1920s Slang For Fun (Helpful Content!)

Common slang terms for fun in the 1920s included terms like “jumpin’”, “on a toot,” or “berries”. These were terms that would describe going out and having fun, or a particularly fun or eventful night or show. “The cat’s pajamas” was another common term used to describe something most fun and excellent.

The 1920s were a time of extremely fun and interesting slang.

Many different and colorful terms arose to describe every aspect of life, and if there’s one thing that the 1920s, in the U.S. in particular, were known for, it was the roaring parties and fun everyone was having.

With that, came a lot of slang words to describe it.

Let’s find out more.

What did they call fun in the 1920s?

There were many different terms for fun in the 1920s.

Of course, a lot of the terms we use today, including simply the word “fun”, were widely used during the 1920s.

It’s worth mentioning most of the terms we use for fun were still in use back then!

However, there were also many specific terms of the 1920s that arose during the decade and fell largely out of use after it was over.

One such term was “jumpin’”.

This term could have a couple of subtly different senses, but usually, you would say something like “the joint is jumpin’”, in the sense that a bar or event was “jumpin’”.

Of course, in the States, bars and alcohol were illegal at this time—but that did not stop them from existing!

Another term you’d use for having fun in the 1920s was “on a toot”.

This was most often used in the context of going for a long night of drinking and dancing with your friends, and particularly you would say in the middle of it that you were “on a toot” if you were having lots of fun.

“Berries” was a term used in the 1920s to describe something that was very good, usually used in the context of describing a very fun night or anything fun you happened to be doing.

“This night is absolute berries!” for example.

This was very common and something you never really hear today.

Finally, a quintessentially 1920s slang term for fun was “the cat’s pajamas”.

This was used throughout the 1920s, both in the United States and in the U.K., to mean something that was very fun, first-rate, the best of the best. It could be used in lots of contexts.

“This new speakeasy is the cat’s pajamas,” for example.

Where do we get all these terms, then?

Why did they say “jumpin’” in the 1920s?

“Jumpin’” was mostly an African American slang term used during the 1920s and 30s, popularized by various popular jazz musicians of the time such as Fats Waller.

The sense is simply that when a “joint”, that is a bar or dancehall, is really lively and fun, the joint itself is “jumping” because everyone inside has so much energy.

Essentially, then, the term “jumping” meant a very fun and eventful night, usually of drinking in a bar though it didn’t always have to be—it could mean any fun event.

Why did they say “on a toot” in the 1920s?

It’s not really clear where precisely this term came from.

“Toot” had been a common term in the United States for something that was very fun long before the 1920s, but during this time it took on the longer form “on a toot”.

There are many analogues in the modern day, such as “on a bender”.

As you can see, this term specifically referred to having fun while very drunk.

It’s thought that it simply relates to “tooting” a horn in the sense that you are “tooting” the bottles or perhaps singing from your drunkenness.

We just don’t know for sure.

Why did they say “berries” in the 1920s?

Again, we don’t really know where the term “berries” in this context came from.

It was often used just in the sense of “this is excellent” or “really fun”. It’s thought it just relates to the sweetness and popularity of berries at the time, whether eaten raw or cooked into pies and confectionery.

Berries were very popular in the U.S. at this time, and for a long time before, so this is the simplest explanation.

Again, though, given that this term is not really used anymore, it’s very difficult to say with any precision where it comes from.

Why did they say “the cat’s pajamas” in the 1920s?

This term was coined by a cartoonist named T.A. Dorgan, who was active in the 1920s.

It meant something that was outstanding or very good, and so it came to be used in the sense of very fun in the 1920s.

It’s just a sort of nonsense term that doesn’t have any specific meaning in the actual words, but rather is simply a nice sounding slang phrase.

Compare it to the modern “the bee’s knees”—this doesn’t really mean that bees knees are very cool and fun.

It just means that something which is “the cat’s pajamas” is extremely good.

So, there were a lot of very unique slang terms at this time for describing fun.

Whether it was the kind of all-night-long drinking and dancing fun or just the simpler aspects of a fun time, there was probably a specific term to describe it.

Maybe it’s time we brought some of these terms back!

More in 1920s Slang

• 1920s Slang For Alcohol
• 1920s Slang For Cool
• 1920s Slang For Crazy
• 1920s Slang For Dancing
• 1920s Slang For Fun
• 1920s Slang For Man
• 1920s Slang For Money
• 1920s Slang For Nonsense
• 1920s Slang For Party
• 1920s Slang For Police
• 1920s Slang For Woman