Local Idiomatic Expressions - Know Any? Stump Us!

[doomsdave]

Having lived in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Kentucky, I've had the chance to hear a few local expressions.

My favorite is from Western Pennsylvania: "You-inz" or "Yoons" etc., which means "you guys" or "you [others]"

Another biggie is eastern Kentuckians' penchant for "might could" embellished to "might could possibly be."

Know any others? Share and see if you can stump us. Cheating is easy, but it's fun to try anyway . . . .

 

[Margret]

Hmmm. It's kind of hard to tell, since I've only lived elsewhere for one year. I do know a local pronunciation that has always baffled me, heard primarily from native Coloradans from my parents' or grandparents' generations: Pee-yeb-lo. Any guesses what this refers to?

Spoiler

Pueblo, a city in the southern part of the state.

Margret

 

[doomsdave]

Hmmm. It's kind of hard to tell, since I've only lived elsewhere for one year. I do know a local pronunciation that has always baffled me, heard primarily from native Coloradans from my parents' or grandparents' generations: Pee-yeb-lo. Any guesses what this refers to?

Spoiler

Pueblo, a city in the southern part of the state.

Margret

I'd say "poo eb lo"; it's a city in CO, if memory serves.

 

[Willowy]

South Dakotans say Pierre as "pier". You always know an out-of-stater if you ask them to name the capital .

I'd say "PWEB-lo", how could they get "pee-YEB-lo" from that? Hm.

 

[doomsdave]

In California, we actually say "gnarly" as in, "He had a seriously gnarly compound fracture."

 

[maggiedemi]

Across the border in Canada they say "Eh" a lot.

 

[LotsOfFur]

In Texas we are "fixing to..."

Ex: I'm fixing to go pick up my child from school.

Honestly I have never ever written that phrase so not really sure how one would "properly" spell it but we say it like fixin'

 

[doomsdave]

In Texas we are "fixing to..."

Ex: I'm fixing to go pick up my child from school.

Honestly I have never ever written that phrase so not really sure how one would "properly" spell it but we say it like fixin'

Maybe, I'm fixin' to go to the vet and give the cat a fixin' . . . . .

 

[doomsdave]

Across the border in Canada they say "Eh" a lot.

"We don't say 'eh' after everything, eh."

 

[LotsOfFur]

Maybe, I'm fixin' to go to the vet and give the cat a fixin' . . . . .

But more like "I'm fixin' to go to the vet to get the cat fixed"

 

[neely]

There are a few phrases or expressions Chicagoans lovingly refer to such as:
1 - use of the word "Da" especially by Sat. Night Live fans such as Da Cubs, Da Bears, Da Lake, etc.
2 - LSD, no not the psychedelic drug, but Lake Shore Drive, the highway that parallels Lake Michigan
3 - the L, not a letter of the alphabet, but the elevated train which runs throughout the city

 

[Willowy]

In California, we actually say "gnarly" as in, "He had a seriously gnarly compound fracture."

Everyone used to say that in the '90s

Across the border in Canada they say "Eh" a lot.

Haha, I've been to Canada and it's true! I thought it was an exaggeration but it sure isn't.

I know a guy who says "take and". As in "I'm going to take and go to the grocery store" or "they took and fixed the road". He didn't grow up here, I have no idea where that comes from. Googling it is hard because "take" and "and" are too common! One thing I read said that they say that in Montana but I can't vouch for the veracity of that.

 

[Willowy]

"Da" especially by Sat. Night Live fans such as Da Cubs, Da Bears, Da Lake, etc.

Da Bears da Bears da Bears!
(My nephew thought that was hilarious when he was 3. I'm not sure why my brother was showing him vintage SNL skits at that age but whatever )

 

[misty8723]

DH worked for a Canadian company once upon a time and they had a saying, "Bob's your uncle too." I have no idea what that means.

 

[Moz]

Phrase: gibbled
Object: bunnyhug

Any guesses?

 

[Willowy]

DH worked for a Canadian company once upon a time and they had a saying, "Bob's your uncle too." I have no idea what that means.

Australians say "Bob's your uncle", meaning something like "there you have it" or "whaddaya know". Like "and Bob's your uncle, the cat was waiting for us on the porch!" I don't know if Canadians use it the same way.

 

[DreamerRose]

I had a neighbor in Atlanta who told me she carried her daughter to the doctor. I was shocked, envisioning a comatose girl covered in blood. Turns out, she meant she took her daughter to the doctor.

 

[Margret]

I don't know whether it's regional or not, but I remember from my childhood people saying of any very small town that "They roll up the sidewalk at sunset." I used to think that they were talking about some sort of boardwalk thing, hooked together with ropes, but in reality I believe it meant that the town was too small to have any kind of nightlife, so people just stayed at home and went to bed early.

Margret

 

[verna davies]

A much used saying in Wales is ..."now in a minute"...as in I'll do it now in a minute

 

[jcat]

the L, not a letter of the alphabet, but the elevated train which runs throughout the city

People take the "El" in Philadelphia, too.

Those who live in Philly go "down the shore", not "to the beach".