This is a glossary of terms used in 2000 AD. Some of these words were the result of simple typing mistakes in the offices at IPC, while some are derived from other sources.
As Tharg the Mighty comes from Betelgeuse he has brought with him his own range of terms, including:
| word | meaning |
|---|---|
| Borag Thungg | Betelgeusian greeting |
| Earthlets | term that Tharg used to refer to humans (whether they read 2000 AD or not) |
| Earthlettes | similar to Earthlets, but applied to females only. This caused a furore on the letters page and eventually was deprecated in favour of the now gender-neutral term "earthlets", though now "Terrans" seems to be in vogue. |
| Florix Grabundae | "Many thanks" |
| Grexnix | churlish person |
| Kril Tro Thargo | honour bestowed on those who have performed services to thrill-power (typically by converting non-readers to the cause, or by buying and shipping copies of comics to readers who can't buy them for some reason, say because they're in a far-flung country that doesn't sell 2000 AD) |
| Quaequam Blag | a strong expletive, exclaimed in moments of extreme anger or surprise |
| Splundig vur thrigg | farewell, common sign-off. |
| Squaxx dek Thargo (shortened to Squaxx) | friend of Tharg (any reader of 2000 AD, consumer of thrill-power). |
| Zarjaz | Similar to "Fantastic" or other praise. It has inspired the names of the fanzine Zarjaz and the record label Zarjazz. |
| word | meaning |
|---|---|
| Prog | short for programme — a term used by the comic in place of "issue" or "edition" |
| Thrill-power | measurement of the quality inherent in 2000 AD. Reading too many progs can lead to a Thrill-power overdose and a common enemy of Tharg are Thrill-suckers. |
As it also touched on more adult themes euphemisms had to be created and this resulted in 2000 AD making a significant contribution to the world of fictional expletives and these include:
| word | scenario | comment |
|---|---|---|
| arsegike | Lobster Random | A corruption of arsehole (coined accidentally by the comic's artist, Simon Spurrier, when using Usenet — if you try to type HOL with your fingers shifted one letter to the left on a QWERTY keyboard, the result is GIK). |
| bastich | Judge Dredd, Lobo | A portmanteau of "bastard" and "bitch", and used in the same way as its source words. (Also used in the Oddworld video game anthology). |
| drok/drokk | Judge Dredd | A general expletive; likely modification of German/Yiddish Dreck. |
| funt | Sinister Dexter, and possibly other strips | Presumably a substitute for "fuck" and "cunt", capable of being used in the same way as both (e.g., "What the funt?" or "I look like a funtin' prat!"). Variant terms: "smugfunt", "funtwipe". |
| fuoco | Nikolai Dante | Presumably a substitue for "fuck". It is the Italian for "fire", but it does not mean that in this context. |
| grud | Judge Dredd | A general expletive; also a substitute for "God" |
| jovis | Judge Dredd | Used in the same way as "Jesus". (In Latin it is the genitive of "Jupiter".) |
| judas | Rogue Trooper | |
| scuzzpuck | Sinister Dexter | A generally dislikeable person. |
| skev | Rogue Trooper | Mostly used as an exclamation. |
| stak | Rogue Trooper | said by Norts when surprised or dismayed (often in "Stak! It's the Rogue Trooper!") |
| sneck | Strontium Dog | A universal expletive. |
| stomm | Judge Dredd | Meaning "shit". |