Howdy, y’all!
What are yinz doin’?
I could go for some water ice!

America is a place full of weird and troubling regional slang. Phrases change from one place to the next, and it can sometimes be hard to keep up. Let’s explore some of the weirdest words and phrases you can find all over the country!

New England
There is plenty of wicked ahh-some slang in America’s Northeast.

Wicked
If something is particularly amazing, you can refer to it as wicked. Like if the grinder (large sandwich) you just ate was super delicious, you can call it a wicked grinder.

Packie
Fixing for a drink? Just hit the packie—aka liquor store—for a bottle of bourbon whiskey, or tequila, or vodka (whatever you prefer, we don’t judge).

Leaf Peeper
No, this adorable term doesn’t refer to a pair of googly eyes on a leaf, but the out-of-towners who travel north to catch a glimpse of the foliage during the fall.

Mid-Atlantic
From Pennsylvania to New Jersey and beyond, Mid-Atlantic residents are known for their, ehrm… colorful language.

Water Ice
If you tried to spell this frozen treat based off of how mid-Atlantic natives say it, you would probably drop the “a” for some “o’s”.

Down the Shore
If you’re headed to the beach for the weekend, you’re going down the shore—no “to” needed.

Sneak
What means to slink or sly around for many is another word for your best tennis shoes in the “first state”—Delaware.

South
Ah, there might be no more easily recognizable American accent than the twang of the South.

Yonder
Not wonder, not wander, but yonder. As in that field over yonder is where I keep my cows and my ten-gallon hat.

Mom’n’em
A cute phrase that literally means mom and them. The next time you go to family dinner, you can ask the cousins: how are mom’n’em?

Hold Your Horses
Whether you actually own horses or not, use this southern phrase the next time you need someone to wait a minute.

Midwest
Dontcha know anything about Midwestern slang? You will!

Hot Dish
What do you bring to the potluck? In the Midwest you bring a hot dish, which is really just anything edible that’s hot and covered.

Pop
Kind of like the sound it makes when you open it, it’s what people in middle America call their favorite soda.

Whoopensocker
This term can be used to describe just about anything you think is out of this world (e.g. this is a real whoopensocker blog about American slang!).

West Coast/Northwest
You might just hear some Canadian influence in the accents of West Coast residents.

Pogonip
Watch out for this dense fog that likes to make its way into this region’s deep valleys.

Hella
Like wicked, only hipper.

Davenport
A fancy word for couch, even if the couch isn’t all that fancy.