The Wide, Wide World Of Slang

[raqs]

Two-Twos = soon

Reminds me of "just now", which as we all know, in the islands means anywhere from "in a minute" to "next year".

Thongs are g-strings. Underwear is panties. Flipflops are slippers.

[heyalice]

Yes, when anyone tells me they're 'reaching, just now' I pretty much stay put.
I loathe the terms 'draws' for underwear. It just sounds filthy.

[Deleted]

This is a great thread. I'm American-born, UK-raised, with a Jamaican mum. Lived in Texas through HS and college, then moved to Boston, California, Atlanta, and back to Boston again, where I'm about to move back to Texas again!

I've seen my fair share of slang, and I tend to pick up the cooler words.

From Blighty:
I call a sandwich a sarnie.
Someone who gets really drunk is xxxxed.
If I can't be bothered, I usually say "I don't give a monkey's" or "I don't give as toss" or "I can't be arsed/bollocked."
A fag is a cigarette.
I call a road with separate lanes for going in either direction a dual carriageway.
My mind swear is "sod" as in "that sodding computer keeps crashing."
If something is crap, it's pants.
If something is good, it's dead good or ace.

From Texas:
If I'm going to so something, I'm fixing to do something. But it's pronounced "fiddin' ta."
The convenience store is called a "u-tote-'em"
I was always surprised that Texan kids called their teachers "miss" like kids in England do.

From California:
I lived on the Central Coast, which is neither NorCal or SoCal. But we did say "hella" a little.
This might be more urban and Black than it is California, but I also picked up "grip" to describe a bunch of people. As in, "A fight broke out and there was a whole grip of thugs standing around!"

From Boston:
It's more of the way I pronounce town names. Like "Billerica" (Bill-rikka) and "Revere" (Reveah).

[wilbert]

I just discovered this thread! This is great!

[diablocody]

Awesome thread!

So, I used to date a guy from Philadelphia who referred to a slide (as in, the playground equipment) as a "sliding board." I thought that sounded so old-timey and hilarious. He was like "It makes sense! It's a board you slide down."

My mother-in-law speaks Minnesotan, complete with the exaggerated accent. Here are some classic Minnesota phrases:

"That's different," means "That's weird and/or unsettling." Generally not a compliment.

The Minnesotan usage of the word "yet" can be very confusing. For instance, "Are you in school yet?" translates to "Are you still in school?"

"Dinner" means lunch, when you're talking to rural folk.

"Oh for funny!" means "How funny!" The "oh for (adjective)" construction can be used thousands of ways. "Oh for stupid." "Oh for cute!" etc. Like most classic Minnesotan expressions, you're more likely to hear older people say this.

"Uff-da!" is a Norwegian expression used to convey frustration or surprise. Lots of people have Uff-da bumper stickers in Minnesota.

[raqs]

Uff-da is so my newest word!

[Deleted]

diablocody said:

Awesome thread!

So, I used to date a guy from Philadelphia who referred to a slide (as in, the playground equipment) as a "sliding board." I thought that sounded so old-timey and hilarious. He was like "It makes sense! It's a board you slide down."

Wow - not everyone calls it that? I never knew!

[Shanmac]

I'm from Illinois and I sometimes call it a sliding board. Is that weird?

My mom's dad was English, and she picked up some slang from him. She (and my Slovenian Nana) say "bollocks" and "bollixed" (sp?) all the time.

I love Minnesota-isms. I have a friend from Anoka, and her expressions are the best. Also, instead of saying "Jesus Christ," she'll say "Cheese and rice!" I don't know if that's Minnesotan or just her weird way of putting it.

[bossyboots]

shanmac said:

I'm from Illinois and I sometimes call it a sliding board. Is that weird?

Yes.

Where the heck has this thread been all my time here at CPMCoG??? I love to hear about regionalisms etc.

[mrpancake]

larisa said:

diablocody said:

Awesome thread!

So, I used to date a guy from Philadelphia who referred to a slide (as in, the playground equipment) as a "sliding board." I thought that sounded so old-timey and hilarious. He was like "It makes sense! It's a board you slide down."

Wow - not everyone calls it that? I never knew!

I had never, ever heard of a slide board before. That's madness! I love learning new things like this. This thread is so awesome, I completely forgot it existed.