I just thought of this today, and haven't come up with hardly anything yet, but I'm sure there's plenty of words that we can all come up with that people from outside the area aren't familar with. I also have started a seperate page for Words Unique To New England

"Bang A Louey"

Better be careful where you do it, this means to make a U-Turn, also said as a U-e.

"Don't make 'knee-odds'"

This is a phrase that seems to have been passed down from the old timer New Englanders to present generations. It is a verbal shorthand for the phrase, "It doesn't make any odds" ---meaning, "it doesn't matter".

"Down Cella"

As in "the washing machine is down cella". Never down in THE cellar and definitely not the basement.

Hang a Ralph

To take a right turn while driving. To take a left turn is to "Bang a Louie" (mistakenly referred to above as equivalent to the oft used "Bang a U-ie"

"Hihowahya"

A greeting ( not a Native American word) used primarily by Boston College Alumni Once commonly heard in Worcester, during the heyday of the BC/Holy Cross rivalry. Now relegated mostly to the bars around Cleveland Circle in Boston.

"Huck A Louey"

This is inreference to spitting. Such a vile habit...

Jeet

"Did you eat." Or Jeetyet....."Did you eat yet ?"

Let It Be

"Let it be" was used for "Leave it alone." Let it be the way it is.

Not For Nothing

Not that it matters

Oki Doki

A popular phrase for "ok", may have it origins from WW 2 vets returning from Japan/Aisa, and permeates Northern New England slang.

"So don't I"

It means "that you do too". It is the "echo" of the negative tag question. "You live in Worcester, don't you? So don't I."

Stuck In

We used "stuck in" for "put in". I stuck it in the bag, etc.

Tap A Harry

To ask someone of legal age to buy alcohol (for a minor).

"Three Deckers"/"Triple Deckers"

Three story apartment buildings, usually with one apartment to the floor. Very popular at the turn of the 19th and 20th century, and hence one of the reasons there are so many in Worcester (which was the peak of Worcester's industral strength).

"Waddaya, retahded?"/"Waddaya, braindead?"

"Are you nuts?; How could you say/do that?; You don't know what you're talking about!" Etc.. Not a very good thing to say, as it is unfeeling towards retarded people, but to be "fair", actual medically retarded people are the farthest thing from the minds of the speaker. It's meant more as an observance of a lack of thought on the part of the recipient of the phrase.

Wicked Pissa

That guy crack me up! We is a wicked pissa.

"You can't get there from here"

To be honest, I've never understood why people say this. Basically it means you're heading in the wrong direction. This one is most popular in Maine I think, but I've heard it in all parts of New England. Especially when travelling. I used to pump gas at one time, and was always tempted to say it myself. Of course in Maine, there's a valid reason for this phrase. Most major roads tend to run north-south, so if you wanted to go somewhere west/east of your current location, it's a VERY long trip sometimes.

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