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Dumb Brick = Very Cold

Duncan from Brooklyn, New York, says his friends use dumb to mean “really” and brick to mean “cold.” This use of dumb goes back at least to the 1700s, and was originally a euphemism for damn. Stupid has been used as an adverbial intensifier in the same way, as in It’s stupid cold outside. Brick for “cold” is classic New York City slang. This is part of a complete episode.

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