![]() CQ is a call that means calling any station, frequently used on the HF bands where you are trying to make contact with anyone anywhere. That is, the transmissions will pass through the ionosphere and travel into space rather than returning to earth to be received by a DX station. Particularly with the higher frequency HF bands like 10-meters and 15-meters, the band may not be open unless solar conditions are very active and the ionosphere is densely charged. A radio band is said to be open when it is reflecting from the ionosphere and allowing long distance contacts by ionosphere skip, or repeated reflections between ionosphere and ground of the radio signals. In a sentence: All the students turned in their papers on Kindred as close to the deadline as possible.Line 6: Elroy, again loaded with jargon, enthusiastically relates his morning DX contacts with two European nations on10 and 15, meaning the 10-meter and 15-meter radio bands. Origin: Both sides kept military prisons for soldiers during the Civil War the boundaries for these prisons-which imprisoned soldiers would be shot if they crossed-were the “dead lines.” Creepy. * Editor note: OK, you probably know what this one means and how to use it, but we had to include it because who knew it originated in military lingo?! Meaning: The absolute latest you can get something in. In a sentence: “Can you pick up the dry cleaning on your walk home?” “Wilco-but you owe me one.” deadline Origin: WWII radio slang, often used in conjunction with roger/roger that. In a sentence: It’s sweet how R-rated movies that seemed so raunchy to our parents in the 1980s are about as vulgar as, say, Boss Baby today. Origin: Spanish American War-era Air Corps slang perhaps adapted by American soldiers inspired by the Spanish word rancho. In a sentence: In Clueless, Cher doesn’t exactly pass her road test with flying colors. Origin: Used as sailors on naval ships saw colored flags at port when returning from a successful mission. was a Jeep back in the States after her years of service, she upgraded her P.O.V. Origin: modern military (technical term used by the government). ![]() In a sentence: Ted found himself in a major snafu: should he return the wallet he found and find its rightful owner or pay off his gambling debt? P.O.V. Origin: 1940s US military- SNAFU is an acronym for the oxymoron “Situation Normal, All Fucked Up,” which suggests the status quo chaos of wartime. First the flight was cancelled, then the hotel was overbooked, and then there was the food poisoning … snafu In a sentence: Spring break’s events seemed to be ruled by Murphy’s Law. Murphy, when he became frustrated with faulty wiring on a project. ![]() Origin: Named after US Air Force captain Edward A. Meaning: The idea that anything that can go wrong, will. In a sentence: “Babe, will you pick up some burgers on the way home?” “ Roger that-and I’ll grab some fries, too.” Murphy’s Law Origin: the NATO phonetic alphabet-a previous version of the alphabet used “Roger” to signify the letter R. Fun fact: Now they use “Romeo.” In a sentence: “Instead of asking me for gum for the umpteenth time, why don’t you just buy yourself a pack?” roger/roger that Origin: Military slang from the early 1900s perhaps influenced by “umpty,” which is a dash in Morse code-the means of communicating at that time. In a sentence: Omar’s dog always wakes up at zero dark thirty demanding to be let outside. Origin: US military timekeeping terminology-any time that’s before 10am is prefixed with “zero,” so zero dark thirty is an unspecified (thirty minute) time before 10am. Meaning: An unknown/undefined time in the early morning. She’ll have to wear a hat for a few months until it grows out. In a sentence: We tried to fix her bangs, but ultimately Courtney’s haircut was fubar. Origin: 1940s US military acronym made up by soldiers to stand for “f*cked up beyond all recognition ” arguably became popular with Americans abroad during WWII due to its similarity to the German term furchtbar (terrible). In a sentence: “ Whiskey tango foxtrot, I can’t believe he double-crossed you like that!” fubar Origin: NATO phonetic alphabet- W for “Whiskey,” T for “Tango,” F for “Foxtrot.” Fun fact: A lot of them make great movie titles or band names. Not many of us keep a Purple Heart framed on our desk, though (i.e., we have no idea what these words and phrases mean even though we hear them all the time). Here’s the best explanations we can come up with as to what these military phrases actually mean (and how to start using them immediately because they’re amazing). ![]() Given the size and manpower of the US Army, it’s no surprise that its lingo has gradually invaded everyday conversation.
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