Two Cents Plain
"Two cents plain" in the lower east side of the 1920s and 1930s meant a glass of seltzer water. Harry Golden's 1959 New York memoir of this title helped to popularize the old term.…
Texas (Lone Star State Dictionary)
Two Dow Shay (two show day)
"Two dow shay" is a spoonerism for "two show day." Two shows a day is a business day in the theater, and the joke is that it's so exhausting that even the term can't…
Two Face (chocolate and rainbow sprinkles)
Mister Softee ice cream trucks feature “Two Face”—a soft-serve vanilla ice cream cone with half chocolate sprinkles and half rainbow sprinkles. The term "two face" has been cited in…
Two Left Feet (clumsy at dancing)
A person who has "two left left" is clumsy and can't do various things, such as dance, play soccer, or march. The "two left feet" expression was popularized by…
Two New Yorks; Other New York; How the Other Half Lives
"Two New Yorks" or "Other New York" was the campaign theme of Bronx borough president Fernando Ferrer, who ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 2001. It is also the theme for his…
Two-Napkin, Three-Napkin, Four-Napkin or Five-Napkin Burger
A one napkin/two napkin/three napkin/four napkin/five napkin burger is a hamburger so loaded with natural juices that it requires several napkins to eat it. "Two-napkin hamburger" has…
Two-Sewer Man (stickball term)
Entry in progress -- B.P. Newspapers.com26 April 1967, Daily News (New York, NY), "When You and I Were Young, Kiddo!" by Bill Gallo, pg. 38, col. 2:A TWO-SEWER MAN -- When you hit the…
Twofer
In the days just after World War II and before the Times Square TKTS. booth, sagging Broadway shows would offer "two-fers." These are two tickets for the price of one. 5 July 1947, New…
Twok (“fork” with two prongs/tines)
"Fork" does not have the number "four" in it, but some people believe that a "fork" with three prongs/tines should be called a "threek." It then follows that…
TWTW (The Will To Win)
Ken "The Hawk" Harrelson, the television broadcast announcer for the Chicago White Sox, was interviewed by MLB network host Brian Kenny on April 25, 2013. Harrelson said that he…
Tylerite (inhabitant of Tyler)
"Tylerite” is the name of an inhabitant of Tyler, Texas. The name “Tylerite” has been cited in print since at least 1880. Wikipedia: Tyler, TexasTyler is a city in and the county seat of…
Typhoid Mary
"Typhoid Mary" is one of the few persons of any sort to have an entry in the Oxford English Dictionary. She has been the subject of several books and a PBS Nova documentary investigation.…
Typing Pool or Stenography Pool (press corps nickname)
A press corps (such as the White House press corps) often simply repeats what a government administration declares, without additional reporting. Members of a lazy press corps have been derided as…
Tyranny of Good Intentions
The "tyranny of good intentions" occurs, for example, when government legislates lifestyle choices, such as what light bulb is acceptable, or what toilet is acceptable, or what amount of…
U Signed the Motherfucking Contract (“USMC” backronym)
"U Signed the Motherfucking Contract" is a backronym (back acronym) of "USMC" (United States Marine Corps). "U Signed the Motherfucking Contract" has been cited in…
U Suckers Missed Christmas (“USMC” backronym)
"U Suckers Miss(ed) Christmas" is a backronym (back acronym) of "USMC" (United States Marine Corps). "U Suckers Missed Christmas" has been cited in print since at…
U. S. Open (tennis)
The U. S. Open (tennis) did not begin in New York, and it can probably be played anywhere in the United States. However, the first modern U. S. Open was held at the West Side Tennis Club in Forest…
U.S. Chamber of Crony Capitalism (U.S. Chamber of Commerce nickname)
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is an American lobbying group that represents the interests of many businesses. Conservative radio talk show host Mark Levin criticized the group in December 2013:…
U’ve Been Sacked (UBS nickname)
UBS (originally the Union Bank of Switzerland) is one of the world's largest banks and has several branches in Manhattan. When Union Bank of Switzerland and Swiss Bank Corporation announced a…
Ugly Sticks or Ugli Sticks (breadsticks)
"Prices range from $3.95 for ugly sticks (bread sticks)" was printed in the South Bend (IN) Tribune on October 3, 2005, in a review of Bob's 19th Hole (South Bend, IN). "Visit…