Meanings
present singular third person 86s · participle present 86ing · participle past 86ed · past 86ed · participle past 86'd · past 86'd · alternative eighty-six
- USinformaltransitiveTo throw out; to discard.
We finally had to 86 that old printer after it jammed one too many times.
4 more examples
Another mention must be made for Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged - I 86ed it after only 86 pages; Americans amongst us will understand the numbers reference."
2011 July 31, Rob Smyth, Rob Bagchi, “England v India - as it happened”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 24 Feb 2026Nobody...and I mean NOBODY seriously considers the old saying to “86” someone as a physical threat.
2025 May 16, teacherbill, “86 47! Come and get me Tulsi, Kash and Pam. You can't get us all.”, in Daily Kos, archived from the original on 29 Apr 2026But there are other origin stories for being “86’d”, according to Merriam-Webster, including lunch-counter slang for being all out of a dish.
2025 May 16, Edward Helmore, “What does ‘8647’ really mean? Not what Trump’s supporters are saying”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 29 Jul 2025What does 25 47 mean? Like 86 47 and Foxtrot Delta Tango before it, 25 47 is a slightly coded way of signaling that you are not into President Trump, and would like him removed from office. Whereas 86 refers to the way you get rid of something by "86ing" it, 25 is a specific reference to the 25th Amendment, and 47 refers to Trump as the 47th president. That amendment gives the cabinet of the president the power to remove the president from office if they determine that he is unfit to fulfill his duties.
2025 May 19, Joseph Allen, “"25 47" Is the Latest Coded Attempt to Signal Opposition to Donald Trump”, in Distractify, archived from the original on 04 May 2026 - USinformaltransitiveTo deny service to.
The restaurant 86ed us because we didn't fit the dress code.
1 more example
(Ben Sanderson, speaking to a bartender) -- "Please, serve me today, and I'll never come in here again. If I do, you can 86 me."
1995, Leaving Las Vegas, 00:10:40 - USinformaltransitiveTo kill.
He stole from me and snitched on me, so I 86ed him.
1 more example
RONALD:”They tried to ghost your girl Isabel right here”. WES CHANDLER(played by Ron Perlman):”Tried to ‘ghost’ her?” RONALD:”Merk. 86. Put her down in the dirt. You feel me?”
2017 September 28, Josh Corbin, 37:03 from the start, in Start Up, season 2, episode 6, spoken by Ronald Dacey (Edi Gathegi)
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectivebeing six more than eighty
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Uncertain but most probably from soda jerk slang from the 1920s for 'all out', referring to an item on the menu not being available. The earliest mention in print is from 1933. The OED suggests possible rhyming slang for nix. Another possibility is that it is rhyming slang for deep six. Cassell's Dictionary of Slang claims that the term comes from the digging of a standard grave, which is 2.5 feet wide by 8 feet long by 6 feet deep. Other, more elaborate theories include Delmonico's Restaurant in New York City, as item #86 on their menu, the famous Delmonico steak, is supposed to have run out often in the 19th century. Another theory is that this term came from the New York speakeasy Chumley’s, which was a hotspot in the 1920s. Chumley’s is hidden inside a West Village building which has two entrances: a well-set-back main entrance on Barrow Street and an obscure back-door exit on 86 Bedford Street. When police were sighted approaching the main entrance, the barkeeps supposedly yelled ‘86 it!’ to signal the patrons to hide the liquor and exit quickly through the back door. The term became standard in the service industry for ejecting someone by the 1940s.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Dutch schrappen, schrappen
- schrappento cancel an order for food
- schrappento temporarily remove an item from the menu
- wegdoento throw out; to discard
- kwijtrakento throw out; to discard
Estonian välja viskama
- välja viskamato throw out; to discard
French tuer
- tuerto kill
Hebrew זָרַק
- זָרַק (zaráq)to throw out; to discard
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with 86
Cite this entry
86. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/86
“86.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/86. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “86,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/86.
Source: 86 on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.