Southernisms - Part 1

Southerners are known for their backwoods country slang that takes some time to get used to if you weren't raised around it. There are different dialects all over and some even take me some time to get used to. I thought I'd share some of the infamous Southernisms that I was brought up using just in case you ever decide to visit the South and need to understand what the people are talking about. Now, listen up!

"Count" is a word that I always loved to hear my Nanny say. If she didn't like something, she'd say, "That darn cake wudn't no count!" Or, if she DID like something, "Now, that was some count!"

"Right" is used loosely in the South. Here are some examples:
"She's a right purty girl, that Sarah."
"Well, I don't rightly know."
"Put that roast right in the middle of the table, purty please, ma'am."
"Reach over there and hand me the salt right quick, wouldja?"

A saying I have always liked to hear, and as a child put wonderfully funny images in my head, is said when someone asks you if you're related to someone who has the same last name. They may say, "I think our grandpaw's use to cuss the same cat," as a way to say, "I think distantly we are related."

Of course, there's the ever famous "y'all". I think that one is self-explanatory, as is the next one.

"Ain't". This word is not just used by southerners although it's usually attributed to us. "Ain't ain't a word."

How about "'ere", pronounced "air", for "there"? Ever heard that one? "Whatcha got 'ere, Billy?" (Also said "der" at times.)

The previous word brings me to "nery" or "nere", pronounced "nairy" and "nair". We stick that word in to add some extra oomph! "I ain't got nery an idea what that thar thing is." (and "thar" is "there".)

My Nanny used to say this: "I ain't seen hide nor hair o' 'im in ages!". That means, "I haven't seen him in a long time!"

What about the use of the word "awful" or "awfly" (for "awfully")? Even "mighty" will do sometimes. We do use "very" instead of these words, but an equal amount of people say the former. "He was awful (or awfly, mighty) tired by the time he got done plowin'."

Here is another funny example of something we say to describe "every" one of something. "Ever damn one of those nails bent when I was hammerin'."

A big cash crop in NC is tobacco. But we have our own word for it. "Backer."

"Bard" What is this word? Let me use it in a nice, rednecky sentence for you. "My sister bard my Sundee (or, Sunday) dress and got backer juice all over the front. Now what am I gonna do?"

A fav of mine is "bob war". Can you guess? "Barbed wire" is the correct version.

"Sump'n" "Now that thar new rifle I got, wooh boy! She is sump'n!"

When we express sympathy, we like to say, "Well, bless your heart, darlin'."

"Sugar". We use this word loosely. We use it for the white granules that come in a paper sack ("sack" being another word we like to use in place of "bag") and we also use it in sentences like this: "Come here, sugar. I want me some sugar!" Our children grow up in the South learning that kissing someone sure is a sweet thing!

I am not nearly done with all the Southernisms I slip back into when I am visiting home, so be sure to check back in after a few days to see what other Southernisms I can pull out of my sleeve.

Y'all come back now, ya hear?