Southern charm: English Slang Collection

Bless your heart

"She brought deviled eggs to the cookout in a ziplock and wondered why they looked sad. Bless your heart, you tried, babe."

Dadgum

"Dadgum sprinkler went off at 6 AM while I was getting the paper in my good slippers. Standing in the front yard soaked head to toe and the mailman waved."

Fixin' to

"I’m fixin’ to run up to H-E-B before the game, y’all want chips or salsa, or are we pretending we’re eatin’ healthy again?"

Holler

"Grew up in a holler so small that when one dog barked, every porch light in the valley came on. Mama could holler my name and three neighbours would answer."

Reckon

"I reckon we smash a servo pie, duck into Bunnings, then bail before peak hour turns the M1 into a car park."

Y'all

"Y'all grab a plate and scoot over, Uncle Ray just fired up the pit, and we ain't starting the brisket without you."

Yonder

"Need feed for the chickens? The co-op’s over yonder by the water tower, so grab the truck, we’re fixin’ to go."

Cattywampus

"Bless your heart, that shelf’s gone all cattywampus. One more screw and a level, and maybe it’ll stop leaning like it’s tired."

All hat, no cattle

"He rolled into town in shiny boots, talkin’ like he owns half the county, but when it came to work, he was all hat, no cattle."

Mosey

"I told Bubba I’d be there at six, but I was still moseyin’ through H-E-B at 6:20, debating brisket like time was optional."

Might could

"I might could swing by after church if Mama does not need help with the porch. No promises though, because last time she had me repainting the whole thing."

finna

"finna is usually used by the younger generations and it is a replacement word for fixin to or let's say a lazy word for fixin to and a good example would be ah I finna wake up I swear I"

Finna

"I'm finna head out, y'all need anything from the store, or are you just gonna keep scrolling and act surprised when I'm gone?"

Scooch

"Hey y'all, can you scooch down a bit so Grandma can sit? This booth's tighter than a tick and my sweet tea's about to spill."

The boonies

"We took a wrong turn past Sudbury and ended up in the boonies, counting moose and praying for a Timmy's sign and one bar of service."

Boonies

"Mate, I've been driving for an hour and I'm still in the boonies. Not even a petrol station in sight."

I know that's right

"I know that's right. Basically a different way to express your strong agreement, similar to, you know, say it louder or whatnot. An example would be, damn, a whole free buffet? I know that's right."

I know that's right

"Free parking downtown and somebody else buying dessert? I know that's right, tonight is finally showing us a little mercy."

Knee high to a grasshopper

"I’ve known him since he was knee high to a grasshopper, tearing round his grandma’s yard with scruffy knees. Now he’s got a mortgage and back pain."

Yessir

"Yes, sir, is a combination of the word yes and sir. It is used when responding to someone with an absolute yes in an exciting manner. Hey, the Stevie Wonder tickets came in. We're going to the show. Yes, sir, it's going to be a great night."

Yessir

"The Stevie Wonder tickets finally came through, yessir, tonight's gonna be smooth, loud, and worth losing our voices over on the drive home."

Turnt

"Turnt is a word to describe something as being turned up. It can refer to the volume of music or even an individual's energy. Example, yo, I've never been to New York before, but this place is turnt."

Turnt

"We pulled up thinking it would be chill, but the whole spot was turnt, bass shaking cups, people yelling lyrics, nobody ready to go home."

On God

"On God, which basically means, kinda, pretty much, I swear to God, or like, I swear, like, you're saying the truth. A very famously quoted example would be, no cap, on God, bro."

On God

"Bro, on God I left my phone on the bus and the driver actually brought it back, no cap, I thought my whole day was cooked."

Southern charm

Voices of the people