Random Common Slang Terms & Phrases From Every State (50 items)

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  (#1) Alabama

  • 1819-12-14

  To Alabamans, "a ways" is a distance that could be anything from 10 minutes to two hours in terms of travel time.

  "Butter my butt and call me a biscuit” is a colorful way to express delight and/or surprise.

  A shopping cart may be referred to as a "buggy."

  Locals call Birmingham "the Ham."

  Alabama is in the tornado belt, so if an Alabaman says they're "goin' to the shelter," that likely means they're headed to a tornado shelter.

  It doesn't snow much in Alabama, so if people think a storm is coming, they'll go buy out all the bread and milk, which leads to the joke that they'll be surviving on "milk sandwiches."

  College football is a huge deal in the South. The University of Alabama has been one of the top programs in the country for decades. "Roll Tide!" originated as a way to cheer on all of the university's athletic teams, although its use has expanded to any number of situations outside of sports. A variant is "Roll Damn Tide!" which may also be used to conclude a telephone conversation.

  Alabama is one of those places where any carbonated beverage is a "Coke," so if you order one, the waiter might respond by asking, "What flavor?"
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  (#12) Idaho

  • 1890-07-03

  In Idaho, they have a condiment that is a mixture of ketchup and mayonnaise that is referred to as "fry sauce."

  If someone is an Idahoan, they don't have a glove compartment in their car, they have a "jockey box."

  Instead of a ball being dropped on New Year's Eve, in Idaho, they drop a (fake) giant potato. The "potato drop" originated in Boise in 2012, and the "GlowTato" has LED lights to make it sparkle.

  "I'll see you at the rendezvous!" In the days before Idaho became a state, when the French mountain men came to the area to do some fur trading, they held a rendezvous that was as much of a social event as it was a way to sell their furs. It is common for modern-day Idahoans to re-create these events.

  In Idaho, those cute, furry, burrowing animals more commonly known as prairie dogs are called "whistle pigs."
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  (#50) Wyoming

  • 1890-06-10

  People in Wyoming refer to someone who is attracted to rodeo cowboys as a "buckle bunny."

  In Wyoming, "couple two three" means a few.

  If a Wyomingite tells someone that they "look like 10 miles of dirt road," they are saying that the person is not looking their best. 

  While it may seem like it should be a bird that sings, in Wyoming, a "Rocky Mountain Canary" is a much bigger, furrier, and likely more ornery animal - a burro.
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  (#30) New Jersey

  • 1787-12-18

  While people in other states might say that they are going to the beach, in New Jersey, it is much more common to say that someone is going "down the shore."

  If someone from the eastern part of New Jersey is asked where they live, instead of replying with the name of a town or an actual address, they're likely to say something like "Exit 4." That is a reference to the turnpike or freeway exit nearest to their home.

  In New Jersey, a "jughandle" isn't what you hold so you won't drop your container full of juice. Instead, it's the part of a traffic circle from which a driver can make left turns.
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  (#39) Rhode Island

  • 1790-05-29

  An "awful awful" is a type of milkshake native to Rhode Island. And it tastes the opposite of awful!

  Many Rhode Islanders really love "coffee milk," which is milk flavored with coffee syrup.

  In Providence, a drinking fountain is often referred to as a "bubbler."

  Does anyone other than Rhode Islanders call a hot dog a "hot wiener?" And of course, the best way to get them is "all the way," which generally means with mustard, meat sauce, onion, and celery salt.

  In Rhode Island, instead of going to the liquor store, you go to the "packy."
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  (#8) Delaware

  • 1787-12-07

  If a Delawarean describes someone as "baggin' up," that means they are laughing really hard. This term reportedly derives from the London drug term "bagging up," which itself comes from the idea that someone "cracks up" when he laughs.

  In Delaware, the entire coastal area of the state is referred to as "the beach."

  In the southern half of Delaware, you might hear cauliflower pronounced as "colley flare."

  When there is a heavy downpour in Delaware, the natives call that weather a "toad choker" or "frog strangler."

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