tin lizzie

noun

, Older Slang.

1. a small, cheap automobile in run-down condition, especially a Model T Ford.

tin lizzie

/ ˈlɪzɪ /

noun

1. informal.
   an old or decrepit car; jalopy

Word History and Origins

Origin of tin lizzie¹

First recorded in 1910–15

Word History and Origins

Origin of tin lizzie¹

originally a nickname for the Model T Ford

Example Sentences

Brooks, 95, spent much of the pandemic working on the book — a year of remembering everything from getting hit by a Tin Lizzie as an 8-year-old in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to writing the musical version of “The Producers” with Tom Meehan at Madame Romaine de Lyon in Manhattan over omelets.

From Seattle Times

Devlin was the first person in town to buy a Model T Ford, and a week later, Mrs. Devlin, on her way home from the Women’s Temperance League tea, drove that tin lizzie into Bonner Lake.

From Literature

Paint the walls a mid-tone gray, such as Tin Lizzie by Sherwin Williams, to make the white furniture pieces stand out.

From Washington Post

Perhaps Tesla is right in terms of recent percentage growth, but the Tin Lizzie made up 40% of U.S. car sales at its peak or, proportionally speaking, 65,000 times the Model 3’s best week so far.

From Wall Street Journal

The 1910s and Roaring ’20s brought both the mass production of the Model “Tin Lizzie” T and the mass proliferation of radio stations across the United States.

From Slate