January 5, 2009


In exactly which year

did washboard abs become six-pack abs?

(Tangent: Has Sarah Palin made it impossible for ‘liberals’ to say six-pack without wincing?)

comments

10 Responses to “In exactly which year”

  1. Mike Dresser on January 5th, 2009 at 1:49 pm

    I’m Joe Four-Pack. My effete, craft beer drinking ways find me often buying beer marketed in foursomes (presumably to avoid going too far over the $10 price point, which scares off the bargain-minded).

  2. Sheila Ryan on January 5th, 2009 at 1:52 pm

    Six-pack abs has always sounded funny to me. Either I think of the abdominal consequences of six-pack consumption, or the phrase “one can (or beer) shy of a six-pack” pops to mind.

    Washboard abs makes ever so much more sense.

  3. Cooper Renner on January 5th, 2009 at 1:53 pm

    I’m Joe Four-Eyes.

  4. Michael Smith on January 5th, 2009 at 1:54 pm

    I’d say around 1992.

    My craft beer drinking ways are, probably, to blame for the fact that nobody has ever used washboard or six-pack in a description of my abs.

  5. Michael Smith on January 5th, 2009 at 1:55 pm

    My guess is that a large number of people with, “washboard” abs have never seen an actual washboard.

  6. Sheila Ryan on January 5th, 2009 at 1:57 pm

    Mmmnh, good point, Michael. Placed in that context, washboard abs takes on a kind of dance-of-death quality.

  7. Kris on January 5th, 2009 at 4:29 pm

    It still seems to be washboard here in Tasmania.

  8. Kári on January 5th, 2009 at 5:49 pm

    The OED does indeed give the first instance as 1992, but that of course doesn’t mean a) that it originated in that year or b) that that was the exact year of the switch.

    six-pack n. colloq. a set of well-developed abdominal muscles; a lean, muscular midriff.
    1992 Los Angeles Times (Nexis) 30 Sept. C6/1 Rousseve believes his stomach muscles to be quite defined, but not quite as defined as someone with a total *six-pack.

  9. Michael Smith on January 6th, 2009 at 8:15 am

    And I thought I was just making up that 1992 thing.

  10. Doc on January 6th, 2009 at 8:41 am

    in the mid 60s, on some bone dry base while running forever, we would have said “cut”.

    so…post-60’s and pre-90s, what?

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