Appendix:Glossary of Boston slang

Boston slang consists of words and phrases of slang originating from and commonly used in Boston, Massachusetts. Though most often used in Boston, the slang can also be heard in other cities of Massachusetts or even other New England states, though not always as frequently. Some terms are less commonly heard outside of the Boston area than others; some are not used at all outside of Boston.

General local vocabulary and slang

B

• beat - crappy, unpleasant, or ugly (e.g. "she's beat")
• basic - not unique, pretty, or special.
• bagged - arrested; "He got bagged for a DUI."; (Driving Under the Influence)
• the balls - awesome, great (e.g. "That concert was the balls.")
• bang - to make a quick move (often, "bang a left"; also used often as "bang a U-ie" - make a U-turn); sometimes used interchangeably with hang
• bang out - call in sick to work (It's such a nice day, maybe I should bang out and go to the beach.)
• barney - a Harvard student or graduate (used by working class residents of Somerville). In the 1980s, locals called Harvard Yard "The Barnyard" because the Harvard students and their idiosyncrasies did not jibe well with the blue collars. Harvard students that clustered in Harvard Yard were called Barneys, it was never a compliment.
• barrel - trash can
• biddy - nickname for a cheap looking girl
• blinker - a term for a directional (turn signal) in a car, also called a blinkah
• Bob Hope - marijuana
• bobos - cheap no-name sneakers.
• bombed - inebriated (example: "We got wicked bombed last night!")
• booked - took off quickly ("We saw the cops come round the corner and we booked it.")
• booted - 1. To be ejected or removed from a building or event. 2. To have one's car be incapacitated by the placement of a lock on one's front wheel, usually due to one's negligence in the payment of parking tickets.
• The Boys - the cops, the police
• bozo - a pothead; used mostly in South Boston
• bopped - arrested or caught by the police, usually in reference to drug possession or possession of other forms of contraband. More commonly heard in Boston’s northern suburbs than elsewhere.
• Brahmin - Boston Brahmin
• broad - derogatory term for a woman.
• brownie - somebody with a high tolerance for cold temperatures. It refers to L Street Brownies, a group famous for swimming in frigid ocean waters during the winter time based at the L Street Bathhouse in South Boston
• breakdown lane - right margin or shoulder on highways used for broken down vehicles. Vehicles are allowed to drive in the breakdown lane at certain hours on some Massachusetts highways.
• bubbler - the Boston- and Wisconsin-specific word for a water fountain or water cooler.
• bulkhead - outdoor entrance to the basement / cellar.
• B’daydas - Potatoes (very uncommon anymore, but mainly said by people who grew up in the inner city parts of the area before approximately 1960)
• bureau - dresser or chest of drawers

C

• carriage - a baby stroller, or a shopping cart
• cellar - the basement of a house
• Charlestown briefcase - a twelve-pack of beer
• chowderhead (sometimes chowdahead) - often, a New Englander, at one time meant a person to laugh at or stupid person but has evolved to be a lighter term that has been embraced by those to whom it refers.
• chucklehead - A local idiot
• clicker or "clickah" - TV remote
• cruiser - a police car, or a Ford Crown Victoria

D

• decked - adj., dressed nicely ("decked out"); past tense verb, punched (not Boston-specific)
• Deluxe-bury - nickname for Duxbury, implying wealth
• D-we - a D.W.I. (Driving While Intoxicated), changed to D.U.I. (Driving Under the Influence) "Yeah, I got bagged by the boys last night for a D-we). More commonly referred to as "dewey".
• directional - (noun.) turn signal (also, a " blinkah.")
• docksiders (pronounced "docksidahs") - noun, brown boat shoes
• down-cellar (pronounced "down sullah") - adj., contraction of "down in the cellar", refers to being located in the basement
• d-tech - an undercover police car
• Dungarees - denim pants

E

• elastic - rubber band

F

• Fall River tuxedo - a sport jacket over a hooded sweatshirt
• for days (pronounced "fuh days") - an excessive amount or lasting forever (i.e. "This traffic goes on for days." "I went out drinkin' last night and slept for days.")
• field day - a situation in which the involved participants are taking advantage or having an energetic time (i.e. "I dropped a five dollah bill, and the bums had a field day.")
• the five and ten or the nickel and dime- a 19th- and 20th-century store that sold small items for the home, sometimes including clothing, originally at prices of 5 or 10 cents; known elsewhere as "the dime store".
• flurries - small snow showers
• force - an excess of something, i.e. “that snow last night was a force.” It can also be used as a verb, when somebody does something too much, or tries too hard, i.e. “You really forced it trying to impress that chick last night, and ended up looking like an idiot”
• frappe [pron. frap] - what some might erroneously refer to as a "milkshake"; the term milkshake has a separate use (see below)
• frickin - Another term for friggin' or freaking, similarly used in place of the swear word f*ckin'. As in "that game was wicked frickin' pissah!"

G

• gagga - a large line of cocaine
• Ghettoglen Mall - 1908s-90s name for the Meadowglen Mall in Medford, now closed
• going to Chelsea - When something is crooked or gone awry. "Buddy, straighten yah hat. It's goin tuh Chelsea."
• good shit - An agreeable, non-threatening person. "I've got no problem with Mikey, he's a good shit."
• grinder - a "submarine" or "hoagie" sandwich
• gump - an outdated term for dunce or nitwit. "What a gump that guy is!"

H

• hardo - someone who is trying too hard, often pronounced "Hahdo." Another name for a try-hard. "Kehd got an A on his paper. Kid's a hahdo"
• hoodie - slang term for a hooded sweatshirt
• hoodsie (1) - A small cup of vanilla and chocolate ice-cream from the HP Hood Company. Eaten with a thin wooden spoon that comes with the Hoodsie. Also called a Hoodsie cup
• hoodsie (2) - In neighborhoods such as South Boston and Dorchester, it refers to a precocious minor female who tries to appear older or wants to date older teenage boys or young men. The term is considered derogatory: "He'll get bagged if he keeps dating that hoodsie." One popular explanation says that the expression comes from the idea that the small cup a Hoodsie ice cream treat comes in is the same size as the bra cup of a hoodsie. A second popular, but more off-color explanation refers to HP Hood's one-time advertising slogan for the Hoodsie ice cream treat: "Short and sweet and good to eat."
  • different view - Hoodsie would also have the connotation of a young teen-age girl that sits on the hood of a car, either to look cool to her friends, or portray herself as being older and sophisticated because she's 'sitting on the hood of a car'.
• hopper - the toilet, in particular when used to take a dump (pronounced "hoppah").
• hosies - claim of first right, used in the same way as "dibs." For example, "I got hosies on the front seat."
• hummer - oral gratification.

I

• ice box or fridge - a refrigerator
• igit - short for idiot (e.g. "Dude, you're a freakin' igit, kid.")
• Irish battleship - a three-story, three-family house. See also: Triple decker

J

• jeekehs - Central Massachusetts variant of "jeepers," often paired with "Golly" as in "I tohl' 'em, I sez Golly Jeekahs ya cah's on fi-ya!"

• jimmies - sprinkles (on ice cream); sometimes, specifically chocolate sprinkles (also common to Philadelphia)

K

• ked or kid - a younger person, adolescent, or a term of endearment to a friend ("What's up kid?" or as said in Boston "Whatup kid?")

L

• lace curtain Irish - a person of Irish descent who is moving up the social ladder; ("After they moved to the Point, they became lace curtain Irish.")
• Let's go, Southie, let's go! - rallying cry for South Boston High School, used by anti-intergration activists during the Boston busing crisis
• light dawns on Marblehead - used when a dense person finally realizes something. Also any variation, such as "Dawn breaks on Marblehead."

M

• ma - mother
• mad - very (As in "mad cool"). See "wicked"
• Masshole - derogatory term for any resident of Massachusetts, especially of Boston drivers (popular in New Hampshire and Maine), now sometimes worn as a badge of honor by life-long residents of the state, especially when visiting Northern New England.
• mreet - originated in Maynard, MA in the 1970s it first started by calling someone a meatball, then it turned into meatball to just mreet. It is used when someone does something stupid. It is also used as a greeting to other maynardians to say hi.
• mum - mom
• Mumbles - Long-time Boston mayor Thomas Menino, known for his malapropisms, especially when trying to pronounce the names of star athletes

N

• No suh! [No sir, compare "no sirree"] - "No way!". The appropriate response is "Ya suh!" OR "Ya huh"
• Necco wafers- a Boston-made candy, rarely found in stores anymore
• Nor'easter - a strong winter storm with winds emanating from the northeast. A bad Northeaster is like a winter hurricane

O

• Off the boat - used to describe a European immigrant, usually from Ireland.
• Olly-Olly Oxenfree- a proclamation to players of "Tag" or "Hide-n-Seek", that they may return to a common area free of consequence as it may pertain to the game being [phonetically reduced version of the original "All ye, all ye, all come free."]
• Only in Maynard - a saying that later became a product line containing the words on ONLY IN MAYNARD. They were deliberately printed so that the right side was noticeably higher than the left. Best guess is the wording was askew to convey that negative, rueful pride that only in Maynard could things (town things, school things, people things...) be so humorously incompetent or fouled up.
• on (dead) dogs - when one makes a statement that they swear to god is true.

P

• packie (also packet, package store or booze barn) - liquor store. Massachusetts law requires alcohol to be sold in a sealed package, leading to the term “package store” which eventually shortened to “packie.” Not to be confused with “Paki,” an ethnic slur used in the UK against persons of South Asian descent.
• parlor - the living room in a house
• parish - designation of a neighborhood based on particular Catholic Churches, as in "What parish are you from?"
• Peking ravioli - fried Chinese potstickers/dumplings
• Perchead - a Percocet abuser
• piazza - the porch on a triple-decker house (Merrimack valley).
• pissa(h) (1) - good: "You hit the Lottery? That's pissa man."
• pissa(h)!(2) - used to accentuate an unfortunite moment. "My friggin khaki's (car keys) fell down da catch basin (storm drain), pissah ain't it".
• pissa(h) (3) - used to decribe a (friend or acquaintance) whom is eccentric "Did ya hear what Johnny said/did.... g'dam pissa ain't he"
• pizza pillows - pizza rolls
• pockabook - purse (pocketbook)
• Portuguese tuxedo or New Bedford tuxedo - a premium soccer warm-up suit under sport jacket.

R

• The Rattler - the subway, standardly referred to as "The T" in the greater Boston area.
• regular/regulah - a coffee order at Dunkies/any coffee place that means 'with two creams and two sugars.' "I'll take a lahge regulah."
• ripper - a kegger or a big, wild party
• ripped - very angry, i.e. “Joe got wicked ripped when he found out the packie ran out of liquah”
• road soda - a beer you drink while driving around. Also known as a "roadie". "Dude, I grabbed a couple of roadies for the ride to the bah."
• rotary - what would be known as a traffic circle or a roundabout elsewhere
• rubbish - Trash, garbage, refuse

S

• screw - "to take off" or "get out of here,” i.e. a cop might say to teenagers hanging out on a street corner, “hey you kids, screw!”
• scully - a driving cap, flat cap, or ivy cap that has a snap-button front; often pronounced as "scahlly."
• I'm sheets - tired, ready for bed. Bedford, Mass
• shanty Irish - poor or working class person of Irish descent.
• shiesty - A term meaning someone or something is shady or sketchy. "Those kids standing on the corner are wicked shiesty." Or "The food here looks wicked shiesty"
• the shit - something or someone that is awesome
• sick (nasty) - amazing or awesome
• skeezer - a drug addict; typically used in reference to a "druggie slut." #also see "slampig"#
• skeeze - a person of questionable personal reputation considered to exhibit lack of discernment in intimate encounters and thereby considered to have high potential for being afflicted with a communicable social disease.
• skid - a loser or lowlife. "His brother is a real skid."
• skidder - someone who bums (borrows) money from friends. Pronounced "skiddah"
• slampig - a skank, overly slutty female, a "Sled Dog", equivalent to a whore or slut. "That chick's been a slampig."
• slush - an icy Boston area treat.... similar to Italian ice... popular flavors are lemon and blue vanilla
• smuck - lopsided; usually used by children to describe uneven teams: "These teams are smuck." Can also be used as a verb: "We smucked 'em." Mostly used on North Shore.
• So don't I - "So do I" or "Me, too". (Person A: "I like the Red Sox." Person B, agreeing: "So don't I.")
• Southie tuxedo - a full Adidas track suit, including Adidas scally cap, the jacket, the pants, the socks, and the sneakers
• spa - neighborhood shop that sells groceries, soda fountain drinks, sandwiches, or other prepared food and miscellaneous notions. Spas of this sort include the Hillside Spa Cardoza Brothers, on Hancock Street, the Thurston's Spa aka "Johnnies" in Somerville, Lenny's Spa in East Boston, MA, Winship Spa, Faneuil Spa or the former Palace Spa known to locals as Mac's in Brighton.
• spastic - emotional outburst involving what appears to be uncontrolled waving of the arms, legs and head.
• spaz - one who is exceptionally athletically uncoordinated.
• spinner (pronounced "spinnah") - A petite hot young woman.
• spuckie or spukie - a submarine sandwich or grinder; its name comes from the bread it was made with (spuccadella).
• stackjack - a short, broad-chested male with a short haircut.
• statie - Massachusetts State Police Trooper; also called a trooper, pronounced troopah
• street number - a numbers lottery game which once had a racist name. In decline after the state lottery introduced a daily numbers game, the street number was originally the results of mutual payoffs from certain horse races at Suffolk, Narragansett or Lincoln parks which were once shamelessly published on the front page of the city's afternoon dailies. Later revised to the last digits of the U.S. Treasury balance.
• supper - the third meal of the day.
• Swellsley - nickname for Wellesley, implying wealth

T

• three-way - a roast beef sandwich with cheese, sauce and mayo. (example: "I'll have a junior three-way and a medium coke.") also "all around."
• time - a retirement or going-away party; ("Did you hear Sully's retiring?" "Yeah, they're having a time for him down Florian Hall.") Also refers to political fundraisers.
• tonguebahth - a hot girl (used by Bedford, Massachusetts men)
• tonic - soft drink, soda or pop. Not the same thing as tonic water
• tool - a loser
• townie - in the strictest sense, a resident of Charlestown; or more broadly someone from Arlington, Medford, Somerville or South Boston or the other Irish-Catholic enclaves of Boston and surrounding areas. Also used as an adjective for the accent of those areas, or to describe a person who shares many characteristics with the residents of those areas. Occasionally, a person who was born/lived their life/died in the same town, village or 'burb, and whose family has lived in the town for many generations. A resident of a college town who is not affiliated with the college (more used by non-local college students than by Boston area residents).
• triple decker - a three-story, three-family house, also called a "three decker".
• Triple Eagle - Someone who has graduated from Boston College High School, Boston College, and Boston College Law School. Taken from the fact that all three schools use the eagle as a mascot.

U

• U-ey - a U-turn while driving. Also sometimes called a "U-dog". Almost always used with the verb bang, as in "After this next light, bang a U-ey and then take a right." Sometimes, also, a Louie.
• Uh-doy - rarely used anymore, similar to "Duh!"
• up - a general direction one takes when going anywhere. I'm takin' the kids up Foley Field to play ball; or "We're goin' up Maine for the weekend." This becomes "Down" when going to Cape Cod, as in "I'm goin' down Cape this weekend."
• Up Mt. Auburn, under the tree - referring to a deceased person. Example: "Where's your mom?" "She's up Mt. Auburn, under the tree"
• up the corner - A popular hang-out spot in most Boston neighborhoods. Neighborhoods such as Southie were infamous for the crowds of young kids hanging out in front of their block's corner store and protecting it as their own.

W

• Whitey - Whitey Bulger
• whoopie pie - a pastry first sold commercially at the Berwick Cake Factory in Dudley Square, Roxbury
• wicked - very; or occasionally cool. Used indiscriminately, can modify anything (e.g.: especially "Wicked pissa." ; also "Wicked good." "Wicked bad." "Wicked boring.", etc.). Almost always used as an adverb, rather than an adjective; some Bostonians feel it is grammatically improper not to put an adjective or verb after "wicked".
• wicked gross mental fit - a sustained emotional outburst, generally triggered by a specific incident. "She came home drunk and her mom took a wicked gross mental fit." "She saw him making out with someone else and took a wicked gross mental fit." Believed to have originated in the Reading-Stoneham-Wakefield area north of Boston.
• wiffle - a short haircut given to boys and young men usually in the summer: a buzz cut.
• Wolfpack- Boston Latin School Students
• wrecker - a towing vehicle, as in: There was a wicked pile up on the artery. They hadda bring in at least three wreckers to get them cars outta the way."

Y

• yah huh- very determined "yes"
• yiz or yous(e) - plural form of "you." As in, "All a yiz bettah be in the cah by the time I count to fou-ah"

Placename slang

• A-town - Arlington, MA
• The Ahmpit (Armpit) -Derogatory term for Worcester MA
• The Ave - refers to Dorchester Avenue, or "Dot Ave"
• The Basement - Filene's Basement, a department store in Downtown Crossing.
• Beacon Hill - the Massachusetts government, particularly the State legislature
• Beantown - Boston (never used by Bostonians)
• Benny Hill Community College - Refers to Bunker Hill Community College located in Charlestown, MA
• Boogietown - Derogatory term for the city of Brockton, in reference to its large minority population. Also called Browntown. Boogie down to Browntown.
• Big Dig - the Central Artery Tunnel Project
• The Big Hole -referring to the Central Artery Project (The Big Dig) when all construction was on standby.
• Big Pig - The cost of the Central Artery Tunnel Project approximately 15 billion dollars
• Blingham - Hingham, Massachusetts
• "BLS"- Boston Latin School
• Blue Line - one of the four (or five if you include the "Silver" line) "T" subway lines, the Blue Line starts at Bowdoin and ends at Wonderland. Also used as derogatory slang for example "this cup of coffee tastes like the Blue Line" or "Hey Tommy, your girlfriend smells like the Blue Line".
• The Bob Loboat - The Boston Harbor Island Ferry that docks in Rowes Wharf
• Bricka - Referring to the town of Billerica (Alternatively: "Somerville with trees")
• Brockton by the Sea - Derogatory nickname for Hyannis
• Burly -Nickname for the town of Burlington used by locals.
• Bury - The Roxbury section of Boston, or The "Berry".
• The Dirty Burg - Fitchburg
• "Btree"- Nickname for the town of Braintree
• The Cape - Cape Cod
• Cha-Chingham - Hingham, Ma
• "Chelsalvador"- the town of Chelsea in reference to its large El Salvadorian population
• The Chuck- The Charles River
• Chuck Town - refers to Charlestown. (A.K.A) C-Town.
• Chucky's Place - refers to the Suffork County Jail which was formerly located on Charles St.
• City of Sin - Lynn, Massachusetts, from the rhyme "Lynn, Lynn, city of sin, you never come out the way you went in." Refers to the City's criminal reputation.
• Clambodia - Slang term for The town of Ipswich, Massachusetts, a reference to their famous Ipswich Clams.
• Comm Ave - Commonwealth Avenue
• The Common - referring to Boston Common. Dating from 1634, it is the oldest city park in the United States.
• The Combat Zone - the red light district of Boston that used to exist between Downtown Crossing and Chinatown, now refurbished
• Cow Hampshire - somewhat derogatory term for New Hampshire, referring to the perceived abundance of cows, can also used to represent any rural area in New England that is not necessarily in New Hampshire
• Cumbys/Cumbies - refers to the convenience store chain Cumberland Farms
• Crack Street - Lowell, a euphemism for Lowell's Acre and Lower Highlands neighborhoods, referring to the HBO documentary "High on Crack Street" which focused on the lives of those addicted to crack cocaine in the economic downturn experienced by former industrial centers in the later 1980s and early 1990s. This is not used affectionately by Lowellians.
• The Dot - Dorchester, Massachusetts
• Dot - Dorchester, Massachusetts
• Dot Ave - Dorchester Avenue
• Dot Rat - Dorchester, Massachusetts A native of Dorchester who can't escape.
• Deluxebury - Duxbury, Massachusetts, affluent south shore town. Part of the Irish Riviera.
• Dirty-E - noun., Everett, Massachusetts
• ‘’Dirty Wu’’ - noun., Woburn, Massachusetts
• "Dirty Ham" - noun Framingham, Massachusetts
• The Dirty Rick - Billerica MA
• Down East - A section of the Maine coast that is actually north of Boston
• down the Cape - Referring to going to or being on Cape Cod.
• down-Cape - Term used on Cape Cod meaning eastward, in the direction of the Lower Cape.
• Dunks, Dunkies, Dunkee's - Dunkin' Donuts|Dunkin' Donuts
• The Fair - old fashioned agricultural fair held in Topsfield every fall since 1808. It is the oldest agricultural fair in the United States.
• "The Fairy Ferry" - the fast ferry between Boston and Provincetown, MA also called "P Town." The word "fairy" here is used in a derogatory sense, as a reference to Provincetown's large LGBTQ+ population.
• the flat of the Hill - the portion of Beacon Hill between Charles Street and Storrow Drive
• Eastie - East Boston (Used almost exclusively by people from East Boston)
• The E - the predominantly Irish neighborhood of East Milton.
• "EC"- East Cambridge
• The Garden - a reference to the Boston Garden or the TD Garden, home of the Boston Celtics and the Boston Bruins
• The Gas Tank - A large, painted gas storage tank in Dorchester along Rt. 93.
• Glocksbury or Robbury - Derogatory term for Roxbury
• Greastie - Derogatory term for East Boston or Eastie, referring to its Italian and Latino population
• Greenie - Irish worker of the present who is in the U.S. illegally. This is interesting because it refers to the worker as Irish, i.e. "green" and new to the area i.e. "green" but also references their immigration status in an ironic fashion. A documented permanent resident non-citizen worker in the U.S. would have a green card visa, which these folks lack.
• Hamster, Mass - anagrammatic nickname of Amherst, Massachusetts. "Zoo Mass Hamster" (UMass Amherst) is a university campus there.
• Han Francisco - A nickname for Hanover, mocking names like "Marsh Vegas"
• The Heights - Usually refers to the Chestnut Hill main campus of Boston College. Also short for Arlington Heights, an area in the west side of Arlington. Might be used in a sentence like: "I'll meet you at Brigham's, up the Heights." It can also refer an area in North Medford. Can also be used in reference to the Orient Heights section of East Boston.
• The Hill - Beacon Hill or Mission Hill or Winter Hill in Somerville.
• The Hub - Boston; shortened from Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.'s phrase The Hub of the Solar System (often misremembered as Universe) (seldom used in conversation, but seen often in writing and advertisements, e.g. in the Boston Globe)
• the Irish Riviera - the South Shore coastal suburbs to the southeast of Boston such as Hingham, Braintree, Weymouth and especially Marshfield (see "Marsh Vegas") , Squantum and Scituate.
• Jordans -- Jordan Marsh and Company, a hugely popular chain of department stores bought out by Macy's. "I'm goin' shoppin' up Jawdinz."
• Jamaica Spain - The Jamaica Plain area in Boston, so named because of its large Spanish-speaking population
• The Jetties - refers to Jetties Beach in Nantucket
• JP - Jamaica Plain. Also known as The JP .
• Jumbo - nickname for a student of Tufts University after their mascot "Jumbo" the elephant. Especially someone on a Tufts athletic team. "Dumbo" is the derogatory version of this name- someone who pulled strings to get into the school or admission by athletics.
• the Leather District - the neighborhood surrounding South Street in Boston, east of Chinatown.
• "LexVegas" - nickname for the town of Lexington.
• Lil B Town - nickname for Burlington , Massachusetts
• "Lynn Lynn the city of sin" - partial rhyme describing the city of Lynn.
• Maine-iac - derogatory term for Maine driver or resident, on par with Masshole; in Maine this is also used to refer to a member of the Maine National Guard. A title born with pride by the natives, similar to Floridians.
• Man's Greatest Hospital - Massachusetts General Hospital (alternatively, the medical-industrial complex)
• Marsh Vegas - Also known as Marshfield.
• Mass Ave - Massachusetts Avenue, A prominent thouroughfare running from the South End of Boston through Cambridge, Arlington and Lexington
• Massatoilet Community College -refers to Massasoit Community College located in Brockton, MA
• Meffa Medford, Massachusetts; an exaggerated pronunciation of the way the city's name is supposed to sound when it's pronounced by its residents; even though no one in Medford's history have ever pronounced it that way, people living in Greater Boston will refer to the city by that name. Medford, which is next to Boston, has a very thick distinct accent and residents generally pronounce it "Medfid" or "Meffid".
• Menots - Menotomy Rocks Park in Arlington, MA
• Methadone Mile - A stretch of Massachusetts Avenue in the neighborhood of South End, renowned for its high concentration of methadone clinics and being rife with opioid addiction.
• Mingya Valley - Methuen, MA (heart) but including parts of Lawrence, Lowell, North Andover and any section of the Merrimack Valley generally in which there are large numbers of Italian-Americans, who labor as stonemasons, deli workers, and bakers. Named after a common expression in the region similar to the exclamatory phrase "Wowza!" used in Massachusetts at large - "Mingya!" i.e. "Aye, this here pizza pie is delic'! Mingya!" Heard at places such as Piro's Bakery, Borrelli's Deli, and The Loop.
• The Monster, or The Monstah - Fenway Park's 37 foot left field wall, also known as The Green Monster
• The Mother Church - The First Church of Christ, Scientist in Boston, both the actual building in the Back Bay and, among Christian Scientists, the church institution headquartered there.
• Murderpan - derogatory name for Mattapan, MA
• Mush - essentially the equivalent of "dude" in Newton, MA, especially in the village of Nonantum. Pronounced /mʊʃ/.
• Nantrashket or Nantrashbasket - Nantasket Beach the dirtiest, trashiest and best beach on the South Shore.
• Trashua - Nashua, NH
• New B or New Beige - New Bedford
• The Nines - The 99 Restaurant, one of which can be found in just about every reputable suburb of Boston.
• Nawth - North. A location above Massaschusetts. '"My friend in Flawrida keeps askin' how I live up nawth in winta. I says to him, Bawstin ain't nawth, it's east! New Hampsha's up nawth."'
• North Shore - A region north of Boston of disputed boundaries, often including seaside communities from Revere up to the beginning of Cape Ann in Manchester, but also including nearby inland towns or towns connected to the sea only by token inlets or rivers, such as Peabody, Saugus, Lynnfield, Topsfield, Danvers, Newburyport and Amesbury. Sometimes considered to omit Marblehead. Other definitions include the entire coast to the New Hampshire border, and still others the entirety of northern Essex County.
• North Shore Coma College - Slang term for North Shore Community College Located in Danvers, Beverly, and Lynn, Massachusetts
• New Yawk (New York): "The ahmpit of America." 240 Miles South of Tremont Street
• New Hampsha (New Hampshire): A large campsite up north of Boston
• Off-Cape - anything off of Cape Cod (to Cape Codders).
• The Orange Dinosaur - A big orange dinosaur on Rt. 1 Saugus, part of a mini-golf course & batting cages.
• P-town - Provincetown, Massachusetts
• The Pan - refers to Mattapan
• the People's Republic - Cambridge (alternatively, seven square miles surrounded by reality) referring to Cambridge’s reputation as a center of left-wing politics in New England, and the leftist tendencies of its people.
• Pesky's Pole - the right field foul pole in Fenway Park, named after Red Sox infielder Johnny Pesky.
• The Pike - the Massachusetts Turnpike, also the Mass Pike
• Pickle Park - Haverhill, A now closed-off parking area along the Merrimack River on State Route 110 in Haverhill, near the Methuen line where pre-arranged sexual encounters were known to take place. "Watch out sitting out there and casting a line, someone's bound to think you're looking to give or take some pickle there in Pickle Park."
• The Point - the City Point area of South Boston. The term is also used for Jefferies Point in Eastie East Boston, Massachusetts. This also refers to the Point Shirley section of Winthrop, MA. In contrast, "The Point" is also a rather poor and seedy neighborhood in Salem, MA.
• Ponsta - a person who plays video games excessively.
• PooMass - a derogatory term for the University of Massachusetts, usually used by UMass students themselves to insult other UMass campuses, or their own when it suits them. This term gets thrown around a lot between students of UMass Amherst and UMass Lowell, the two biggest and highest-funded UMass campuses. Lowell students call Amherst “PooMass Hamster” and Amherst students call Lowell “PooMass Blowell.” Other less common variations include “PooMass Fartmouth” (Dartmouth) “Costin” (Boston, referring to its high cost and persistent housing shortage that forces students to rent in the city) and “Who? -ster” (Worcester, the smallest campus)
• The Pru or The Prud - The Prudential Center
• "The Q" - Quincy, Massachusetts
• The Res (pronounced rez) - Short for the reservoir (municipal reservoir of whatever town you are in).
• The River - the Charles River
• Rocketown - nickname for the town of Reading, referring to the rocket mascot, which is named for a pair of water towers located near the town's high school -- one of which is oval, as in a 1950s depiction of a flying saucer, and one of which is pointed to give the appearance of a flying saucer and rocket standing side-by-side. The towers were featured as anthropomorphic characters in the Daily Times Chronicle's long-running political editorial cartoon series from the 1970s-90s.
• Rossie, Rozzie - Roslindale
• Route 9 High - Massachusetts Bay Community College in Wellesley. The campus is on or near Route 9.
• Reefer Tech - Otherwise known as the Joseph P. Keefe Technical School located in Framingham. Popular in the mid 1970s through the early 1980s.
• Salt and Pepper Bridge - the Longfellow Bridge, crosses the Charles River between Boston and Cambridge, named because the towers on the bridge resemble salt and pepper shakers.
• Severe - A term used when referring to the town of Revere
• Slummerville - A derogatory term for Somerville, referring to its working-class population and reputation for crime. Also Scummerville.
• Smells 'n' Bells - The Church of the Advent, an Anglo-Catholic parish on Beacon Hill noted for its high church liturgy
• Smithie - A student at Smith College in Northampton, MA
• Snoot-en - The town of Newton, referring to the snobby inhabitants
• SoBro - South Brookline. Used as a term of pride by teenage residents of the area.
• Southie - South Boston; also used for residents of the area
• Southie - South Boston
• SoWa - An area of Boston's South End east of Washington Street. A term created by the real estate industry and not used by locals.
• The Square - Harvard Square
• Stab'n Kill - A derogatory term for the Dorchester neighborhood of Savin Hill. The term refers to a past history of violence in that neighborhood.
• Sully's - Nickname for Sullivan's at Castle Island in South Boston.
• The T - the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority; also used for services run by the MBTA, particularly the Subway. Taken from the MBTA's logo, a block-letter T within a circle.
• Taxachusetts - derogatory political state title and comparative reference to the limited taxation of neighboring New Hampshire
• The Teddy or The Ted - The Ted Williams Tunnel
• "The U" - Term to decribe Salem State University due to its recent change from a "College" to a "University". "I graduated from the U when it was only a C"
• The Milf - Ironically refers to Milford, MA, where most mothers are undesirable.
• the Reckid - Reference to The Boston Herald often made by older Bostonians; derived from the Boston Record-American, a former tabloid that merged with the Herald-Travler in 1971 and originally referring to the paper's first edition which formerly came out before midnight.The only "papah" you could read on the subway, it was small and opened like a magazine.
• The ‘Nard - the name used by “everyone else” (non-Maynardians) to refer to the small town of Maynard.
• The Slut - Refers to Pizza Hut, also used widely in Rhode Island.
• The Tip - The Thomas P. O'Neill Jr. Tunnel
• Tory Row - historic neighborhood of Cambridge, home to prominent British sympathizers before the American Revolution
• The Town - Refers to the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston
• "The Tree" - Braintree, Massachusetts
• Upper Mass Ave - the stretch of Massachusetts Avenue that runs north through North Cambridge from Harvard Square toward the town of Arlington.
• The Village - Adams Village, Irish enclave in Dorchester
• The Vineyard, The Vin - Martha's Vineyard, pronounced Mahtha's Vinyid
• (The) Wake - Wakefield (Used only by residents of Wakefield.)
• Wiskey Point. A neighborhood in Brookline between Brookline Village and Jamaica Pond. Originally a derogatory name for its Irish Residents. Now called simply "The Point"
• Wake Vegas or Tha Dirty Dirty Wake Vegas-Wakefield (Used by teens in Wakefield to describe how Wake Vegas is where the fun never stops, because the fun never started.)
• "The Well" A nickname referring to the town of Norwell. "Oh that kid's straight from the Well".
• Westa Wooster Line of demarcation indicating Western Massachusetts which, as we all know, is anything west of Worcester.
• Westie - West Roxbury (Used only by residents. Most commonly referred to as simply West Roxbury)
• White Man -refers to the town of Whitman
• White Roxbury - West Roxbury
• Wormtown - Worcester, an affectionate name for the city still used by residents, particularly those in the arts and technology maker's culture. Also known as "The Paris Of The 80s".
• Williamsburg - the addition of the bullpens to right-center field at Fenway Park for Ted Williams
• The Wood - Refers to the suburban town of Westwood or Norwood
• The Woo or The Woo-ha or Wormtown or Wistah or Woostah - Refers to the city of Worcester.
• The Wu, Woobin - Woburn, Mass. Used by woburnites.
• "The Cheddar" - Winchester, Mass. Used by people from Winchester
• The Zakim - The Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge over the Charles River, on I-93 through the city.
• ZooMass, The Zoo or ZooMass Slamherst - Used to describe the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, because of its reputation for wild parties and bad behavior. The school has spent years trying to distance itself from the term but it is still widely used, especially among local high school students and students of the four other UMass campuses. (See also: PooMass above)

Sports slang

• The B's - Reference to the Boston Bruins. The Bruins AHL affiliate from Providence are referred to as the Baby B's or the P. Bru's.
• BoSox - See Sox (Seldom used within New England except by sportscasters and writers, national slang to differentiate from the ChiSox, or White Sox of Chicago. Used regionally to differentiate from the AAA Pawtucket Red Sox, aka the PawSox.)
• Bruins Chicks - young female Boston Bruins Hockey Team fans, during the period of 1979-1994 (approximately). Notorious for their big hair, Bruins replica jerseys, and rowdy behavior. Mostly hailing from North Shore communities of Massachusetts.
• The C's - The NBA's greatest franchise ever (The Boston Celtics)
• Dewey - Dwight Evans, former Right Fielder for the Red Sox who won eight Gold Gloves.
• Oah - Robert G. Orr, the greatest Bawstin Broon evah!
• Pats - the New England Patriots
• Patsies - the New England Patriots in the lean years
• Red Sox Nation - a term for the collective group of Sox fans that span the US and beyond, generally used by the local media. Red Sox Nation is seen in the immense crowds of Sox fans that gather even at visiting parks.
• Sox also The Sox - the Boston Red Sox; pronounced "socks" or "sawx"
• Tek - Red Sox catcher / captain Jason Varitek
• Wake - Red Sox pitcher Tim Wakefield
• Yaz - Carl Yastrzemski, long-time left fielder for the Red Sox. "Big Yaz Bread" was a loaf of bread similar to Wonder Bread sold locally after the Red Sox' pennant winning season of 1967.
• No-Mah - Beloved Red sox player Nomar Garciaparra

References

• http://www.universalhub.com/glossary/