Eighty-six is slang for refusing service to a customer or getting rid of something, with its origins possibly coming from rhyming slang for 'nix' (to reject).
Eighty-six es un término del argot que significa negarse a servir a un cliente o deshacerse de algo. Su origen es incierto, pero se teoriza que podría ser una rima para "nix" (vetar o rechazar).
| Word | eighty-six |
|---|---|
| Date | April 20, 2017 |
| Type | verb |
| Syllables | ay-tee-SIKS |
| Etymology | If you work in a restaurant or bar, you might eighty-six (or "eliminate") a menu item when you run out of it, or you might eighty-six (or "cut off") a customer who should no longer be served. Eighty-six is still used in this specific context, but it has also entered the general language. These days, you don't have to be a worker in a restaurant or bar to eighty-six something—you just have to be someone with something to get rid of or discard. There are many popular but unsubstantiated theories about the origin of eighty-six. The explanation judged most probable by Merriam-Webster etymologists is that the word was created as a rhyming slang word for nix, which means "to veto" or "to reject." |
| Examples | The bar's policy is that bartenders have both the authority and responsibility to eighty-six customers who disrupt other patrons. "He eighty-sixed the last reform once he was safely re-elected, saying he wanted to give municipalities more time to get ready for the change." — Brian O'Neill, The Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) Post-Gazette, 14 June 2007 |
| Definition | : (slang) to refuse to serve (a customer); also : to get rid of : throw out |
Tags: wordoftheday::verb
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