Buzz
You’ve likely referred to it as the John (inspired by Sir John Harrington—godson of Queen Elizabeth I and distant relative of Game of Thrones actor Kit Harington—who pioneered early flush toilets) and the Crapper (named after Thomas Crapper, another key figure in toilet innovation). Perhaps, in less refined moments, you’ve even called it the sh**ter (a term that originally described someone or something that defecates before evolving to mean a toilet in the 1960s). If you’re seeking more inventive ways to talk about the bathroom, consider using one of these slang terms for toilets and toilet paper on your next visit.
1. Necessary House
Since using the bathroom is an essential act, referring to a privy or outhouse as a necessary house is fitting. This term originated in the early 1600s; before it was known as a necessary house, people often called it a necessary place, necessary vault, or necessary stool.
2. Head
Sailors often call their ship’s restroom the head—a term derived from its location in the bow of the vessel, where seawater would naturally wash the area. This usage of head dates back to the early 1700s, as noted by the Oxford English Dictionary (OED).
3. and 4. Shankie and Cludgie
Shankie (sometimes spelled shunkie) and cludgie (or cludge) are charming Scottish slang words for toilets, emerging around the 1970s. “Ah whip oaf ma keks and sit oan the cold wet porcelain shunky,” Irvine Welsh famously wrote in Trainspotting.
5. Garderobe
Originally a term for a storage room for items like armor, by the 1680s, garderobe became synonymous with a privy or toilet—described by one writer of the era as a space for “the private deeds of Nature.”
6. FDR
Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal, launched during the Great Depression, generated numerous jobs through initiatives like constructing major infrastructure projects, including the Hoover Dam, New York’s LaGuardia Airport, San Francisco’s Bay Bridge, and others.
Though less celebrated, the 2.3 million outhouses built in rural areas nationwide under the New Deal were equally vital. (Sanitation and public health are interconnected; these outhouses significantly improved conditions in underserved regions.) These wooden structures—featuring concrete bases and ventilation chimneys—were nicknamed FDRs, Roosevelt Buildings, or Federal Buildings.
7. and 8. Dunnekin and Dunny
The term dunnekin (or dunegan, as noted in Francis Grose’s 1811 Dictionary in the Vulgar Tongue) is 18th-century slang for an outhouse, used in England, Australia, and New Zealand. Its exact origins are unclear, but the OED suggests it may stem from the word dung; according to The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English, it’s “believed to combine ‘danna’ (excrement) and ‘ken’ (house).” In Australia, it’s commonly shortened to dunny.
9. and 10. Bum Fodder and Curl Paper
Why settle for calling it toilet paper when you can use bum fodder or curl paper? Grouse described the former (often used to criticize poorly-written literature) as “soft paper for the necessary house.”
11. Closestool
Described as “a chamber implement” in Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary of the English Language, published in 1759, or, as Merriam-Webster defines it, “a stool containing a chamber pot.”
12., 13., 14., and 15. Looking-Glass, Jockem Gage, Remedy Critch, and Member Mug
These are all slang terms for a chamber pot, as documented in Grouse’s Dictionary in the Vulgar Tongue.
16. Little Office
If you’re an Australian needing a restroom, you might excuse yourself to your little office. (Just avoid scheduling any Zoom calls there.)
17. Telephone
In the 1970s, American college students would often excuse themselves by mentioning they had to make a phone call.
18. and 19. Thelma Ritter and Skyscraper
Rhyming slang can turn almost any idea into something more amusing, and visiting the restroom is a perfect example. Make your way to the Thelma Ritter (a playful term for the toilet, possibly inspired by the name of a famous American actress) and, once finished, grab some skyscraper (also known as toilet paper) to clean your fife and drum (which, of course, means your bottom).
20. Film For Your Brownie
This is yet another clever term for toilet paper, playing on the name of Kodak’s Brownie camera from the early 1970s. (You’ll know you’ve used enough film for your brownie when you draw an ace—a phrase defined in Green’s Dictionary of Slang as “produc[ing] a clean sheet of toilet paper after thoroughly wiping one’s anus.”)
21. Crapping Case
A crapping case refers to a restroom, and it’s also sometimes called a crapping castle, as noted in The Slang Dictionary: Etymological, Historical, and Anecdotal, which was first published in 1874.
22. Khazi
Originally derived from the Italian word casa, meaning “house,” this British slang term evolved to mean “toilet” in the 1930s. It started as casey or carsey before transforming into khazi by the 1970s. The OED suggests that this shift might be linked to the character Khasi of Khalabar in the 1968 film Carry On Up the Khyber, where the name Khasi plays on the word in a humorous and somewhat controversial manner.
23. Gutbucket
The term Gutbucket has multiple slang meanings, one of which, since the 1940s, refers to a toilet.
24. Bog House
As documented in Slang and Its Analogues Past and Present, bog house or bog shop are informal terms for a privy or outhouse. The OED suggests these terms likely combine bog—meaning wet, marshy ground—with house or shop. Another possibility is that bog house derives from the 16th-century term boggard, which also referred to a privy.
25. Biffy
In American slang, biffy has been used to describe a toilet since the 1940s. Interestingly, in the UK during the 1960s, the same word was used to describe someone who was intoxicated.
26. KYBO
As per The Concise New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English, this term for an outdoor restroom is a 1970s acronym standing for Keep Your Bowels in Order.
