘uncool’ person.

Marco: Okay, so, kind similar to a nerd.

Erika: Yeah, a small kind of guy with no power.

Marco: Okay, he’s a dweeb. Now, this word major.

Erika: It just means big, really, serious.

Marco: So, it’s a way of emphasizing, right?

Erika: Yeah, and you can say anything… you can have a major anything like “Oh, I’ve got a major headache”.

Marco: Or I can say I have a major problem this week.

Erika: Uhu.

Marco: Okay, so, major – a very big problem.

Erika: Yeah. Now, they’re talking about this really cool car and the… the guy who’s a bit of a dweeb, he said “Isn’t it bad to the bone?”

Marco: Bad to the bone.

Erika: It’s bad to the bone.

Marco: Alright, now, this is also part of a famous song “Bad to the bone”, but what does it mean?

Erika: Well, when something is bad to the bone, it’s super cool, it’s like… it’s so dangerous that it’s cool.

Marco: Exactly, it’s very, very cool. It’s bad to the bone. Now, this is not used anymore.

Erika: No, no-no, don’t walk out of your house and use this… this phrase tomorrow.

Marco: Alright, so, but it’s interesting to know, because there is a famous song that has this phrase in it, so, bad to the bone.

Erika: Alright, so, the car was so cool, it was bad to the bone that all of the l… ladies would be wanting to get with the driver.

Marco: Alright, so, somebody wants to get with you.

Erika: He just wants to get with you. So, if you wanna get with someone, you have… you wanna have sex with them.

Marco: Right, so, if you wanna get with someone, basically, it means that you want to have sex with them, but there’s another phrase that was used in the dialogue that means pretty much the same thing.

Erika: Yeah, to do the nasty.

Marco: To do the nasty.

Erika: They’re doing the nasty.

Marco: Okay, now, this was a very popular way of saying it in the 80’s, it means…

Erika: Yeah.

Marco: To have sex as well.

Erika: Yeah. But it… but this one is a little bit rude, isn’t it?

Marco: Yeah, I think it’s a little bit more direct.

Erika: Yeah.

Marco: If you and your friend are talking and you say “Hey, I think that girls wants to get with you”, it’s a little bit more casual and less obvious.

Erika: Yeah, yes. Do the nasty is a little bit more, mm, a little more rude.

Marco: Yeah, a little bit more direct.

Erika: Yeah.

Marco: And now, the last phrase that we’re gonne look at today was made famous by the cartoon the Simpsons.

Erika: Uhu, and it’s don’t have a cow.

Marco: Don’t have a cow, man.

Erika: Don’t have a cow.

Marco: So, to not have a cow. Don’t have a cow means…

Erika: Uh, to get really angry, to, uh… to freak out, to get upset.

Marco: Alright, so, now, we know that you say “Don’t have a cow”. But can I say it and use it in the positive? Can I say “Hey, my boss totally had a cow today in the office”?

Erika: Yeah, and it means again, so, it… freaked out, got angry, made a big deal of something.

Marco: Okay, he had a cow.

Erika: Yeah, so, “Frank’s gonna have a cow when he finds out I smashed his car”.

Marco: Of course, Frank is gonna have a cow. How can you smash his car? Alright, but now it’s time for us to listen to this dialogue for the last and then we’ll come back and talk a little bit more about this decade of the 1980’s.

Erika: Okay, so, Marco, when I was listening to the dialogue this time, I heard a really cool word, um, they said psych.

Marco: Right, now this was a very popular thing during the 80’s when you would say to somebody “Psych!”

Erika: So, this is like saying “Just kidding”, right?

Marco: Just kidding, right. So, you would say “Oh, Erica, I really like your hat”.

Erika: Oh, thank you.

Marco: Psych! That hat is terrible.

Erika: Oh.

Marco: Hehe. Right? So, that’s how you would use it, you would…

Erika: Okay.

Marco: Give somebody a compliment or you would lie to somebody…

Erika: Yeah.

Marco: And then tell them “Psych” and then like tell them the truth, like “Oh, that hat is terrible” or “Oh, I was just kidding”.

Erika: Okay, so, psych, what a great phrase.

Marco: Psych. It was very, very popular and when… when I was in school, we would use it as well, we would psych each other out.

Erika: So, do we still use this phrase today?

Marco: I don’t think we use it today. I don’t think it’s cool anymore.

Erika: Well, if you’d use it, it’s kind of like you’re joking, right?

Marco: Yeah, and I think it would make people laugh like “Huh-huh”, you know, that’s pretty funny.

Erika: Yeah, you’re joking about how you’re a little bit old-fashioned.

Marco: Hehe. Exactly.

Erika: Yeah.

Marco: I’m very sure you would surprise a lot of your native En… English speaking friends if you use this phrase.

Erika: Hm, a good one to try out. Now, if you have any questions about this phrase or any other of the language, come to our website at englishpod.com.

Marco: Right, we’re there to answer all your questions and also let us know any other lessons or topics that you would like to learn about in the future.

Erika: Well, thanks for listening to this lesson you guys and until next time… Good bye!

Marco: Bye!