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When you wanted to state that something belongs to a previous era's fashion at the turn of the century you could say so 90s or so 20th century.

Now when you want to say that something belongs in the 200xs what would you say?
(So zeros or so aughts just doesn't sound right.)

Edit: This is not a duplicate of What is the name of the first decade in a century?

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  • 1
    This question is relevant to at least 10% of the years (even more if you want to say something belongs to an even older decade), so it doesn't seem to fall under the "too localized" close rule.
    – Danny
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 17:02
  • What's wrong with "so 2000"?
    – nico
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 18:30
  • I added a link to the question that this is a supposedly a duplicate of myself. This is not exactly the same question - here I am asking for an expression, not simply a name for the previous decade.
    – Danny
    Commented May 29, 2012 at 8:44
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    @OptimalCynic Other than it being in French and not English, it refers to the end of the century, not the beginning.
    – Danny
    Commented Jun 8, 2012 at 1:32
  • @nico So 2000 refers to a single year. So 2000s may refer to the entire millennium. Perhaps So 2000s and 00s would work.
    – Danny
    Commented Jun 8, 2012 at 1:33

7 Answers 7

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The noughties is sometimes used — aparently primarily BrE. It's a clumsy term but...

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  • Found that in the linked question (see the aughts link), however, it too just doesn't sound right - especially preceded by "so".
    – Danny
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 16:31
  • I'm confused. Where does the word originates from? If it'd be zeros-ties, I'd understand but the nough part is very unclear to me. I read into it that the decade was naughty, hehe...
    – Konrad Viltersten
    Commented Jul 31, 2015 at 9:13
  • @KonradViltersten "Nought" also means "zero" - but it is also partly a pun on "naughty".
    – neil
    Commented Aug 1, 2015 at 23:01
  • Well, there you see... I learned a new word today. +1 for creative answer.
    – Konrad Viltersten
    Commented Aug 2, 2015 at 17:43
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Since you are going for a lighthearted remark, you could try:

So turn-of-the-century.

I think that might be particularly effective, because, a mere 20 years ago, the same phrase was being used to describe the time period around 1900.

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  • I don't think turn-of-the-century works at all today for the decade 2000-2009. Twenty years ago it was being used to refer to a period ninety years earlier. I seriously doubt the expression would have been used in 1912 to refer to the immediately-preceding decade.
    – FumbleFingers
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 22:09
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    @Fumble: That's the point–it's meant to be wry humor. Where "that's so turn-of-the-century" used to mean something very different–something long ago, in the age of our grandparents–it suddenly means something that's barely 10 years old. Yet with the rapid changes in technology, things become out-of-date much more quickly. I've actually used this expression several times, in contexts such as: "Oh, email! That's so turn-of-the-century," as a way to emphasize how email is falling out of fashion in favor of texting and social networks. Usually, it works. Maybe I should've elaborated more.
    – J.R.
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 22:16
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    oic - yes, I agree that the pace of change really is hotting up as we approach technological singularity. Which Wikipedia defines as the time when "greater-than-human intelligence" arrives, but which I define as the time when new things are arriving so fast you'll go to bed one night knowing approximately the state of human knowledge and control of our environment, but by the time you wake up next day, all that will be no more than "ancient history".
    – FumbleFingers
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 22:26
  • @Fumble: Yes, exactly. Advertisers have played on this phenomenon, too, showing, e.g., someone walking out of a store with a new electronic gadget, only to spot a billboard advertising an even newer version, even as the customer is still standing in the store parking lot.
    – J.R.
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 22:52
  • This expression could be good for 90 years, however, I am not sure it is catchy enough.
    – Danny
    Commented May 29, 2012 at 9:48
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There really isn't a term that has been universally accepted for this. So I would tend toward:

So ten years ago

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  • "So last decade" would sound better, since it is referring to a ten year range and not a specific year. However, I was hoping for a 2000 decade specific term.
    – Danny
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 17:00
  • That is a relative term so it won't refer to the 00's ten years from now.
    – FrustratedWithFormsDesigner
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 21:36
  • I don't disagree. So in ten years you can start saying, "So twenty years ago." As I said, I don't know of any term that has been universally adopted.
    – Jim
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 22:42
  • It's both relative to the current point of time (as others pointed out) and it points to a certain year, not the whole decade, in my view.
    – Konrad Viltersten
    Commented Jul 31, 2015 at 9:15
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When in doubt, use the evergreen

That's so passé

That style of music is now considered passé.

Reddit has a page entitled

That's so 2000s

Back in 2013, 8 Tracks Radio was already talking about the 2000s as if it were the Neolithic era

That's soooo 2000s!

In the realm of fashion, cite the name of the designer who is no longer TD (to die).

“We would sit and scroll through what used to be Style.com and click through the runway shows. We would crack ourselves up and be like, ‘That's so 2000s Galliano, what were they thinking!’

Diet Prada Puts Fashion Knock-offs on Blast on Instagram
Miss Rosen, Aug 7th, 2017

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  • I'm amazed. When I saw the age of the question, I figured any new answer would be saying "the now generally accepted term is the noughties". But you're suggesting something different!
    – AndyT
    Commented Mar 27, 2018 at 15:40
  • @AndyT I'm not "suggesting", these are actual instances taken from the net. The OP also wants to use it in the phrase "so" . That's so the noughties doesn't sound so great.
    – Mari-Lou A
    Commented Mar 27, 2018 at 15:57
  • @AndyT the last link only has 31 results, you got to click the page numbers to see the actual number. Google's estimates must always been taken with a sack load of salt :( Whereas for the first link, "that's so 2000s" the actual number is 58
    – Mari-Lou A
    Commented Mar 28, 2018 at 8:37
  • :O Mind blown! I had no idea the estimate could be so far off!
    – AndyT
    Commented Mar 28, 2018 at 8:43
  • @AndyT it's also my understanding that American speakers generally do not favo(u)r "noughties".
    – Mari-Lou A
    Commented Mar 28, 2018 at 8:43
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I would say, "so last decade." Which would refer to the '00s.

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    Yes, but that is a relative term so it won't refer to the 00's ten years from now.
    – FrustratedWithFormsDesigner
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 21:35
  • So last decade, as I previously wrote in a comment sounds good, however, it is a relative term as FWFD stated.
    – Danny
    Commented May 29, 2012 at 9:47
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I rather like to use antemillennial, but that only applies to the year 2000 itself, not to the ones following it.

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  • Well, then, you can always use antecentennial for the next 900 years :^)
    – J.R.
    Commented May 29, 2012 at 10:00
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    I thought ante meant prior to, making the term antemillennial equialent to the 90s (or even any shorter/longer period that a decade taking place before the millennium shift). What do I miss?
    – Konrad Viltersten
    Commented Jul 31, 2015 at 9:18
  • @KonradViltersten I don’t think you missed anything. Antemillennial just means before the (turn of the) millennium, so before 2001.
    – tchrist ♦
    Commented Jul 31, 2015 at 10:44
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Ideas I had:

  1. "So 2Ks", however, like "so 2000s" this may refer to the entire millennium.

  2. "So last decade", which is good until 2020.

  3. And a new idea: "so 2000s and 0s".

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    Mm... sounds like “soda case”.
    – tchrist ♦
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 17:17
  • @tchrist: "In the year soda-case oh-nine..."
    – FrustratedWithFormsDesigner
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 17:21
  • Does that mean you think this expression is catchy? :-)
    – Danny
    Commented May 28, 2012 at 17:39
  • If anyone has a better idea, vote to reopen the question and then post an answer.
    – Danny
    Commented Jun 8, 2012 at 1:37

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