General Discussion

pat_k

(13,761 posts) Tue Apr 28, 2026, 09:59 PM Tuesday

"If anyone asks you where the term 86 originated, tell them what I tell people: I don't really know, but there are ...

...about 86 theories."

What Are the Origins and Meaning of ‘86’?
This slang term dates back to the 1930s.
https://www.history.com/articles/86-meaning

One note in the article stands out:

By the 1950s, according to Merriam-Webster, “86” became a verb, commonly referring to tossing drunken customers out of bars...

Although Merriam-Webster notes some equate “86” with “to kill,” it adds this use is infrequent: “We do not enter this sense, due to its relative recency and sparseness of use.”

I read "relative recency" as "since Comey posted his picture" and "sparseness of use" as "nobody actually uses it this way, but Trump and his cadre claim that's what it means."

Most origin stories are related to restaurant and bar usage. Either being out of something (86 as code for don't take orders, we're out) or a person being 86's (don't serve them, kick them out).

Unconfirmed theories for the term "86" abound. Here are a few of the more popular origin stories, according to St. Louis Magazine columnist George Mahe:

Bartenders warned patrons of Prohibition raids at New York speakeasy Chumley’s, located at 86 Bedford St., with “86”: a warning to get the customers out via the bar’s 86 Bedford St. door to avoid the police arriving at a different entrance.

Article 86 of the U.S. Uniform Code of Military Justice concerns Absence Without Leave, or AWOL.

Great Depression soup kitchen pots served 85 people. “So the 86th person was out of luck.

8 replies

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Highlight:

"If anyone asks you where the term 86 originated, tell them what I tell people: I don't really know, but there are ... (Original Post) pat_k Tuesday OP

It's been over 40 years since I worked in a restaurant, but back then FakeNoose Tuesday #1

Using for both/either "cancel order X" and "don't take orders for X" makes sense to me. pat_k Tuesday #3

At the restaurant I worked in Freddie Tuesday #5

Yes, that was true when I worked in restaurants Easterncedar Tuesday #6

When Green Day signed with a major record label back in the early 90s, they were RockRaven Tuesday #2

Great song! "...Don't let the door kick you in the ass There's no return from 86..." pat_k Tuesday #4

86 percent of us already know all that shit... Wounded Bear Tuesday #7

You can't fix stupid. pat_k Wednesday #8

FakeNoose

(42,112 posts)

1. It's been over 40 years since I worked in a restaurant, but back then

Reply to pat_k (Original post)

Tue Apr 28, 2026, 10:06 PM

Tuesday

...86 was what the server said to the kitchen to cancel the order. As in, the customer cancelled, so stop making this order. But rather than say it out loud, the server used the code word "86" and the kitchen employees knew what it meant.

pat_k

(13,761 posts)

3. Using for both/either "cancel order X" and "don't take orders for X" makes sense to me.

Reply to FakeNoose (Reply #1)

Tue Apr 28, 2026, 10:21 PM

Tuesday

But then again, the workings of my brain can be convoluted.

Freddie

(10,135 posts)

5. At the restaurant I worked in

Reply to FakeNoose (Reply #1)

Tue Apr 28, 2026, 10:28 PM

Tuesday

86 meant “we’re out of it”, like “86 the fish.”

Easterncedar

(6,432 posts)

6. Yes, that was true when I worked in restaurants

Reply to Freddie (Reply #5)

Tue Apr 28, 2026, 10:48 PM

Tuesday

In both Ohio and New York in 50 years ago

RockRaven

(19,674 posts)

2. When Green Day signed with a major record label back in the early 90s, they were

Reply to pat_k (Original post)

Tue Apr 28, 2026, 10:18 PM

Tuesday

banned from 924 Gilman (a club/venue in Berkeley of importance in the punk/hardcore/etc scene, which had a "no major labels" policy and an audience hostile to perceived sellouts), and wrote this for their second major label album:

https://m.