regional slang

151949 · ‎03-09-2010

Yesterday there was a post about chop suey - it turns out what the perspon was referring to was a NE regional meal. There are so many regional slang words and dialects in the USA.

I grew up in Pittsburgh and we absolutely have a rather famous dialect there. For instance - I commonly refer to tidying up the house as "redding up". I say "you guys" and when I refer to the downtown area of the city I say "dauntown". I call ham that is sliced so thin you can see through it ( a regional delicacy, warmed with bar b que sauce and piled on a bun)"chipped" and I call the Steelers "Stillers". You can't really be a fan unless you say it that way! When someone here in florida teases me about my Pittsburgh accent I always answer that I come by it honestly having lived there my entire life til I retired. What makes me laugh is - the person making fun of my accent also has their own accent from where ever they come from, but apparently doesn't realize it.

CareBears · ‎08-30-2015

@151949 I get this all of the time, born and raised in MN (and still live here) so many slang words I grew up with are now met with question marks when speaking to people throughout the country, I always say "Oofda" (sp), we have always referenced "front room" (elsewhere it is living room), we still say "Soda", others say Pop, I always say " You Betcha" and the list goes on!

I do not realize that I have a MN accent (not as pronounced as Fargo movie) until I speak to someone from another area, and they are quick to point it out

151949 · ‎03-09-2010

There is a large grocery chain in the Pittsburgh area called GIANT EAGLE - Pittsburgers pronounce it 'g an iggle " very hard for non burgh folks to understand at first. There is a restaurant chain called Eat n park and Pittsburgers do pronounce every word of it but run it all together - eatnpark as one word.

AuntG · ‎03-09-2010

When someone said they made goulash, I had no idea what it was.

Plaid Pants2 · ‎03-14-2015

I was born and raised in California, and have lived here my whole entire life.

I have always called a soft drink a "soda".

What I found interesting, was when I went to Ireland in 2002, I was staying at a small boutique hotel, that had its own restaurant, in a small town.

One morning, a family was having breakfast in the restaurant, like I was.

They asked me if I lived in the area.

I thought for sure that I had a "California accent", that would give me away as to not being from Ireland! *lol*

I love the Irish accent, btw!

Othereeeen · ‎03-13-2010

From NYC..."stoop" is the front steps....

"the Ell" is the elevated subway that runs on suspended tracks...(You take the Ell to......"

From NJ..."Down the shore"...means visiting the seashore....."We went down the shore for the summmah..."

Pittsburgh......they drop the words "to be"....as in "It needs cleaned up" ...or "The streets need plowed" ....

....and "youins" for (loosely) "you guys....

gmkb · ‎07-29-2012

@Othereeeen I no longer live in Pgh., but eliminating "to be" as you described always gives me away as a Pittsburgher.

151949 · ‎03-09-2010

@Othereeeen wrote:
From NYC..."stoop" is the front steps....

"the Ell" is the elevated subway that runs on suspended tracks...(You take the Ell to......"

From NJ..."Down the shore"...means visiting the seashore....."We went down the shore for the summmah..."

Pittsburgh......they drop the words "to be"....as in "It needs cleaned up" ...or "The streets need plowed" ....

....and "youins" for (loosely) "you guys....

I agree we do drop to be . I know many say Pittsburgers say youse and yinz - but honestly, I lived in Pittsburgh for 62 years and I don't know anyone who uses those words, & many others commonly claimed to be used by all Pittsburgers. There used to be a Pittsburgh slang that was common among the lower class laborers but that has pretty much gone by the wayside as people have become more educated. Now that I don't live in Pittsburgh all year I enjoy when I hear someone from home. We recently had a lady move in up the street and as soon as I heard her speaking to the movers I knew she was from SW Pa. We have since become fast friends!

151949 · ‎03-09-2010

@Plaid Pants2 My father was conceived in Ireland - County Donnegal - but born in the USA. My Grandmother had a brough and my Dad & his siblings did as well , though their's was not as pronounced as hers.My Dad was deaf from an explosion in WW11 and he reverted back to his brough more & more as the years past and he was only speaking from what he remembered - not what he heard daily.

ECBG · ‎01-08-2011

I'm southern, and we refer to soft drinks by the brand name. "I'll have a coke or a pepsi.".

When I taught, I loved to hear the adult library asst speak. She would say "of a night" for "the other night" or "every night". For example, "Of a night I make dinner.".