Aggie slang from 1942, 1983 – and submit yours for 2025!

1942

Some terms from the 1942 booklet The Cadence, the first edition of an official reference guide for Texas A&M cadets that is still updated and published today:

Aggie — One of us; derived from the first word of A&M. Agriculture.

A.W.O.L. — The act which costs a cadet senior Court trial. Absent without official leave.

Batt — The Battalion, student newspaper. Freshmen should acquaint themselves early with its importance.

Bird Dog — The third party of “three’s a crowd.”

Bleed — To gripe.

Bryan 400 — That select group of Bryan’s feminine society which allows itself to be dated only by Seniors.

Brass — Metal buttons, buckles, and insignia on uniforms. 

Bugle Stand — That spot from which the tempo of our busy days is emitted.

Bull — Superfluous conversation.

Bull, The — That rarely seen individual whose existence shadows and knows our every move, the Commandant.

Bull Ring — Disciplinary drill for the purpose of removing excess rams.

Bull Session – Talk-fest.

Bull Text — Military science.

Bust — 1. To reduce to ranks. 2. To fail a course.

Bust Out — Civilian again; dismissal because of scholastic embarrassment.

Buzzard Busters — Cadets of the Coast Artillery Regiment; anti-aircraft, a specialty.

Cadence, The — The Freshman’s Bible.

Calisthenics — Our early morning exercises.

Chicken — 1. One who is unfair or takes advantage of another Aggie. 2. Low or dirty trick.

Civies — A senior’s comfort, underclassmen’s envy; civilian clothes.

Corps Dance — Saturday night dance which all Aggies may attend except freshmen without dates.

Corps Trip — Journey made by the entire Corps of Cadets to witness out-of-town football game.

C.Q. — Freshmen and sophomores study while juniors and seniors play; Call to quarters.

Crop Failure — Satirical expression for an expensive automobile.

Cuffs — Dirt catchers; that turned-up distinction for juniors' and seniors' trouser legs, now suspended for the duration.

Cuff-Conscious — Juniors with heads swelled over their newly acquired authority.

Cut — Class absence.

Day-Dodger — Non-dormitory student.

Dean’s Team – List of students passing less than ten hours of work; candidates for one-way Corps trips.

Detail — 1. Selected for some special service. 2.  Body or persons so selected.

Dusty — An Aggie short in stature, built too close to the ground.

East Gate — Main entrance to the College.

Ex — A former student.

Feather-legs — One who uses chicken practices.

Final Review — The last parade of the year; farewell to the seniors.

Fish — The first-year cadet.

Fish Day – The worm turns; Fish gain recognition and privileges.

Fish Stripe — That mark of lowly distinction worn on a Fish’s left shirt cuff.

Flaming Onion — The insignia of the Ordnance Department.

Float-Out — An insult.

Fluff-Off — The well-known “brush-off.” To snub, to slight, or to humiliate.

Flunk — To fail a course.

Foreign Legion — The Corps Headquarters organizations, mostly made up of juniors and seniors without contracts.

Fourth Year Private — Senior without cadet rank.

George’s — North Gate sub-station; the new area’s business district. [The "new area" was the Corps Quad, built in 1939.]

G.I. — Government-issued equipment.

G.I. Sack — Blouse issued to freshmen and sophomores.

Goldbrick — A slacker. Don’t be one.

G.P. — General principles.

Grade Points — Extra reward in virtue of good grades.

Grade Point Course — A “pushover” course; one in which grade points are easily made.

Handle — Title “Fish” or “Mister” as used before name.

Head-In — Stupid.

Hole — Aggie’s room. Four walls, table, chair and bed.

Horizontal Engineering — Napping.

Ice Cream Pants — Pearl-gray colored breeches and slacks worn by seniors.

Late Lights — Midnight oil; privilege of lights after taps.

Meal Hound — Aggie who takes food from tables other than his own; a freshman privilege.

Military — Excuse from hospital for missing formations and drill.

Military Walk — Ancient street of the old area, running from Sbisa Hall to Guion Hall.

Non-Reg — Non-regulation. 

North Gate — Business district of College Station.

O.B.B. — One Button Boy. Cadet second lieutenant.

O.D. — 1. Officer of the Day. 2. Olive drab (color of Army uniforms).

O.G. — Officer of the Guard.

Old Lady — One who shares your money, shaving cream, tooth paste, etc.; the roommate.

One-Way Corps Trip — Permanent trip home at Dean’s request; scholastic dismissal. 

On The Line — To be on that imaginary line that marks good discipline.

Paddlefeet — Those foot-sore individuals, the Infantrymen.

Pencil Engineering — The arbitrary addition of that certain difference to a wrong answer to make it look correct.

P.O. — Our contact with the outside world; the post office.

Pop Quiz — Those little surprise tid-bits that make us love our profs; daily class tests.

Prexy — The president of A. & M. College.

Prexy’s Moon — The light on the dome of the Academic Building.

Prince of Wales Club – Imaginary organization of Cavalry cadets who have been thrown from their horses.

Privilege — Something rated by virtue of rank.

Project Houses — Cooperative houses in which many Aggies live, sharing expenses.

Rams — Demerits.

Rev — The only co-ed at A. & M. Our dog mascot, Reveille.

Rest — Be quiet. 

R.H.I.P. — Rank Hath Its Privileges.

R.H.I.R. — Rank Hath Its Responsibilities.

Ross Volunteers — Military society named for Lawrence Sullivan Ross, early president of the College.

R.V. Holidays — Easter holidays, during which time the Ross Volunteers remain on the campus for their annual celebration.

Shoot The Bull — To use Bull-like conversation. See: Bull.

Soupy — Eat time. Best-loved bugle call besides “Taps.”

Sign Out — To obtain permission to be absent from your hole after Call to Quarters.

Skip — Driver of a taxi or bus.

Slick-Sleeve — Sophomore or junior without non-commissioned officer’s stripes on his sleeve.

Slick-Shoulder — Senior without cadet officer insignia on his shoulders.

Slip Stick — Magic stick on which everything but money may be found; slide rule.

Stink Bombers — Chemical Warfare cadets.

Socialite — An Aggie who definitely leans toward the night club side of college life.

Suck-Strap — Shoulder strap worn with senior Sam Browne belt.

Sugar Report — That sweet letter from the girl-friend.

Sbisa Volunteers — Aggie waiters in Sbisa Hall.

Teasippers — The students of Texas University.

Thumbing — Aggie transportation; hitch-hiking.

Twelfth Man — That portion of the Aggies not actively engaged in an athletic contest but which backs the team spiritually; and if need be stands ready to play.

Two Per Cent — That 2% of the student body which does not display true Aggie spirit.

Up-Streamer — Person who cheats at hitch-hiking by thumbing a ride above an already waiting group of hitch-hikers.

Wet Head — Sophomore.

West Gate — The west or old entrance to the campus.

Women — See Webster [aka the dictionary, for looking up an unknown word].

Y, The — The Y.M.C.A.

Yell Practice — Sessions in which we work up that old Aggie Spirit by giving forth with our yells.

Aggie Slanguage As Used In The Mess Halls

Artillery — Beans.

Blankets — Hot-cakes.

Blood – Catsup.

Bull Neck — Meat.

Cackle — Eggs.

Cow — Milk.

Cush — Dessert.

Dirt — Black pepper.

Dope — Black coffee.

Dry-Cush — Cookies.

Grease — Butter.

Gum Shoe — Head waiter.

Gun Wadding — Bread.

Horse Feed — Corn.

Mud — Chocolate milk or cocoa.

Mush — Hot cooked cereal.

Popeye — Spinach.

Rabbit — Salad.

Reg — Syrup.

Sand — Salt.

Sand And — Salt and pepper.

Sawdust — Sugar.

Scabs — Flaky cereals.

Shot — Peas.

Shotgun — Pepper sauce.

Shovel — Spoon.

Sky — Water.

Sour – Lemon.

Sour Rabbit — Pickles and onions.

Spuds — Potatoes. 

Stud — Tea.

Sunshine — Carrots or carrots and peas.

Sweetstuff — Jelly or preserves.

Timber — Toothpicks.

Winchester — Worcestershire sauce.

1983

Some terms from a 1983 Aggie slang dictionary published in The Battalion:

Add-Drop — The University calls it “drop-add.” It’s the process one must brave in order to change a class schedule.

Aggie Spirit — This is the undefined, intangible bond between Aggies of all generations.

Association of Former Students — Very loyal and generous group of people. Note that former students are not former Aggies. Call someone a former Aggie and you take your life in your hands.

Bad Bull — Some action which causes harm or detracts from the University’s image. 

Bag Monster — The unseen, yet powerful creature that consistently tries to keep you from getting out of bed.

Bag Rat — One who loses the battle with the Bag Monster.

Batt — Short for The Battalion, the University’s student-produced newspaper. That’s us. 

Blue Book — Nickname for the booklet of blank paper often required by instructors for examinations.

Boo — A sound which falls into the Bad Bull category.

Chicken — A rather unique bar at Northgate, sometimes called the Dixie Chicken. Frequent meeting place for after-exam celebrations and poultry seminars.

Commencement — This is the ceremony that makes it all worthwhile.

Commons — The area central to Krueger, Dunn, Aston and Mosher halls. Contains a dining hall, televisions and ping-pong tables.

C-Rat — Nickname for someone who spends lots of time in the Memorial Student Center.

Cut — To fail to attend class. May occur after losing to the Bag Monster or attending a poultry seminar.

Day Duck — A student who lives off-campus and attends regular classes during the day.

Dead Elephant — This is what seniors are called during their final semester.

Dead Week — The week before finals. No one has figured out why it’s called Dead Week, unless it’s because you may end up dead from over-work by the end of it. 

Dear John Letter — Letter from a dating mate telling you that your company is no longer desired.

F.O.W. — Fish Orientation Week. The week before fall semester classes start when freshman cadets are welcomed to the Corps’ way of life. 

Final — That much-dreaded last examination of the semester. You have to study for this one. Afterwards, you may want to relax at the Chicken (see Chicken entry). 

Final Review — Held by the Corps on graduation day in the spring. Graduating cadets turn over their command to the officers for the following year. 

Fish — Common reference for freshmen. Still wet behind the ears and all that stuff. 

Fish Camp — Held by the Student “Y” just before fall semester classes start. A general orientation to the University and its traditions. If you attended this, be prepared to see people for the next few years who remember you. 

Fish Pond — Fountain next to the A.P. Beutel Health Center. If you want to know what it’s for, just stand next to it and yell, “Hey, it’s my birthday!”

Frog — Cadet who joins the Corps after fall semester classes begin. 

Good Bull — A deed considered to be “all in good fun” and which does not invoke the wrath of other Aggies. 

Grade Points — Very precious, sometimes slippery critters. The object of the game here is to gather enough of these to trade in for a piece of paper called a “diploma.” 

G.P.R. — Grade Point Ratio. The quality thereof depends on how many of the above critters you can gather. 

“Highway 6 runs both ways” — A common saying in these parts. Translated, it means that if you don’t like the way things are here, you can leave. But what about Highway 21? That leads the way to Austin. 

Howdy — Traditional greeting of one Aggie to another. In Aggieland, there’s a whole week to honor the word and its use. 

Humping it — It may sound obscene, but it refers to the stance peculiar to Aggies during a yell.

Instructor — Person who teaches, but who does not hold rank as a professor. 

Jock — An athlete, usually a varsity athlete. We have lots of these. They’re the ones who wear a different pair of athletic shoes to class every day. 

Jollie Rollie — Nickname for G. Rollie White Coliseum. The question no one seems able to answer is how jolly Mr. White really was. 

Kermit People — Descriptive term for cadets who run around campus in formation while wearing fatigues. 

Kicker — One of two things: a person who wears an athletic shoe and kicks a football or one who wears pointed boots and can get the roaches in the corners. 

K.K. — Affectionate term for the University Police. The abbreviation is for Kampus Kops. These are the folks who give bicyclists tickets for running stop signs and call tow trucks for those drivers who somehow forgot to buy parking stickers. 

Mount Aggie — Only in Aggieland can you wear shorts while you snow ski in September. This man-made ski slope is across from East Kyle, near the aerobics track. 

MSC or “C” — The Memorial Student Center. It is a memorial (note the name). You should not wear a hat inside. It’s perfectly acceptable to sit, or even lie down. Oh yeah, don’t have a picnic on the lawn. 

Non-reg — Any student who is not a member of the Corps of Cadets. As you can tell, this is an old term. The Corps is the minority now. 

Northgate — The area just across University Drive from campus. It’s the home of several bars, a few bookstores, some cheap eating places and a theater you wouldn’t want your mother to see. 

Parents’ Weekend — An activity-filled weekend during the spring semester set aside to honor parents of Aggie students. The Aggie Parents of the Year are announced during this weekend. Make your bed, take out the garbage and open the windows to air things out before mom and dad show up. 

Pop Quiz — They make it sound so trivial. This sneaky tactic is used to dupe students into thinking they have a decent grade in a class. Either you have a good quiz grade, and then you find it doesn’t count much, or you have a horrible quiz grade and find out it counts 40 percent of your final grade. Often given the day after you attended a poultry seminar. 

Poultry Seminar — See Chicken entry. 

Quack Shack — This is the name acquired years ago by the A.P. Beutel Health Center. Don’t wonder why. 

R.A. — Abbreviation for resident adviser. These are the folks who try to keep some sort of order in dormitory life. Notice the word “try.” 

Regents — These are the gentlemen (no females, yet) who rule the Texas A&M System. Attend one of their meetings sometime. 

Reveille IV — Mascot of Texas A&M. She’s a collie who attends class, plays frisbee and barks at the sidelines of football and basketball games. 

R.V.’s — Short for the Ross Volunteers, the military honor company named after Lawrence Sullivan Ross. It’s the oldest student organization in Texas and is the official honor guard for the governor of Texas. 

Sco-Pro — Pronounced “scope row.” [Scholastic probation.] This is similar to Skid Row, only it’s for academically troubled souls. Don’t write home about this one. To get off of it, see the entry for Grade Points. 

Slab — Archaic term for Heldenfels Hall. If you hear someone use this term, you can be fairly sure he/she is not graduating on time.

Sssss — It may sound like a rattlesnake pit, but it’s the only disapproval accepted by Aggies. Tradition and good manners say you should not hiss when your opponent does well. Hiss only when something unfair happens.

T.A. — Term often used for teaching assistant. These are graduate students who instruct classes. Be nice to them. They go to school, too. 

Tea sipper — A student at t.u.

t.u. — Affectionate term for the University of Texas at Austin. Used only by Aggies, for Aggies and among Aggies.