Regional vocabularies of American English

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Despite the standardizing influences of the mass media in the United States, a number of regional vocabularies continue to exist throughout the country. It is still not uncommon for an American away from his or her home region to encounter novel ways of referring to familiar objects and concepts.

This article deals only with differences in everyday vocabulary, but this linguistic description of regional differerences provides a more academic approach to the subject.

Contents

1 Regional Vocabulary Tables

2 Related Articles

2.1 Regional American English
2.2 English Around the World
2.3 Language Studies

3 External Links

Regional Vocabulary Tables

Delaware Valley (Greater Philadelphia, Pa., southern New Jersey and northern Delaware)
Regional Term	General Term

cellar	basement
fireplug	fire hydrant
hoagie	submarine sandwich
shore	beach Often associated with South Jersey speech, esp. in the phrase "down the shore" (at the beach)

New Orleans, Louisiana
Regional Term	General Term

banquette	sidewalk
cold drink	soft drink
neutral ground	median strip
po' boy	sandwich on French bread (baguette)
bobos	bruises
by location	to be at or in someplace (e.g. "by your mama's [house]")
pass by location	to stop and visit someplace
to make groceries	to go shopping for groceries
lagniappe	a little bit of something extra
goute ("goh")	a little taste
Where y'at?	How are you doing?
alligator pear	avocado
Cap (from Captain)	Sir
(make) dodo	(go to) sleep
hickey	a bump on your head
passion mark	a love bite
locker	the closet
mosquito hawk	dragonfly
valise, grip	a suitcase

hard quarter! - meaning 25 cent piece!

New York City Area
Regional Term	General Term

to wait/stand on line	to wait/stand in line

The South
Regional Term	General Term

buggy	shopping cart
tump over	combo of turn/bump over
yonder	over there
coke	generic term for any brand of soda/pop More at Soft drink

Eastern Wisconsin
Regional Term	General Term

bubbler	drinking fountain
to budge	to cut in line
flatlander	someone from Illinois

Minnesota
Regional Term	General Term

Pop	generic term for any brand of soda/pop More at Soft drink
Duck duck gray duck	A children's game, more commonly called Duck duck goose
hot dish	a simple entree cooked in a single dish, more commonly called casserole

Northern and Eastern Missouri (Saint Louis, Columbia, Missouri, and Surrounding Areas)
Regional Term	General Term

to love on someone	to show love to someone/to love someone

Maine and Northern New England
Regional Term	General Term

cellar	basement
"The County"	Aroostook County, Maine, so called due to its large size.
fiddlehead	a type of fern which grows to form a head resembling the scroll of a fiddle or violin, considered a local delicacy in Northern Maine
"from away"	phrase describing a person from another state or country (or as is sometimes the case in Northern Maine, a person from Southern Maine)
leafer	a tourist who has come to see the area's vibrant autumn foliage
wicked (adv.)	very, extremely

Regional American English

English Around the World

Language Studies

Sociolinguistics

External Links

Dictionary of American Regional English

Categories: American English