bagel (Jew)

Why are members of the Jewish population sometimes referred to derogatorily as bagels?

Today one of America's most popular breakfast items, bagels were introduced to the United States by Jewish-American immigrants, whose ancestors are credited with the invention of the popular bakery item back in Poland. The bagel is considered a staple of traditional Jewish-American cuisine, and its prevalence among Jewish communities in the New World gave rise to the metonymical racial slur.

The word bagel comes from the Yiddish beygl, which in turn is believed to derive from Old English bēag, "ring."

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Charlie (Viet Cong)

Why were members of the Viet Cong often called Charlie by American soldiers during the Vietnam War?

Charlie is a shortening of Victor Charlie, the international radio code for V.C.—which was, of course, an abbreviation of Viet Cong.

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broad (woman)

Why are women sometimes referred to as broads?

Originally the term broad referred chiefly to a promiscuous woman or prostitute, and therefore may derive from bawd (a woman in charge of a brothel). However, the more likely explanation is that the word simply alludes to the broad breasts and buttocks of females relative to those of males.

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