When did Americans start using the word 'ASS' all the time?

It all started when the Production Code approved my saying "Come on, Dover, move your bloomin' arse."

I hate it. It makes people sound so common. When I was growing up the word was never on TV, and then it seemed it became commonplace in the 90s.

I should add that I still hate the word "waitress" more.

[quote]When I was growing up the word was never on TV, and then it seemed it became commonplace in the 90s.

For the last time, it was [bold]not[/bold] my idea to sell my "I lost my ass in Vegas" cup at that yard sale.

I'm an ass man, so I rather like it.

Even I didn't use that word, but I used practically every other synonym I could think of.

The influence of Black American English and slang is the reason for that. Once Richard Pryor, blaxploitation cinema, Eddie Murphy, along with Hip Hop, became more mainstream and popular with the masses, that vernacular became commonplace with many Americans.

Hell, I still hear older white women using that one played-out line from the 90s, "You go girl!" The Hip Hop listening white fratboys sound no different than working-class black youth. "Bitch-ass, faggoty-ass, broke-ass, dumb-ass, stupid-ass, lame-ass," .etc, can all be heard from a variety of Americans who are accustomed to the slang.

I hate "you go, girl" so much, I sometimes will insult someone by calling him or her a you go girl.

R7 is the antiquated reference, racist etymologist. Get off my lawn Eddie Murphy and take those tired-ass Hip Hop bitches with you!

Don't we have a hair across our ass this morning op?

Here's another American chestnut for you, R9: Kiss my ass!

There's nothing racist about what I said. Learn to read and comprehend. How you could jump to that conclusion is laughable and pathetic. Nowhere did I say that there's anything wrong with Americans using language like that. (Well, I did complain about "you go girl!" only because it's painfully outdated.) Of course, you're projecting your insecurities and ignorance into something that wasn't even present in my comments.

I love American English vernacular and slang in all its forms because the style is always changing and evolving due to the many cultures and ethnicities in the country. I didn't call the change "common" or "ghetto" like many others would do at DL.

So take your accusation of "racism" and shove it.

R9, clearly a "RACIST!" diatribist, once again mistakes keen observation for "RACISM!"

You really ought to be kept back a grade, R9, until you learn basic word meanings.

I always thought it came from using established words like "jackass" or "dumbass," that people thought they could just add "ass" an intensifier to any other word.

Isn't it a derivative of the English/German "arse?"

"Arse" is proof we were right rebelling against the British.

That is bad ass.

bout the same time you chaps started saying "bloody" good time id say.

Blame Canada!

Fuck off limey. We hear you saying "arse", "bloody" and "brilliant" every time you talk. "Ass" is just how a lot of people under 50 speak these days, get over it.

"Brilliant" is no more brilliant than "awesome" is awesome.

Why do brits say bloody? Did it come out of the war?

I'd better get put of here or my boss will have my ass in a sling

You've got that ass backwards

My ass, your face

He's got a bad case of grabass

Your ass is grass!

My ass is on the line here

You bet your ass you're in trouble

Y'all better haul ass and git now!

He's a real badass

That guy? Don't worry, he's a candy ass.

She can't tell her ass from her elbow

He can't find his ass with both hands

I gotta cover my ass and make sure this isn't my fault

Op, it's been researched.

And not one time did R22 need to substitute the non-word "arse."

We wuz shoved in thar ass to elbow!

You better get your ass in gear, buddy.

I don't give a rat's ass.

I got my ass handed to me on a platter

They did a half-assed job

My dad's a real hardass

His head's so far up his ass he can taste brylcreme

Thats a kickass bike

You can kiss your ass goodbye!

[quote]His head's so far up his ass he can taste Brylcreem.

An MCM insult. I like it.

What a pain in the ass you are

Stop being such a smartass

Those Jell-O shots knocked me off my ass

Yeah, they knocked me on my ass, too.

You don't have to be such a tightass, you know

You just pulled those numbers out of your ass

What crawled up your ass and died?

That's a nice piece of ass

Umma open up a canna whoop ass and got yo town on you

Hey lardass! Oops, sorry Miss Kardashian

Kiss my ass!

Yeah, my ass you finished that report

What kinda bug crawled up her ass?

He done got a stick so far up his ass he caint bend down and pick up a gum wrapper

What kind of dumbass solution is that?

Looks like the asscrack of doom

They wuz bareassed nekkid!

I laughed my ass off at that paper you wrote.

But I worked my ass off on that!

Don't be such a wise ass

R7 and R11. 7/11. But your theory probably IS racist, because you made it up, your examples are lame and it simply is not true. Ass and asshole are primarily white people words, historically and culturally. Black Americans and Islanders can maybe take credit for modifying the use of the word ass for emphasis of an adjective, as in "it's a hot ass day" or "You're a stupid ass man."

Bitch and muthafucka would be more appropriate words for your "keen observations" and narrow perspective: The time frame of the 1970s to 1990s, aka when your ass was under 40 and you were immersed in the pop culture of Pam Grier and The Beastie Boys. But bitch and motherfucker couldn't get your POV on this thread and they predate Samuel Jackson and Eddie Murphy anyway. They were complimentary exclamations before anything else in the black jazz community.

We can agree that words and their contexts evolve in interesting ways but I won't kiss your ass or genuflect in front of a retired schoolteacher attempting to sound like a urban anthropologist. Next time, don't write a check your old white ass can't check me boo. Get it? Watch your language boy. You were pretty proud of yourself for not using the word ghetto, why? There are all kinds of ghettos. It's the ghetto or the grave right here on DL, son.

It's fun to make up shit, right R7? Black folks DO like to say the word shit, true dat!

In the butt, Bob.

I have heard people say "don't write checks yo ass can't cash" -- but that was a few years ago.

I'll open up a can of whoop-ass on you

Ass-hat

Ass-napkin

The ass-crack of dawn

Blowhard Assclown

I didn't make anything up, R29, nor did I say "asshole" or "ass" were Black American words. Put on your bifocals, go back and read what I wrote, and stop with the Professor Higgins routine. The examples I used specifically pointed out that using "ass" as an adjective or intensifier is influenced by Black American English. I didn't say Black people invented the word "ass." Jesus, learn how to fucking comprehend what you're reading.

The rest of your bullshit wasn't even worth reading. You pretty much assume you know my race and because of that you label me "racist" for not sharing the same opinion as you. You immediately assumed that I was some old, white conservative ideologue bemoaning about the decline of the English language which isn't or wasn't the case.

So, yeah, fuck you. I don't have to sound like an "urban anthropologist," but I am interested in language and slang, and if my comment offended you so much, well... I don't give a rat's ass. Suck it up and learn how to accept that people have different views about culture and language.

R29, you have a burr up your ass.

All this talk about [italic]ass[/italic] is giving me a boner...

You smell like ass!

Asshat and ass clown are flyover terms. East and West Coast say asshole. Letterman could say ass hat and ass clown and smells like ass on his show. But he could not say asshole on tv. To us, those expressions are like saying, "screwed" instead of "fucked."

That's screwed up.

You're screwed.

We say 'that's fucked up' and 'you're fucked.'

We're not on tv broadcasting to parts of the country that don't allow bad words.

Interesting

It is ubiquitous now

Is that the Ruby Wax interview with Sandra, OP?