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Nov 2, 2023 · The meaning depended heavily on context and who exactly was saying it. Nonetheless, the unambiguously racist connotation eventually won out by the late 20th century. It‘s vital modern audiences understand "spades" began as coded slang, which allowed overt racism to lurk behind innocuous references to the popular card suit.
- "Call A Spade A Spade"
- "Hip-Hip Hooray"
- "Grandfather Clause" Or "Grandfathered In"
- "Paddy Wagon"
- "The Itis"
Until recently, I genuinely thought this phrase only meant "call it like it is." I grew up hearing it, and even though I've never used it that often (mainly because I just don't think it's that commonplace among millennials), I didn't think there was anything problematic about the term. However, after doing some research, I'm definitely not using i...
This is yet another phrase that wasn't initially racist, but has developed racist connotations over time. Furthermore, the way in which this cheery exclamation got its racist meaning will make you sick to your stomach. "Hip-hip hooray" developed from the German "hep hep," (which was a harmless, adorable call shepherds would use when herding their s...
Of all the phrases on this list, I have probably heard this one used, and used it myself, more than any of the others. And now that I know where it comes from, I feel pretty horrible about how cavalierly I've tossed it around in the past. In case you aren't familiar "grandfather clause," or the act of being "grandfathered in," Merriam-Webster defin...
If you've ever used the term "paddy wagon"to describe a police car, you should know the root of this phrase is incredibly offensive. "Paddy" is actually a shortened form of "Patrick,"which began being used in the 1700s as a derogatory term for Irish people. As for "wagon," as you've probably already gathered, it's simply meant to refer to any type ...
Fortunately, I personally haven't heard "the itis" used very often, but it is a term that still exists among modern English speakers, even though it really shouldn't. The term refers to a racist stereotype of lethargy which used to be associated with black Americans. Even typing about the origin of this termmakes me really uncomfortable, but in cas...
Sep 23, 2013 · Case in point, the expression "to call a spade a spade." For almost half a millennium, the phrase has served as a demand to "tell it like it is." It is only in the past century that the phrase ...
Nov 15, 2011 · The origin of the phrase doesn't have any racial connotations (as jwpat7 and FumbleFingers showed), but you should be careful how you use it because of the derogatory meaning of the word spade. In some situations it would be clear that only the original meaning was intended, but in other situations it might be misinterpreted as wordplay on both expressions.
Nope. You got it the first time, according to etymonline: Derogatory meaning "black person" is 1928, from the color of the playing card symbol. I think the simile "black as a spade" was used before the "black as a" part got omitted, though I have no evidence for that. My grandmother used to describe particularly dark-skinned black people as ...
Feb 25, 2022 · So for the last one hundred years, “to call a spade a spade” has taken on a new, racialized meaning. There was an attempt during the civil rights movement to reclaim the word “spade.”. Ted ...
Apr 1, 2003 · (Adj) The same. But more so. At a higher level.
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Why is Spades a slang word?
What does a spade mean?
When did 'spade' become a racist slur?
Is “call a spade a spade” a racial slur?
Is'spades' a derogatory term?
What does a black spade mean?
