Question: Do you think that "bless her/your/his heart" is an insult? Black parents will read you to the heavens and make you reevaluate your entire life. I couldnt buy a hummingbird on a string for a nickel. The politics of black slang are tricky. I'm so hungry I could eat the north end of a south-bound goat. It was also once used to warn against saying the devil's name for fear he would appear. Travel anywhere below the Mason-Dixon Line and you're bound to hear a friendly "Y'all," a cheeky "Bless Your Heart," or any of these other classic Southern sayings. Of course, there are the good old standbys we all know and love, like "y'all" and "down yonder." Example: She keeps playin possum even though we know the things she has done. Meaning: (Phrase) This phrase is used when a person cannot carry a tune when singing. Example: Why are you so rowdy? Who doesnt love the countryside, anyway? Example: I dont like her style, bless her heart. Meaning: (Exclamation) Sam Hill was a store owner who sells a variety of things. Although we may not know these celebrities personally, we feel a kinship seeing that they represent the culture at large. Translated, this means: "We'll be there unless something out of our control stops us." He fell out of the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down. Meaning: (Phrase) You aint right is a term used for a person acting like he or she is mentally challenged. She's so gussied up you'd think it was a beauty contest. 2023 The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers on this website. Example: Make sure you be back directly once youre done with the project. No, we don't mean you need to go fix your hair. You dont know dip sh** from apple butter! Country Living editors select each product featured. In the South, a hill of beans is its own measuring stick. Answer: "Bless your heart" is sort of an all-purpose expression. Furthermore, America is a "good ole' boys club", so even if a black person has the same education level and experience as a white man, they will be grossly underpaid. The expression is used when one is speaking about a person who is absent and then suddenly shows up. Everyone will get a piece of cake. (have a good time) Go off half-cocked. Hunted prey such as raccoons or bears would escape the dogs by climbing up trees. From adages and proverbs to their favorite Southern turns of phrase, these ladies sure do have a way with words. Southerners don't say "you guys"they say "y'all." (And "all y'all" for five or more people.) Example: Is she fixin to the garden? "You better know that schoolwork the same way you know them songs"- It was your mom or grandma's way of saying to keep. Meaning: When you have to use the bathroom really, really bad. Does that mean a Southern accent? "I think you're beautiful! Answer: I believe that the expression is "Happy as a lark", a bird noted for it's cheerful, happy song. These series of gifs are the epitome of "See, this right here is what we not finna do": Black people are great "hype-men" for one another. There are some things you just don't say to someone from the South (like me!). Hes so young. Any idea? I feel like I been 'et by a wolf and sh** over a cliff. Wet Sock A wet sock is a limp handshake or, in Australia, a dull person. Happier than ol' Blue layin' on the porch chewin' on a big ol' catfish head. It's so hot the ice cream truck melted. Meaning: (Phrase) Fine and dandy is used sarcastically, meaning he or she is not fine at all. So next time millennials are asked why we aren't having kids, we are going to respond with this simple question, "Do you have 'population replacement level' money? Question: I'm from Northern Alabama. Grinnin' like a possum eatin' a sweet tater. Example: Will you cut that out or am I gonna leave you here? The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers to this website may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. I reckon you still want to go with them? Example: Look at him! Friend: You should probably pull over and get gas, youre on EMe: "I know my car"Black people wait until the last possible moment to fill up their gas tank. And bring me something useful if you dont want me to find something else! Take a look at some of our favorite Southern sayings that we just couldn't live without. My mother and aunts used to say this if they thought someone was telling a tall tale. Meaning: (Phrase) The phrase goin to hell in a handbasket is a phrase used for someone who is hopeless and will deteriorate because of endless problems. You can find out more about our use, change your default settings, and withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future by visiting Cookies Settings, which can also be found in the footer of the site. As a common Northerner (I moved to The South from the Pacific Northwest), it was quite an eye opener the first time I heard most of the people around me talking in the familiar Southern accent and downright confusing the first time I heard someone say, "I might could"! I was surprised as all get out. If you are Black you know youve heard these sayings at some point in time throughout your life. But we declare if your only knowledge of Southern sayings comes from Gone With the Wind, you're missing out on a lot of Southern expressions. For example, us millennials aren't having enough kids to keep the Unites States population at its "replacement level". Growing up in a black household, nothing is really yours; your parents are simply kind enough to let you temporarily and carefully use something. This classic proverb either encourages action instead of standing still or reminds that it's hard to put down roots when you're moving. I called the house phone, but it rang busy and I forgot your cell phone number. Example: He sure is goin to hell in a handbasket if he doesnt help himself. Suicide Note Revealed After Shocking Death. For Black Americans in particular, our heritage and native tongue were taken during the transatlantic slave trade. He's so cheap he wouldn't give a nickel to see Jesus ridin' a bicycle. I think the "oh, my hind foot" expression is just a cleaned up version of, "oh, my a**. You are too scared to repeat yourself. When the Lord was handin' out brains, that fool thought God said. Meaning: (Expression) The expression bless your heart is a Southern-style slang that women use when speaking ill about somebody. It is just one of those sayings that you have to hear in context to understand what meaning is intended. But saying, "no, you do not look like Boo-Boo The Fool" is worse than a wrong answer, because duh, the question is rhetorical. The phrase may be accompanied by a gesture indicating north, south, east, or west. That would make a bishop mad enough to kick in stained glass windows. Happy as a dead pig in the sunshine. It happens often during a Southern summer, when the heat rises and the temperatures shoot past 100. Southerners don't say "cater-cornered"they say "caddywonked.". Example: Move at a cotton pickin minute if you wont want to be late for the game! Putting five dollars on gas was suitable in the 90s when goods and services cost less, the economy was booming, and our wages werent stagnant. Meaning: (Phrase) I reckon is a quintessential southern phrase for I suppose.. (And because she still listens to this Doris Day tune.). If it's appropriate for one, surely it's appropriate for the other too. Example: Well, I declare! You're gonna have old and new-monia dressed like that! (When shes more pissed off. Meaning: (Phrase) Cotton pickin minute is an intensifier used as a Southern saying that means to move at a speed of how much time it is to pick a basketful of cotton which is around 1.31 minutes. Example: You are cute as a button, and apparently a bright student! Every corner of this country has its own regional flare and cultural sayings, but none are as distinct, historically rich, and gosh darn amusing as the ones from The South. But it didn't start to take on the racist connotation it has now until the early 20th century. Meaning: (Noun) A clodhopper is a word used to call or describe a person who is boring. I'm so poor I can't afford to pay attention. So ugly hed scare a buzzard off a gut pile. Girl, this wind is blowing at my door too hard, Im gonna have to call you right back. The distinct English dialect of the American South, which has a close relationship with Black English (African American Vernacular English), is fascinatingand plenty lively. If you hear this one, it's best to slow down. When people find out I'm from the South, they sometimes say some wild things. Maybe your daughter could teach her a thing or two about dressing appropriately. She has a dying duck fit. 2. However, we're starting to think that these words are passed down to us like our hair color and height. This one was always a reminder to praise the lord and hold on to his powerful hand. Southern Living. Meaning: (Expression) Goodness gracious is an expression used when a person is shocked by something he or she learned about. This one originates from the 19th century, when Carter Products marketed "Little Liver Pills" across the country. This phrase means a person was pushed to his or her limit and can get angry any time soon. or "Oh my lands!" Meaning: (Phrase) Barking up the wrong tree is a term used when you are talking to the wrong person. If brains were leather, he wouldn't have enough to saddle a junebug. (You've got yourself a lost cause, son.) (I love you bunches. He was as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a roomful of rocking chairs. My question though is about the exclamation "Well my lands!" Answer: I think that "law" is actually a form of "Lord", possibly calling on the lord tor help or understanding. What sayings does your grandma always use? Example: Wow, are you testing me? If you don't stop that crying, I'll give you something to cry about! Question: Don't you think the "pants so tight you can tell his religion" refers to men and circumcision? "What do you know?" The food is delicious and always fried, and they have the best tea, or sweet tea, in the country. America has flourished on the backs of black people; our labor, services, and ingenuity. Example: You two are high as a kite! It's the black version of "the show must go on". I also like sarcastically stating something is "as pretty as a spotted poodle with the pink mange." He's about as useful as a steering wheel on a mule. (give someone a peice of your mind) Give me some sugar (give me a kiss) Go hog wild. Perhaps it's a term carried over from wartime when soldiers hid in foxholes to avoid enemy fire? 1. She's so ugly I'd hire her to haunt a house! (Spelling a phonetic guess). Come down here with clean hands, okay? As a transplanted Yankee living in the South, I am often surprised and amazed by the colorful Southern expressions I hear. ", "She could start an argument in an empty house. An exclamationof surprise, anger, happiness, really any emotionthat is appropriate in nearly every Southern scenario. Meaning: (Exclamation) The exclamation up and at em is a term used when a person is telling another to get up and start working. These skies can darken at a moment's notice, and summer afternoons often see winds churning and heavy rain clouds blowing in to cool that Southern summer heat. Tri-tongued orator, Jamila Lyiscott gives a powerful 4 minute spoken word TED Talk on what it means to be "articulate". Example: Hold your horses! She has almost certainly exclaimed "Goodness gracious!" 4. Also: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Example: I will pinch a plug out of you if you dont stop running around as if youre inside an empty house. So dumb he couldn't pour piss out of a boot with the instructions written on the heel. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. Youve grown a few inches! Answer: I've never heard the expression "wrong sudadderds", but it's an interesting way of saying "assbackwards!". He was so poor, he had a tumbleweed as a pet. Well only get milk and tea. It starts at home with our mothers and from the time we are young, they have a series of sayings we hear well into our adult years. "One monkey don't stop no show" is pretty straight forward. His brain rattles around like a BB in a boxcar. Example: I flew off the handle yesterday. She's busier than a cat covering crap on a marble floor. You've got that part on there Wrong Sudadderds." (go for it all) In the middle of your hustle and striving, no person or circumstance will impede your progress or keep you from keepin' on (bonus black phrase). Constantly filling up your gas tank feels like a waste of an expense. Why? Example: Of course, hes fit to be tied! Because that same person riding in your car typically offers zero to marginally small contributions towards the gas tank they're commenting on. Example: I am fine and dandy even uder the Southern summer heat. We like to read this as one of the greatest Southern encouragements, but, like most of these phrases, you can use it however you'd like. Meaning: (Phrase) This phrase is used to describe a girl that loves to look at herself in the mirror or is a girly-girl. Meaning: (Phrase) the term tickled pink is used in a more positive thinking way, meaning a person is delighted. It is a physical and mental state a few degrees past weary and just this side of dog-tired. Example: Spit a spell and drink some sweet tea I prepared before you continue with work. It is used to describe the human anatomy like the heart. (Most of these comments are made about women. (And, of course, we have too.) Question: Great collection you have here. I feel like I've been chewed up and spit out. Meaning: (Phrase) This phrase is often used as a prayer and a way to avoid jinxing oneself. Were lost in the deep south. ", "I'm so poor I can't afford to pay attention. Slang/Black & Urban Black and urban slang. Example: Hush up now! It happened faster than a knife fight in a phone booth. Don't underestimate the power of a good friend's ear. This statement will be affirmed to you with a swiftness when you seem to forget who exactly you are speaking to. (Whatever makes you happy.) The legacy of "Do you have McDonalds money?" He proceeds to stand and proclaim "we gotta wrap this up" while tossing his microphone and walking off set (bad pun). Example: Im so happy you two got along the first day you met. Don't piss on my leg and tell me it's rainin'! AKA: "It's time to go!" Cows aren't known for their speed, and they are usually out and about, wandering until feeding time. Meaning: (Phrase) When chickens get wet, they get extremely mad. Meaning: (Noun) Yall is a combination of two words you and all which makes it a unique Southern word. "All get out" finds its way into Southern phrases constantly, and it intensifies any statement. Gumption is spirit, courage, spunk, boldness, and initiative. So out of defiance, I wait until that little fuel gauge is right below the empty line, and then Im going use the 15 miles of gas in the reserve tank. It's plain as a pig on a sofa. Some folks prefer country wisdom. Meaning: (Phrase) If a person says your face is gonna freeze like that, he or she means that if you are angry enough, the angry face you have will freeze forever. Example: In this crazy world, you cant get too big for yer britches or you wont make it. She doesnt find anyone as attractive as her. But the richness of Southern speech goes far beyond one or two-word expressions. That means whatever you're talking about is worth less than very little. Black folks, most likely from the South of the Midwest, took it a step further and completely got rid of the second consonant sound, creating bae. He's so uppity he deserves a PhD in snobbery. Can you help me find them? Youll e raisin cane if you dont stop. Example: Youre a ragamuffin today. He's about as useful as a screen door on a submarine. (in bed early) Go whole hog. Also, your parent calling your friends "little" is not in regard to stature, they could all be over six feet tall. Some pests messed it up last night. 4. 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