A certain amount of mockery has made me aware that the following terms appear to have fallen out of use:
Tradesmen: Not in common use since the 1950s, I am informed. I do not find this credible.
Pr̩cis Рmeaning summary: I have discovered that any Irish person over 45 knows exactly what this means and younger people think I am describing a press release in my own weird argot.
Maiden Aunt: Not since the early 1900s, I am told. Again, I do not find this credible but yet, the levels of mockery makes me think that perhaps it may have fallen out of favour before most people I know were born.
Updated to add: I am informed by herself that précis is spelt thus with an acute accent, we have checked Chambers dictionary and found she is correct. I have amended the text to reflect this. Do you think we pedants are born or made?
Undertaker…I know we now all have funeral directors..but why??
I still use tradesmen (or rather, I use the word; I would use the actual people if any of them would return my calls). I suppose I should really switch to a less gendered equivalent (tradesperson?) but so far I have yet to encounter any women working in the area as builders, electricians or plumbers. Indeed, more women might actually improve the industry’s response rate to phone calls, or, even better, emails. I would also say maiden aunt if I had any left, but then I was raised on Wodehouse. I think the maiden aunts themselves have largely gone with the first world war generation.
My sisters are both Maiden Aunts, tradesmen are what I call and leave messages with and this is a precis of a longer comment I did not write as the sun is out and I want to be in the garden.
Suzy, I know they call themselves funeral directors but I can confirm based on recent experience that everyone definitely still calls them undertakers.
Disgruntled, I feel your pain in the matter of tradesmen. Acutely. Re maiden aunts, my aunt who is 90 is definitely a maiden aunt. She doesn’t seem to mind.
Charles, I feel that we can start a small self-help community. Hope the garden was fun.