Slut

This unpleasant term is used these days to refer to an immoral or sexually promiscuous woman, but the origin of the term had a more innocuous meaning. It actually meant a woman who did not keep her room tidy. Another early meaning was kitchen maid or drudge. Only later did it begin to mean immorality of a sexual type. In Thomas Hoccleve’s 1402 Letter to Cupid, “The foulest slutte of al a toune.”

In Victorian English, sluts wool referred to the little piles of dust that gather on the floor if it was not swept.

What's in a Name

Iowa and DOA: The state changed the name of its Department of Elder Affairs to the Department on Aging, or DOA, in 2009. It has since learned the unintended consequences of the acronym and changed to IDA, for Iowa Department on Aging.

Sioux City and SUX: The Sioux City Iowa Gateway Airport has the FAA moniker of “SUX.” Airport authorities petitioned for a new code, and the FAA (not a joke) offered them “GAY” recognizing the “Gateway” part of the airport’s name. The city declined. Other contenders are Fresno’s "FAT", and Perm, Russia’s is "PEE."

Seattle and SLUT:  In 2007, Seattle opened a new streetcar line connecting the South Lake Union neighborhood to downtown. The project was officially called the South Lake Union Streetcar, but local residents began calling it the South Lake Union Trolley, or SLUT. The city tried to change the opinion, but residents still refer to it as the SLUT. Some local places sell t-shirts that read, “Ride the SLUT.”