Obsolete Words Reveal Our True Age

Recently I read an article titled, “40 Words that Reveal Your True Age.” The main theme of the article is that even if a person was born and raised in the 20th century, we are now living in the 21st century, so it’s time to stop talking as if your favorite TV show is “Welcome Back, Kotter.”

There are some phrases on the list that I never use, such as: ice box, milkman, and slide rule. But I do remember my parents saying those words.

Here are some words that are obsolete today, but which I frequently employ in my everyday speech:

Rolodex – Maybe some people still use a Rolodex, but I threw mine away in about 1995. However, when I need to find someone’s phone number, I often say, “Let me check my Rolodex,” as I open the “contacts” app on my smart phone.

Dictionary – We probably still have a dictionary somewhere in our home, but I haven’t touched it in at least two decades. I find that the dictionary.com website is a whole lot quicker, although I still say, “I’ll look it up in the dictionary.”

Answering machine – I’m pretty sure I mostly say “voice mail” nowadays, but I will occasionally say something like this to my wife, “Oh, the red light’s blinking on the phone. I’ll check the answering machine.”

Cassette tape – I still own cassette tapes, but I no longer have any cassette players to play them. I’m not sure why I continue to hold onto these tapes, but some of them are my most favorite mixtapes of the 1970s and ‘80s, and it would be sad to see them go. By the way, the word “mixtape” is also on the obsolete word list. The correct word now is “playlist.”

Flash bulb – I’m pretty sure I don’t use this phrase anymore, but I have fond memories of Christmas mornings in the 1960s and giggling with my siblings as our dad extracted a used flash bulb and swore under his breath when it burned his fingers. Then he quickly popped in a fresh one so he could damage our little retinas some more while capturing the joyful moment in pictures.

Operator – I recently uttered this sentence: “Just call the operator and see if she has their current phone number.” First off, I’m not even sure if there are operators working for the phone company anymore. And secondly, if there are, why would they automatically be “she”? I know that makes it seem like I was raised in the 1800s, but in my defense, I said that because we couldn’t find the current phone number using Google, Bing, Siri, Alexa, and Ask Jeeves. (If you’re not sure what “Ask Jeeves” is, or more accurately, was, just Google it.)

Carbon copy – I certainly remember the carbon copy days, especially when I put the carbon paper in backwards and instead of making a copy, I ended up with my page being typed on both sides of the same piece of paper. I don’t currently use the phrase “carbon copy,” but when I want multiple copies of a document, I do say the next word…

Xerox – There was a time when the Xerox company was so dominant, copy machines, regardless of the actual manufacturer, were known as “Xerox machines.” Now, I’m not even sure the firm still exists.

The article I read warned that if you still use these obsolete words and phrases, other people will know how old you are. Hmm, I’m pretty sure regardless of the words I use, the gray hair and deep lines on my face send the clear message: this guy’s favorite TV show is “Welcome Back, Kotter.”