1940s
World War II era
The 1940s refers to the decade from 1940 to 1949, or more loosely to the era associated with that period—World War II, swing music, film noir, wartime rationing.
My grandmother grew up in the 1940s.
The pattern applies to any decade: 1920s, 1980s, 2010s.
Also written '40s or forties when context makes the century clear.
Large jazz ensemble
- Glenn MillerSwing era bandleader
- Count BasieKansas City bandleader
- Lindy HopSwing dance from Harlem
- jitterbugEnergetic swing-era partner dance
Benny Goodman · Duke Ellington · boogie-woogie · dance hall · ballroom · saxophones · crooners · Andrews Sisters
Stylish, shadowy crime drama
- CasablancaMajor Moroccan seaport
- Citizen KaneNewspaper tycoon's rise and fall
- pinupAttractive poster subject
- bebopFast, complex jazz style
Rita Hayworth · Humphrey Bogart · Rosie the Riveter · New Look · Dior · nylon stockings · radio serials · pulp fiction
Period of high births
- GI BillVeteran education benefit
- Marshall PlanPostwar American economic assistance
- reconstructionRebuilding after destruction
- prosperityGood fortune, success
suburbs · Levittown · Cold War · Iron Curtain · Truman Doctrine · United Nations · demobilization · veterans
Second global military conflict
- AlliesWWII's victorious coalition
- AxisWartime fascist alliance
- D-Day1944 Normandy invasion
- Pearl HarborHawaiian military port attacked 1941
blitzkrieg · Normandy · Hiroshima · Holocaust · resistance · occupation · liberation · VE Day
Redeemable discount certificates
- ration booksWartime supply allocation documents
- shortagesInsufficient quantities available
- austerityEnforced economic stringency
- queuingStanding in ordered sequence
black market · stamps · conservation · stockpiling · substitutes · meatless · victory garden · make do
Evoking recent past
- nostalgiaLonging for the past
- midcenturyAround the 1950s
- collectibleObject worth amassing
- antiqueOld valued collectible
memorabilia · period piece · classic · timeless · art deco · Bakelite · patina · restoration
big band
Large jazz ensemble
- Glenn MillerSwing era bandleader
- Count BasieKansas City bandleader
- Lindy HopSwing dance from Harlem
Benny Goodman · Duke Ellington · jitterbug · boogie-woogie · dance hall · ballroom · saxophones · crooners · Andrews Sisters · USO
film noir
Stylish, shadowy crime drama
- CasablancaMajor Moroccan seaport
- Citizen KaneNewspaper tycoon's rise and fall
- pinupAttractive poster subject
Rita Hayworth · Humphrey Bogart · bebop · Rosie the Riveter · New Look · Dior · nylon stockings · radio serials · pulp fiction · Kodachrome
baby boom
Period of high births
- GI BillVeteran education benefit
- Marshall PlanPostwar American economic assistance
- reconstructionRebuilding after destruction
prosperity · suburbs · Levittown · Cold War · Iron Curtain · Truman Doctrine · United Nations · demobilization · veterans · readjustment
World War II
Second global military conflict
Pearl Harbor · blitzkrieg · Normandy · Hiroshima · Holocaust · resistance · occupation · liberation · VE Day · VJ Day
coupons
Redeemable discount certificates
- ration booksWartime supply allocation documents
- shortagesInsufficient quantities available
- austerityEnforced economic stringency
queuing · black market · stamps · conservation · stockpiling · substitutes · meatless · victory garden · make do · scrap drives
retro
Evoking recent past
- nostalgiaLonging for the past
- midcenturyAround the 1950s
- collectibleObject worth amassing
antique · memorabilia · period piece · classic · timeless · art deco · Bakelite · patina · restoration · heirloom
1940s2040s
Fourth decade, 21st century
distant future · 2020s · 21st century · modern era · contemporary times
1940speacetime
Absence of armed conflict
1920s · interwar period · 1990s · Roaring Twenties · Pax Americana
1940s1960s
Decade after the fifties
Swinging Sixties · 1980s · Roaring Twenties · Gilded Age · Jazz Age
- 1948 Arab-Israeli WarFirst major Mideast armed conflict
- August 1945Final month of WWII