nineties

nineties
nineties (n.) 1857 as the years of someone's life between 90 and 99; 1848 as a decade of years in a given century; 1849 with reference to Fahrenheit temperature. See NINETY (Cf. ninety).
Many still live who remember those days; if the old men cannot tell you the exact date, they will say: 'It were in the nineties;' (etc.) ["Chambers's Journal," Nov. 1, 1856]
In Britain, the naughty nineties was a popular name 1920s-30s for the 1890s, based on the notion of a relaxing of morality and mood in contrast to earlier Victorian times. In U.S., gay nineties in reference to the same decade is attested from 1927, and was the title of a regular nostalgia feature in "Life" magazine about that time.
The long, dreary blue-law Sunday afternoons were periods of the Nineties which no amount of rosy retrospect will ever be able to recall as gay, especially to a normal healthy boy to whom all activities were taboo except G. A. Henty and the bound volumes of Leslie's Weekly of the Civil War. [Life, Sept. 1, 1927]

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • nineties — ineties n. pl. 1. The decade from 1890 to 1899; as, the gay nineties. [WordNet 1.5] 2. The decade from 1990 to 1999; as, they spent a ton of money to solve the Y2K bug in the nineties. [WordNet 1.5] 3. The time of life between ages 90 and 100.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • nineties — see eighties …   Modern English usage

  • nineties — UK [ˈnaɪntɪz] / US noun [plural] the nineties in your nineties …   English dictionary

  • Nineties — Ninety Nine ty, n.; pl. {Nineties}. 1. The sum of nine times ten; the number greater by a unit than eighty nine; ninety units or objects. [1913 Webster] 2. A symbol representing ninety units, as 90 or xc. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • nineties — noun 1. the decade from 1890 to 1899 (Freq. 1) • Syn: ↑1890s • Hypernyms: ↑decade, ↑decennary, ↑decennium 2. the decade from 1990 to 1999 • Syn: ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • Nineties Vs. Eighties — EP by Girls Against Boys Released 1990 …   Wikipedia

  • nineties — noun a) The decade of the 1990s. b) The decade of the 1890s …   Wiktionary

  • nineties — n. years from 1990 1999, decade of the 1990s nine·ty || naɪntɪ n. number 90 adj. being 90 in number …   English contemporary dictionary

  • nineties — einstein …   Anagrams dictionary

  • Nervous nineties — The Nervous Nineties is a commonly used term in cricket.[1][2][3] The term refers to a specific form of analysis paralysis, when a batsman feels when he has scored more than 90 runs in a test innings, and is nervous because of the pressure and… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”