Wicked Good Guides / Wicked Good Guide to Boston English /

Basement

A school restroom, at least in the Stoughton area. Pete Costello recalls: "The lavatories in all the schools I went to grades 1-12 were called 'the basement,' even if they were not on the lowest floor of the school."

Comments

Learned this in Walpole in the 50's. When I moved west, people didn't want me in their basements when I asked, especially when they found out what I wanted to to there.

Leo Bendinelli on February 2, 2004 09:27 PM.

I learned to never bring up this type of bowling when out of Mass. It takes too long to explain and they think I'm wicked weird.

Leo Bendinelli on February 2, 2004 09:33 PM.

My father is used to this cause the bathrooms in schools in Brockton were in the basement.

Derek on April 26, 2004 07:32 PM.

I went to elementary school in JP and Hyde Park and we only used the word "basement", even when it was on the second floor. When I moved to Hingham I asked to go to the basement on the first day and the class laughed at me. I still remember...

Marty on July 7, 2004 12:13 AM.

I learned this term from the elementary school I attended in Somerville from K to 4th grade. It was an old, small, early 1900's brick school and its only student bathrooms were in the basement of the building. I can still picture it -- the row of stalls with old metal "Bethlehem Steel Co." doors and walls on one side, and the row of old porcelain sinks on the other. Oh, and can't forget the "one, sandpaper-textured, sheet of paper at a time" toilet paper dispensers!

Kristin on September 19, 2004 12:08 AM.

This is another one of those terms that is more regional northeast than exclusively Boston or even New England. In the 50s in my Schenectady NY elementary school, asking for permission to go to the basement was asking for permission to leave the classroom to use the toilets.

karen on December 15, 2004 02:22 PM.

I went to elementary school in Boston and Quincy. In Quincy we said basement for bathroom even though they were on the 2nd and 3rd floors. When I went to middle school in Quincy, nobody called it the basement anymore. I wonder if they still call it the basement now?

Pablo DaSilva on February 13, 2005 05:10 PM.

We called them basements when I went to public school in the early 70s, when I transferred to catholic school, they were lavs (short for lavertory). My son's teacher, brilliant but old-school, sent the students to the "basement" on the first day of school, my child went to the basement of the school, not knowing "basement" meant bathroom. A passing teacher spied him and set him straight.

MSmith on July 5, 2005 10:15 AM.

We called them basements when I went to public school in the early 70s, when I transferred to catholic school, they were lavs (short for lavatory). My son's teacher, brilliant but old-school, sent the students to the "basement" on the first day of school, my child went to the basement of the school, not knowing "basement" meant bathroom. A passing teacher spied him and set him straight.

MSmith on July 5, 2005 10:16 AM.

they used this term in my grammar school in the early 90's in worcester. i had totally forgotten about it because the term was abadoned by middle school. hilarious.

jamie on August 27, 2005 09:01 PM.

Died laughing when i read this one. Forgot all about it. Now thinking about it, it seems so normal to say basement. Schooled in St.Peter's in Southie.

Marianne Caputo on November 30, 2005 09:08 AM.

As for me, the american way of calling toilet - "bathroom" - isn't a lot less strange than calling it "basement"(which is completely sensless, isn't it?). BATHroom means a room where a BATH is. And HOW do you tell bathroom-toilet from bathroom-with bath??
Maybe my English is still too bad to understand it
(sry for mistakes, i'm just 16 but I'm working hard on(at?)my english..)

Danil(Russia) on December 14, 2005 04:19 PM.

This is too funny. I had completely forgotten about this. I moved from the Gardner area about 12 years ago and totally lost this word in the process. We ALWAYS used the word basement in place of bathroom. But for me I thought it just started because in my kindergarten school house, the tiolets were in the basement, the cold dark basement that was so scary for a kindergartener. Hated it down there.

Jennifer Saulnier on January 30, 2006 05:11 PM.

I remember at the East Street School in Fitchburg asking Miss Hayes if I could"Go to the basement"!!

Barb Struck on March 8, 2006 06:50 PM.

I forgot about this too! In the 80s in Medford, I'd always ask to go to the basement. Crazy.

Kristina on July 20, 2006 10:11 AM.

This is apparently true of Bedford Mass as well. My dad who lived there 45 - 50 years ago told me this one and I've been telling him for 3 years now that he was crazy...until I saw this.

pj on November 30, 2006 04:15 PM.

It was the basement when I went to elementary school in the 70s in Chelmsford as well.

GJH on May 2, 2007 01:24 PM.

To me, "the Basement" is where we went to "pick up some slacks and a jersey."

joey on May 8, 2007 08:57 AM.

Went to Our Lady of Grace Elememtary School in Everett in the 60's. We had to ask to go to the basement. I thought it was a nun thing!

galgay on October 1, 2007 09:59 PM.

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