Question
When did we begin calling American soldiers “doughboys,” and why?
Answer
Though mostly associated with World War I, this term was in standard usage by the 1840s as a reference to any American soldier. It is thought to come from a “dough cake” baked for sailors by those waiting for them at home, and that the large brass buttons on a soldier’s uniform resembled these dough cakes. By World War II, this word was mostly replaced with the term “GI.”
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