Don't worry, though, everyone hears this every now and again. Southerners tell it like it isno matter what it isso think of this as a learning moment. Example: Spit a spell and drink some sweet tea I prepared before you continue with work. as you ran away from your mama when you got in trouble. Meaning: (Noun) In the Southern states, a buggy is another word used for a shopping cart. Example: Im heading out to get a coke. He's about as useful as a steering wheel on a mule. In this case, "little" means your friends are not on your parent's level, caliber, importance; which is why you will not speak to them any type of way. Maybe your daughter could teach her a thing or two about dressing appropriately. It rained like a cow pissin' on a flat rock. Any idea where this one originated? Example: Heavens to Betsy! I haven't eaten all day." We call this "fine bara" in Nigerian Pidgin English. (I don't know what a "haint" is, but apparently a scalded one can run really fast!). She could start an argument in an empty house. I'm wilting. Meaning: (Expression) The expression bless your heart is a Southern-style slang that women use when speaking ill about somebody. That dog won't hunt. Meaning: (Phrase) Playin possum has a more serious meaning compared to other Southern expressions. You're lyin' like a no-legged dog! You are slow as molasses! Example: Youre proud as a peacock, yet you cant prove anything! 2. Whatever you call them, here are some colorful and funny southern sayings directly from born-and-bred southerners and those who were transplanted to the South. Before you finish the last word, you already know you messed up and wish you could start that sentence over. Over yonder past the cotton field. It's not a southern expression, but might fit the bill. Another reminder to be measured about what you do and how you do it. Take a look at some of our favorite Southern sayings that we just couldn't live without. So ugly hed scare a buzzard off a gut pile. While this phrase may sound made up, it's simply our multisyllabic manner of saying something is askew. If you are Black you know youve heard these sayings at some point in time throughout your life. Question: Great collection you have here. If you think you can't, you won't be able to accomplish something, but if you think you can, you'll succeed. Dont be lying like a dog on a rug. He couldn't find his ass with both hands in his back pockets. Yankees just can't pass for Southerners! Things Only Southern Moms Say To Their Daughters, Things You'll Only Hear In A Southern Grocery Store. Question: Do you have any insight on where the expression "I'm going to the house" comes from? I feel like I been 'et by a wolf and sh** over a cliff. Example: I am fine and dandy even uder the Southern summer heat. Example: Go outside and get me a switch now! Answer: I just came across a word in a Dean Koontz book that I'm reading that might be what you are looking for: "darkling" or "darkle". Positive thinking, Southern style. Also try Black & Urban Slang Quiz. ". He thinks the sun comes up just to hear him crow. I also like sarcastically stating something is "as pretty as a spotted poodle with the pink mange." "), "Over-the-shoulder boulder holders." Have You Heard These Southern Compliments? "What do you know?" As a transplanted Yankee living in the South, I am often surprised and amazed by the colorful Southern expressions I hear. 1. You'd call an alligator a lizard. It's cold enough to freeze the balls off a pool table. 1. He's so rich he buys a new boat when he gets the other one wet. It starts at home with our mothers and from the time we are young, they have a series of sayings we hear well into our adult years. What gives? Example: Hes always plumb tuckered out, come Saturday mornings, so we cant do anything during summer afternoons. One day your mom will try be one of your friends by asking you about who you are dating, or about the recent party that you went to, but the moment that you act like she is your actual friend, BOOM, it has turned into world war III. Example: Are you seriously mad right now while theres a storm blowin? You don't have a job and you probably dont have an allowance because why would your parents pay you to do what youre supposed to do while living their household. Meaning: (Exclamation) Sam Hill was a store owner who sells a variety of things. He's about as useful as a screen door on a submarine. Anything that is not required shelter, food, clothes, or school supplies is extra and they remind you of it at every moment. Example: You shouldnt be acting like youre madder than a wet hen in public. Furthermore, America is a "good ole' boys club", so even if a black person has the same education level and experience as a white man, they will be grossly underpaid. Cows aren't known for their speed, and they are usually out and about, wandering until feeding time. Example: I will pinch a plug out of you if you dont stop running around as if youre inside an empty house. Won't hit a lick at a snake. (And because she still listens to this Doris Day tune.). It can definitely be a softly worded insult, or it can mean something very complimentary. Example: Careful, now. 1. (have a good time) Go off half-cocked. It's cold enough to freeze the tit off a frog. So out of defiance, I wait until that little fuel gauge is right below the empty line, and then Im going use the 15 miles of gas in the reserve tank. Meaning: (Phrase) the term tickled pink is used in a more positive thinking way, meaning a person is delighted. Here are a few famous Black people sayings that you may or may not know. i.e. Example: Will you cut that out or am I gonna leave you here? When you visit or move to the US South, you may need help to understand what we are talking about! Meaning: (Phrase) The term dont get your feathers ruffled is used when a person is about to get mad or annoyed. The other reason black people love saying this phrase is out of pure pettiness. While this phrase can be meant sincerely, it usually has an edge. If you're traveling to Texas, here is Texas slang to help you out. (have only half the facts) Go to bed with the chickens. Therefore, people, mostly children, use I suwanne! to emphasize that he or she is telling the truth. In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present. i.e "She's as ugly as a mud-fence, bless her heart."; 2.an expression of sympathy or pity. Example: Come here and give me some sugar! If I had my druthers. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. A multipurpose Southernism. It can also be used if the speaker believes the recipient needs to grow up and deal with it, when the speaker says it in a sarcastic tone. This phrase can be intensified by the addition of the word "way," as in "way over yonder.". Its been a long time. Colder than a well digger's butt in January. Discover and share Black Southern Women Quotes. Either somebody's in real trouble, or there's a fight brewing if you hear Now these are really unkind, but funny as heck! If his brains were dynamite, he couldnt blow his nose. The storm knocked the clothes on the clothesline all cattywampus! Stop right there! One of those cultural distinctions is our language. Translated, it means, "He sure does think a lot of himself." So, lets learn the Southern slang words and phrases to sound like a local now! He squeezes a quarter so tight the eagle screams. Well, that's all she wrote, y'all. And the tone in this question is without regard to our egregious student loans, deflated wages, high rent, as if it's purely by choice. I wouldn't walk across the street to piss on him if he was on fire. America is highly segregated and there are swathes of people uneducated to vernacular not like theirs. Example: Mind your Ps and Qs. Meaning: (Phrase) The term knee-high to a bullfrog is a term used to describe the age difference between two people talking. Tri-tongued orator, Jamila Lyiscott gives a powerful 4 minute spoken word TED Talk on what it means to be "articulate". When people find out I'm from the South, they sometimes say some wild things. The expression is old and could have originated as an old English proverb. She's pretty as a pumpkin but half as smart. Meaning: (Phrase) Deader than a doornail is a phrase used when a person is already deceased. She was so ugly when she was born that her momma used to borrow a baby to take to church on Sunday. Whether you're talking about volume or value, a hill of beans isn't worth much. AP/Doug Parker. This classic proverb either encourages action instead of standing still or reminds that it's hard to put down roots when you're moving. This one originates from the 19th century, when Carter Products marketed "Little Liver Pills" across the country. Don't pee down my back and tell me it's raining. Whether you are from another part of the country or from another country altogether, I hope you enjoy this collection of Southern sayings. I love you a bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck. Photo: H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock/Getty Images, Don't Count Your Chickens Before They've Hatched, You'll Catch More Flies with Honey Than with Vinegar, One Man's Trash Is Another Man's Treasure, You Can Lead a Horse to Water, But You Can't Make It Drink, People Who Live in Glass Houses Shouldn't Throw Stones, You Can't Make an Omelet Without Breaking a Few Eggs, Don't Throw the Baby Out with the Bathwater, Early to Bed and Early to Rise Makes You Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise, I Love You a Bushel and a Peck and a Hug Around the Neck, You're Making a Mountain out of a Molehill, You Can't Make a Silk Purse out of a Sow's Ear, If It Had Been a Snake, It Would Have Bitten You, What's Good for the Goose Is Good for the Gander, 100 Sister Quotes That Celebrate Sisterly Love, Things Only Southern Moms Say To Their Daughters, 55 Positive Thinking Quotes To Make Your Day Brighter, The Accessories Im Stealing From My Southern Grandmothers Closet This Year, Grandmother Quotes That'll Make You Long for a Visit, Things Southerners Say When They Come Home To A Mess, 30 Motivational Monday Quotes To Inspire Your Week, 135 Best Dad Jokes That Are Actually Funny, 30 Fishing Quotes That'll Make You Want to Get on the Water, Our Favorite Southern Horse Names For Your New Horse, 11 Things That Instantly Remind You Of Grandma's House, 30 Healing Quotes for Inspiration and Encouragement, The History Of The Wild Horses In The Outer Banks. Meaning: (Noun) The word coke became a Southern expression for any kind of carbonated drink, even if its not Coke. This one was always a reminder to praise the lord and hold on to his powerful hand. (give someone a peice of your mind) Give me some sugar (give me a kiss) Go hog wild. You are wound tighter than a clock! If you grew up in the church this one will ring so many bells. And on the way you are praying that the person in question is not a friend or acquaintance of yours. Translated, this means: "We'll be there unless something out of our control stops us." Do you remember me? God knows my heart is code for Yes, I know my actions are wrong but God knows that deep down inside I want to do good; just way way deep. In Black American English, this phrase means asking for something in a vague, circuitous way. It's a Southern way of cursing politely and not taking the Lord's name in vain (Jesus Christ!) 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