Local idioms

[smurfy]

Born and raised in CT, live here now, but have lived in Los Angeles and the Twin Cities.

I have never heard of bubbler. New England has many areas with differences.
Soda is in CT and CA, but Pop is in MN.
Packy is short for Package Store in CT - liquor store (state law requiring the alcohol must be wrapped.
As a kid (in CT) a neighbor married a guy that had a daughter from a previous marriage that visited every other weekend that I played with. She was 1 year older than me and used the word wicked often, and I thought she was cool. I assume she was from somewhere in Ct, but not really sure.
In CA, the freeways are called 'the 5', 'the 405', but in CT 'take 91 N to 84W'...

[Angelskates]

Packy is short for Package Store in CT - liquor store (state law requiring the alcohol must be wrapped.

Aussies call them Bottlos, but I think we'd call them Packy if they were called Package Stores

[ChelleC]

Here we use Coke to refer to soft drinks in general. "Let's go get a Coke." But of course you have to be specific when ordering.

"Catty-corner" as in "Their house is catty-corner from ours," means it's not directly across but more diagonally across.

I'm originally from eastern Kentucky. Soft drinks are called pop, or referred to as a pepsi. Doesn't matter what kind you have, it's a pepsi.

We also use "catty-corner."

The evening meal is supper, not dinner.

Shopping carts are buggies.

Mamaw and Papaw for grandparents.

[Kruss]

I forgot that I once ordered soda in a restaurant here and they brought me seltzer water.

[Moto Guzzi]

Also, what do you call the little dust balls under your bed? That's often very regional.

Ghost farts (but that's not a regional thing, just family weirdness).

When I lived in the midwest I bought pop and brought my groceries home in a sack. Now I buy soda and get bags at the grocery store.

[John 3 17]

We had one when I was a child, but I haven't heard that phrase since I left the farm. We called it a fruhroom, with a hard uh.



I grew up with pop, but gradually switched to soda in college. It seems to happen a lot around here; all of the college graduates I know say soda and all of the non-college graduates say pop. Some people use both.

My father is not a college grad and he has always said "soda".

-Bridget

[John 3 17]

People say bubbler in the Midwest too. Actually, I hear bubbler more in the Midwest than in the NE, so maybe it depends.

I am Chicagoland born and raised and I've never heard it called a "bubbler" locally.

-Bridget

[John 3 17]

We call non-thong slip on shoes, "slip-ons", or sometimes sandals.

Funny, slip-ons mean those little ballerina flats around here

-Bridget

[julieann]

My father is not a college grad and he has always said "soda".

-Bridget

It's more regional than educational, I have a couple of degrees and still say pop.

[John 3 17]

I see a lot of "soda" and "pop" mentions on this thread... growing up, everyone in my family said "pop" because we're in Chicagoland -- except for my dad who has always said "soda" because he's an Ohio transplant Other phrases we say differently are: we say "garbage can", he says "trash can", we say "basement" and he says "cellar" (well, not so often anymore, even he says basement more often than not -- we've gotten to him!). Regional phrases are fun to learn about

-Bridget

[John 3 17]

It's more regional than educational, I have a couple of degrees and still say pop.

Yeah, that was kind of what I was pointing out. Thanks for the backup! I think "pop" is a fun word and knowing it's from the Great Lakes region is cute

[John 3 17]

Ghost farts (but that's not a regional thing, just family weirdness).

When I lived in the midwest I bought pop and brought my groceries home in a sack. Now I buy soda and get bags at the grocery store.

Even the Midwest has differences, it is a pretty big region, afterall... in my neck of the Midwest, we say "bags" for paper bags, never "sacks"! But, we do say "pop". We do use "sack" once in awhile for a lunch packed in a small paper bag. I never use it myself, though. A "sack" to me is made of fabric.

I also say "front room" and "living room" almost equally, though in houses with two such rooms, it's very common to call the one in the back the "family room". I think "family room" has been around for like 20 years, but when I was a kid and first heard it, I always imagined a family rec room in the basement

[John 3 17]

Another one: my dad used to call a hamburger a "sandwich", which we never did; a sandwich to me is used for tuna fish or ham and cheese -- but he calls them "hamburgers" more often than not now; again, we've gotten to him

My grandfather was raised in Chicago itself and he had expressions we didn't use in the suburbs. He would say, "chuck it" for "throw it out/away".

I know in MN as well as where I'm from we say "scoot" for "move", as in "scoot over so I can sit next to you", or "scoot, you're in the way!"

[Prancer]

My father is not a college grad and he has always said "soda".

Oh, he lives around here?

It's more regional than educational, I have a couple of degrees and still say pop.

And you live around here, too?

We should all meet!

except for my dad who has always said "soda" because he's an Ohio transplant Other phrases we say differently are: we say "garbage can", he says "trash can", we say "basement" and he says "cellar" (well, not so often anymore, even he says basement more often than not -- we've gotten to him!).

Pop is more common in Ohio than soda. Cellar is another term I haven't heard since I left the farm; you either have a basement or you are on a slab. If it's inside, it's a trash can, outside it's a garbage can.

Another one: my dad used to call a hamburger a "sandwich", which we never did; a sandwich to me is used for tuna fish or ham and cheese -- but he calls them "hamburgers" more often than not now; again, we've gotten to him

My grandfather was raised in Chicago itself and he had expressions we didn't use in the suburbs. He would say, "chuck it" for "throw it out/away".

Never heard anyone call a hamburger a sandwich, either. What part of Ohio was your dad from?

People here say "chuck it" pretty regularly, too. Also "pitch it."

[John 3 17]

Hey, Prancer, you offered anecdotal evidence, and I did the same. What's the prob?

[Prancer]

Hey, Prancer, you offered anecdotal evidence, and I did the same. What's the prob?

Aside from the fact that I specified that I was referring to usage "around here" in the case of pop and soda and education levels, which I did because I am aware that this is not widespread, nothing . Just offering more anecdotal evidence in response.

I wondered where your dad was from because Ohio has four distinctly different accents and some idioms that go with them. One of the things you said makes me think he's from northeastern Ohio, but "cellar" is kind of throwing me.

[John 3 17]

...I wondered where your dad was from because Ohio has four distinctly different accents and some idioms that go with them. One of the things you said makes me think he's from northeastern Ohio, but "cellar" is kind of throwing me.

Dad's from the Toledo area, so northwestern OH.

[julieann]

And you live around here, too?

We should all meet!

I'm not sure where 'around here' is...if you are talking Minnesota, no I move to Arizona 5 years ago.

Here's a funny Pop vs. Soda Page across America.

[OrioleBeagle]

I'm from Maryland. While visiting a cousin in Iowa, I asked a grocery store employee where the "soda" machine was. They looked at me with a very confused look on their face. They finally figured out I wanted the "pop" machine!

[OrioleBeagle]

People from the City of Baltimore refer to going to Ocean City, Maryland as "going down the Ocean".