Hollywood Jargons you never understood!

Hollywood Jargons give movies the rich edge that not only makes the movie characters more realistic but also adds style and appeal to the character.

We usually tend to ignore an officer crying ‘I want a sitrep‘ in the midst of a battle or a detective asking their partner ‘what’s your twenty?‘ when trying to solve a mystery. Even though the flow of the movies often makes us ignore these jargons we all wonder, once in a while, about ‘What the heck does that mean?

Are you also like the rest of us who can’t understand who a ‘Shrink’ or ‘Snitch’ is? If yes, then you are on just the right page. Read our collection of most commonly used Hollywood jargons that most of us never understood and enjoy the Hollywood movies even more.

You won’t find a better place to build your Hollywood vocabulary.

Hollywood Jargons from US Police Department

Cop jargons are the ones that we hear the most and while we understand most of them, there are some that aren’t that easy to comprehend. Mostly, because they are acronyms or slang that aren’t used in common lingo.

BOLO -Be On (the) Look Out. BOLO notices are issued for missing people either a citizen or an escaped con (convict) or for a criminal on the loose.

S.W.A.T. – Special Weapons and Tactics (team). a special section of some law enforcement agencies trained and equipped to deal with especially dangerous or violent situations, as when hostages are being held (often used attributively): a SWAT team.

Snitch – to secretly tell someone in authority that someone else has done something bad, often in order to cause trouble: She thought I’d snitched on her.

Bailed Out – escape, withdraw, get away, retreat, make your getaway, break free or out, make or effect your escape The pilot bailed out safely.

Been Made –to have your cover blown, that is, to have your real identity revealed. Applies to undercover police, secret agents, spies or moles. we have been made = we have been found out.

Jumper – a person who tries to commit suicide by jumping

Military Jargons

AWOL – Absence Without Official Leave (AWOL) is a term used in the United States Military to describe a soldier or other military member when they are absent from their post without valid permission or leave.

Sitrep – is short for situation report and first saw extensive use during World War II. A situation report, militarily speaking, can contain anything from descriptions of troop deployments to details of the aftermath of military conflicts. Sitrep was used as early as September 1941.

Starboard –it means the side of a ship that is on the right when you are facing towards the front of it. In movies, you may have heard the captain of a ship saying ‘Starboard 30 degrees‘ meaning to steer the ship 30 degrees to the right.

HELO – Helo is a slang term for the helicopter. Although the hel part of a helicopter is pronounced with a short e (like hell), helo is sometimes pronounced with a long e and a long o: HEE-low. Helo is most often used as military slang. In general, the slang term chopper is more commonly used to refer to a helicopter.

Kevlar – It refers to a bulletproof vest or sometimes simply the helmet in Hollywood lingo. Although, it actually stands for a heat-resistant and high-strength synthetic fiber made by Dupont, which is used in making racing tyres, racing sails and other products, including bulletproof vests.

Recon – is a shortened form of the military term reconnaissance which is defined as the exploration of an area to gain information. An example of recon is a visit across enemy lines to scope out the enemy positions.

Semper Fi – is short for “Semper Fidelis.” It is a Latin phrase that means “always faithful” or “always loyal”. It is the motto of the United States Marine Corps, usually shortened to Semper Fi. It is also in use as a motto for towns, families, schools, and other military units.

Zero Dark Thirty – A humorous way to declare an unknown time in the wee hours of the morning. Especially used by military personnel to describe an unwanted time to be awake or awaken. Usually pronounced “oh” dark thirty” What time is morning formation?”

Ham Radio Jargons

What’s your Twenty – is part of a system of radio codes called 10-codes, developed in the late 1930s in the US when police squads began using a two-way radio to communicate. One was 10-20, meaning “location.” Asking What’s your 20? emerged as a way to seek another’s whereabouts. It spread into CB radio in the late 1940s and into truck-driving.

10-4 – OK; all right. Used to indicate affirmation or acknowledgment. The phrase comes from CB radio, which was commonly used (especially by truck drivers) before the proliferation of cell phones.
A: “I’m going to pull over up ahead”
B: “10-4.”

Other Hollywood Jargons

Arty – showily or pretentiously artistic.

FUBAR -is short for Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition: If you don’t have a good excuse, then you are FUBAR. The production apparently had its FUBAR moments.

Shrink – is the informal word you can use to talk about a therapist. Talking about your problems with her can hopefully help you shrink them, or make them smaller. The word shrink is related to the Swedish skrynka meaning “to wrinkle.”

E.R.stands for Emergency Room – it is all trauma; you never get to know enough about the patients or get involved with them. It’s just treat-release-and-move on”.

And that’ll be all for today! We’d love to have your comments on how did you like this informative yet fun to read post from the team Piccle. Do leave your comments, they motivate us like anything!