"Over the Top," by an American Soldier Who Went: Together with Tommy's Dictionary of the TrenchesEmpey, Arthur Guy
History
"Over the Top," by an American Soldier Who Went: Together with Tommy's Dictionary of the Trenches
Empey, Arthur Guy
English language -- Slang -- Dictionaries; World War, 1914-1918 -- Personal narratives
Slacker. An insect in England who is afraid to join the Army. There
are three things in this world that Tommy hates: a slacker, a German;
and a trench-rat; it's hard to tell which he hates worst.
"Slag Heap." A pile of rubbish, tin cans, etc.
Smoke Bomb. A shell which, in exploding, emits a dense white smoke,
hiding the operations of troops. When Tommy, in attacking a trench,
gets into this smoke, he imagines himself a magnet and thinks all the
machine guns and rifles are firing at him alone.
Smoke Helmet. See respirator.
Sniper. A good shot whose main occupation is picking off unwary
individuals of the enemy. In the long run a sniper usually gets
"sniped."
Snipe Hole. A hole in a steel plate through which snipers "snipe." It
is not fair for the enemy to shoot at these holes, but they do, and
often hit them, or at least the man behind them.
"Soldiers' Friend." Metal polish costing three ha' pence which Tommy
uses to polish his buttons. Tommy wonders why it is called "Soldiers'
Friend."
"Somewhere in France." A certain spot in France where Tommy has to
live in mud, hunt for "cooties," and duck shells and bullets. Tommy's
official address.
Souvenir. A begging word used by the French kiddies. When it is
addressed to Tommy it generally means, a penny, biscuits, bully beef,
or a tin of jam.
Spy. A suspicious person whom no one suspects until he is caught. Then
all say they knew he was a spy but had no chance to report it to the
proper authorities.
"Spud." Tommy's name for the solitary potato which gets into the stew.
It's a great mystery how that lonely little spud got into such bad
company.
Stand To. Order to mount the fire step. Given just as it begins to
grow dark.
Stand Down. Order given in the trenches at break of dawn to let the
men know their night watch is ended. It has a pleasant sound in
Tommy's ears.
Star Shell. See Flare.
Steel Helmet. A round hat made out of steel which is supposed to be
shrapnel proof. It is until a piece of shell goes through it, then
Tommy loses interest as to whether it is shrapnel proof or not. He
calls it a "tin hat."
Stew. A concoction of the cook's which contains bully beef, Maconochie
rations, water, a few lumps of fresh meat, and a potato. Occasionally
a little salt falls into it by mistake. Tommy is supposed to eat this
mess--he does--worse luck!
"Strafeing." Tommy's chief sport--shelling the Germans. Taken from
Fritz's own dictionary.
Stretcher. A contrivance on which dead and wounded are carried. The
only time Tommy gets a free ride in the trenches is while on a
stretcher. As a rule he does not appreciate this means of
transportation.
"Suicide Club." Nickname for bombers and machine gunners. (No
misnomer.)
Supper. Tommy's fourth meal, generally eaten just before "lights out."
It is composed of the remains of the day's rations. There are a lot of
Tommies who never eat supper. There is a reason.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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