When did the word cool start being used?

Chaucer, the Oxford English Dictionary tells us, used cool to describe someone’s wit, Shakespeare to say, “More than cool reason ever comprehends.” But starting around the 1930s, cool began appearing in American English as an extremely casual expression to mean something like ‘intensely good.

Where did the expression cool come from?

Slang use of cool for “fashionable” is by 1933, originally African-American vernacular; its modern use as a general term of approval is from the late 1940s, probably via bop talk and originally in reference to a style of jazz; the word is said to have been popularized in jazz circles by tenor saxophonist Lester Young ( …

Who coined the term cool?

The great tenor saxophonist Lester Young, otherwise known as Prez, could be said to be the person who invented cool – not only as a musical concept, but also as a way of life.

What is the true definition of cool?

Full Definition of cool 1 : moderately cold : lacking in warmth The plant grows best in cool climates. 2a : marked by steady dispassionate calmness and self-control a cool and calculating businessperson. b : lacking ardor or friendliness a cool impersonal manner.

What did Cooler mean in the 1960s?

jail
the cooler [Slang] jail. the fuzz [Slang] a policeman or the police.

What was the slang in the 1950s?

A few examples originating in the 1950s could include “cruisin’ for a bruisin’,” “knuckle sandwich,” “Daddy-O,” “burn rubber,” “party pooper,” “ankle biter,” “get bent,” “cool cat,” and “got it made in the shade.”

How would you describe the 1960s?

Some use the term to describe the decade’s counterculture and revolution in social norms about clothing, music, drugs, dress, sexuality, formalities, and schooling; others use it to denounce the decade as one of irresponsible excess, flamboyance, and decay of social order.