Expression of the Day
brightness_auto
Learn More American Expressions

party pooper

Featured
Puzzle #16 · June 17, 2025
Party pooper, where poop refers to being tired, as in pooped out, originated in US colleges in the 1940's.

Contrast this with ‘party hard’, which has almost the exact opposite meaning - enjoying oneself to the fullest at a party. Party hard originated in the late 1970's.
Puzzle Appearances

The expression party pooper has appeared in 3 puzzles:

  • Puzzle #16 on June 17, 2025
  • Puzzle #97 on September 6, 2025
  • Puzzle #229 on January 16, 2026
Rate of Appearance in English Language Print

Google's Ngram project shows how often a pair of words has appeared in print every year since the 1800's.

Data from Google Books Ngram Viewer. Licensed under CC BY 3.0.

Explore More Expressions

Everyday the Wordcels Puzzle has a featured expression showing meaning, history and connection to culture. Explore them all.

The Wordcels Puzzle

Think you've mastered Americanisms? The two-word phrases, compound words and idiomatic expressions of American English? Each day the Wordcels Puzzle provides 15 words that must be arranged to form 16 expressions. Give it a try.

Wordcels