Every Archaic Big Book Word Explained: The Complete 1930s Recovery Dictionary

The AA Big Book was written in 1939. When Bill Wilson sat down to write it, some of the words he chose were normal English for the era — and are now completely foreign. This is a guide to every archaic word and phrase in the Big Book that trips up modern readers, with definitions in the language Bill would have understood them in.

Every AA sponsor has watched a sponsee's eyes glaze over during a Chapter 5 read-through. It's not that the sponsee doesn't want to understand — it's that half the language belongs to a different century. This guide, and the built-in 1930s dictionary in the AABluebook app, exist to fix exactly that problem.

Why the Big Book is hard to read

Three reasons. First, the vocabulary — words like "grosser," "constitutionally," and "malady" were common in 1939 and rare now. Second, the sentence structure — 1930s prose is longer, more Latinate, and more formal than modern American English. Third, the frame of reference — cultural and moral concepts (rectitude, propriety, self-will, ego) meant something more specific in 1939 than they do today.

The result: readers assume the Big Book is either simpler than it is (skimming past words they don't fully understand) or more mystical than it is (assuming difficult words carry hidden depth). The truth is more useful — they mean specific things, and once you know what those things are, the whole text opens up.

The 20 most-confused Big Book words, decoded

These are the ones we get asked about most in the AABluebook dictionary. Definitions are as Bill W. and Dr. Bob would have used them in 1939, not modern colloquial usage.

• Cunning — clever in a deceptive, sneaky way. Alcohol's "cunning" isn't that it's smart; it's that it lies to you about what it is

• Baffling — confusing to the point of preventing understanding. Not just puzzling — actively preventing you from seeing straight

• Powerful — in 1939 usage, having strength greater than can be resisted by ordinary means. Not "strong" — beyond individual will

• Grave — very serious, weighty. "Grave emotional and mental disorders" doesn't mean minor moods; it means severe, life-altering conditions

• Malady — an illness, especially a serious or chronic one. The "spiritual malady" is not vague spiritual malaise; it's a specific chronic condition

• Constitutionally — as a fundamental part of one's makeup or nature. "Constitutionally incapable of being honest" means honesty is not naturally available to the person, not that they choose dishonesty

• Rectitude — moral uprightness, righteousness. Not just being right, but being right in a moral sense

• Propriety — behavior conforming to accepted standards of decency and morality. Doing what's socially and morally correct

• Grosser — cruder, more obvious, more offensive. "Grosser handicaps" are the obvious ones — drunkenness, violence, theft — as opposed to the subtle ones

• Fellows — men (originally). In modern AA usage, expanded to mean all members, but Bill's original text was written in a male-only context

• Obsession — a persistent, dominating idea that cannot be shaken. In 1939 clinical use, more specific than the modern casual "I'm obsessed with this show"

• Compulsion — an irresistible urge to behave in a certain way. Paired with obsession, the two are the classical framing of addictive thinking

• Willingness — active choice to engage, not passive acceptance. In AA context, willingness is an inner posture, not just permission

• Surrender — laying down one's arms, ceasing to fight. Not defeat — a decision to stop the war

• Faith — in 1939 religious usage, trust in something beyond oneself, especially without complete proof. Not just belief — active trust

• Amends — reparations for wrongdoing. More than an apology — an attempt to make right what was made wrong

• Inventory — a complete, itemized list. "Moral inventory" means a full accounting, not a mood check

• Character defects — enduring flaws in one's character, not passing bad behaviors. Traits like resentment, fear, dishonesty as ways of being

• Self-will — the ego's insistence on its own way. The core AA concept of "self-will run riot" points to this specifically

• Higher Power — a power greater than oneself. Deliberately non-specific — Bill W. wrote it this way so members could bring their own understanding

How the AABluebook Big Book dictionary works

Inside the AABluebook app, the entire Big Book is interactive. Tap any word — the 1930s dictionary explains what it meant when it was written, alongside modern usage where they differ. 110+ archaic terms are indexed, and the dictionary keeps growing based on what users flag.

For sponsors reading with sponsees, this changes the flow of a step study. Instead of stopping every few paragraphs to explain what "constitutionally" means, the sponsee can tap it themselves and keep reading. The dictionary also links each definition to the Big Book context — so "malady" isn't just defined in the abstract; the app shows exactly which passage prompted the question and how the term is used there.

For deeper study alongside the app

The AABluebook app is the digital side of this. On the physical side, our sister brand AAmazingtabs makes tabbed AA Big Books that make navigating to specific chapters, stories, and prayers instant — the tabbed edition of Chapter 5 ("How It Works") in particular is one of the most-used sponsor tools in AA. AAmazingtabs also offers 4th Step Packets, tabbed 12 x 12s, and complete study kits.

Between the AABluebook app dictionary (for decoding language) and the AAmazingtabs tabs (for navigating quickly), you get both sides of what makes Big Book study actually work for modern readers.

Try the dictionary yourself

The full 1930s Big Book dictionary is included free with any AABluebook trial. Two free-access options:

• iOS 1 month free: https://apps.apple.com/redeem?ctx=offercodes&id=6754885451&code=FREEMONTHFL

• iOS 3 months free: https://apps.apple.com/redeem?ctx=offercodes&id=6754885451&code=3FREE

• Android 1 month free: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.aabluebook.android — code FREEMONTHFL

Built by people in AA recovery. The tool we wished we'd had when we picked up the Big Book for the first time.