A person who is said to be "holding the bag" is the person the blame is lumped on for doing something usually a group of people partook in. The person who is left holding the bag is generally the scapegoat.

The term "holding the bag" is not used as widely as it was 20 years ago.

Some kids are stealing candy from the grocery store and are stuffing it in a backpack. As the manager comes each kid furiously tries to hand the backpack to one another so they are not the one caught with the evidence. The kid who ends up with the backpack while the other kids scamper has been left holding the bag. (literally! and I suspect this type of scenario is where the term was derived from originally)

holding the bag by Allegra P. July 22, 2006

Holding the corner of the bag

An addict or recovering addict who swears he/she is clean and will remain clean. However, they spend the rest of their lives, or a significant portion, "holding a corner of the bag" just in case they might need it (rather than getting as far away from it as possible)

Could be an alcoholic holding the corner of the bar or bottle
(any addict who stays close to their former addiction)

Yeah, I'm clean for six months, it's just my dealer happens to be my close friend.

I no longer drink, that has ruined so many years of my life, but those guys in the bar are great friends, so I spend my weekend nights there socially.

I'm not in a gang any longer. My old buddies in the Savage Skulls are still thugs, but I hang out with them just for old times sake.

Addicts waste years holding the corner of the bag when they should RUN as fast as they can from that bag.

Holding the corner of the bag by Just a guy who's been there... April 16, 2012

run off and leave him NOT holding the bag

To not only skip out on your partner in crime so dat he gets da blame for your "combined" transgressions, but you also abscond with whatever ill-gotten booty dat said hapless cohort helped you to "acquire"!

In da "Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn" tale, da King and da Duke had both secretly planned to bilk da other out of da sack of gold --- i.e., each one of said selfish 'n' shameless shysters possessed da classic "no honor among thieves" mindset, and thus was going to pull da disgraceful "run off and leave him NOT holding the bag" on his unwitting accomplice!

run off and leave him NOT holding the bag by QuacksO January 18, 2025

Galantir

A group of people, typically women, searching through someone’s digital footprint in order to find more information about that person.

Susie wasn’t sure if her new Hinge match was a creep, so she assembled Galantir and they found out he used to post slurs on gaming forums.

Galantir by Ge-sus September 22, 2026

Word of the Day on September 23, 2026

murderhobo

In a tabletop game, a murderhobo is a player who murders NPCs indiscriminately. This is normally derogatory, referring to a player who totally ignores quests, dialog, backstory, trade, world building etc.

The term is most common with Dungeons and Dragons, but it can be applied to most RPGs where the player is allowed to kill most quest-giving NPCs and NPC traders. E.g. Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Divinity original sin.

DM: The sad little orphan girl tugs at Steve's trenchcoat to get his attention, and ask for help saving her pet dog from...
Steve: I'd like to roll a strength check against strangling the orphan.
Dave: I call dibs on the dog.
DM: You murderhobos disgust me.

murderhobo by Loup&S September 9, 2021

Word of the Day on September 22, 2026

Whale

In sales terms, a whale is a prospect that is significantly larger than an organization’s average customer.

Whales are large and extremely difficult to close. Due to their immense size, they are highly sought-after.

A whale is typically identified at first by a whale hunter on the sales team, but often requires cross-discipline participation in order to close; this includes assistance from operations, engineering, creative, client success, and business development teams.

"Shit...the sales director chewed me out on the sales call this morning. He's totally pissed that I have nothing in my pipeline. I've been focused on this one whale for so long that I haven't had time to prospect for normal-sized deals."

Whale by FQ_GFY February 3, 2020

Word of the Day on September 21, 2026

Concrete cowboy

A guy who thinks he's a country kinda guy, but in reality lives a comfortable city / suburban life.

Eugene: Look at that dude in the cowboy hat!
Todd: He's just a concrete cowboy.

Concrete cowboy by EugeneJohnson42000 March 16, 2024

Word of the Day on September 20, 2026

hobo loko

any hard liquor that is cheap & potent.. eg. relska, popov, potters, evan williams, kamchatka, fireball, rumpleminze, southern comfort, everclear

hey let's get a drink of that?

go ahead
*takes drink* ugh wtf is that?

everclear & bepsi
fucking hobo loko eeessshh

hobo loko by d i z k o 2 0 8 September 14, 2026

Word of the Day on September 19, 2026