Boston to English Dictionary
AHM | Arm. |
AJIDA | In the old North End and East Boston Italian-American neighborhoods, agida referred to heartburn or being mentally irritated. From the Italian word agitare which means to churn or agitate. |
ALLAGY | Allergy. |
ANSA | Answer. |
ANTENOR | Antenna. Inverse "r" example. |
AUDER | Order. |
BAH | A bar, or place that serves alcohol. |
BAHF | Barf. Slang for "vomit." |
BAHBA | A barber, or person that cuts hair. |
BADING SUIT | Bathing suit. |
BEDDA | Better. |
BLINKERS | Automobile directional signals. |
BLOODY BEAN | Obscure nickname for the streets of Boston, and often used within the state and county prison system. |
BREAKDOWN LANE | A highway shoulder. |
BUBBLA | An office water fountain (bottled), or public drinking fountain. |
BULKIE | A small round sandwich bread or "roll." |
CAH | An automobile. |
CARRIAGE | A supermarket shopping cart. |
CHOWDA | Clam chowder. |
CLICKAH | A TV remote control unit. |
CON | Corn. |
CONNA | Corner. |
CRUISER | A police car. |
CUBBID | Cupboard. |
CULLA | Color. |
DECENT | Cool or Unique; a popular term in the 1970s. |
DISINTERGRATED | Disintegrated. Inverse "r" example. |
DOOZY BATZ | In the old North End and East Boston Italian-American neighborhoods, it described a person that was fearless or had violent tendencies. Pazzo means crazy in Italian. "Tu Sei" (you are) + "Pazzo" (crazy) is the probable origin. "Du Say Batzo" evolved to "Doozy Batz." How one pronounced it, and one's body language, conveyed how "fearless" that person was. |
DUFF | To deliberately avoid a person or break a promise to meet with someone. Old North End and East Boston term. |
EASTUH | Easter. |
ELASTIC | A rubber band. |
ENVIAMENT | Environment. |
EYEIN | Iron. |
FOEWID | Forward. |
FOILAGE | Foliage. |
FOK | Fork. |
FOTTY | Forty. |
FRAPPE | Pronounced "Frap." Whipped milk, ice cream, and flavoring. This editor used to mix hot coffee with vanilla ice cream and heavy cream back in the old days! Similar to a milkshake. |
GAHBIDGE | Garbage. |
GAVONE | In the old North End and East Boston Italian-American neighborhoods, it meant someone that was overdressed or completely out of place; from the Italian word Cafone which roughly translates to a loud and obnoxious person. Also pronounced gavoni which is phonetically closer to Italian. |
GRAVY | Spaghetti sauce. |
GUVANNUH | Governor. |
HOODSIE | A small cup of vanilla & chocolate ice cream sold by ice cream trucks. Eaten with a paper-wrapped small wooden spoon that resembled a short popsicle stick. Also (very offensive slang), a teenage girl. |
HUSSES | Horses; in the Irish-American neighborhoods it was pronounced Husses, and in the Italian-American neighborhoods it was pronounced Hosses (often with a nasal sound). |
IDEEAR | Idea. |
ITALIAN ICE | Shaved ice with various flavorings added; also known as Slush. |
JIMMIES | Ice cream sprinkles, usually chocolate. |
LAYBUH | Labor. |
LIBERRY | A book depository or library. |
MACKRIL | Mackerel. |
MYIN | Mine. |
NACKINS | Napkins. |
NAYBUH | Neighbor. |
NAYCHA | Nature. |
NEKKALACE | Necklace. |
NO'REASTER | A weather system that swirls counterclockwise over the New England coastline. Such weather patterns can cause huge blizzards or wind-driven rain with accompanying storm surge. |
NOTH | North. "R" is silent; add nasal sound. |
OVA | Over; as in "Over the Rainbow." |
OUWWAH | Hour. |
OVICHA | Overture. |
PACKY | A liquor store, or "package" store. |
PAHDEE | Party. |
PAHDEE PLATTA | A tray of cold cuts sold as one unit; party platter. |
PAHLA | The Family or Living Room in a house or apartment; parlor. |
PATS | The New England Patriots football team. |
PERPERTRATOR | Perpetrator. Inverse "r" example. |
PAYPAH | Paper. |
PIDJUN | Pigeon. |
PIMPLE BALL | A 1950s and 1960s inflated off-white rubber ball about the size of a baseball. The exterior had horizontal rows of bumps, with an embossed star on the top and bottom. Used for handball or step (gutter) ball games. Often cut in half for half-ball games. A popular term in many Northeast cities. |
PISSA | Very good; often prefixed with WICKED. |
PITCHEZ | Pictures. |
POCKET BOOK | A woman's purse or handbag. |
PODADAH | Potato; also pronounced Podado depending on your town or neighborhood. |
PRIVLEDGEZ | Privileges. |
PUNKIN | Pumpkin. |
PUSS | To have a miserable expression on one's face; "Why the Puss on your face?" |
RAG | To exaggerate; tell ragtime stories. |
ROTARY | A traffic circle or round-about. |
RUBBISH | Trash or Garbage. |
SATTADAY | Saturday. |
SCOOTCH | In the old North End and East Boston Italian-American neighborhoods, it referred to someone that was annoying; from the Italian word Scocciare which roughly translates to the verb "to bother." Also, in old Yankee slang, to scooch was to crouch down. Often pronounced similarly in a way that rhymes with "Butch." Children and pets could be called "Scutches" for example. Irksome is a close match in English. |
SCROD | Fish; sometimes haddock, sometimes cod. Originally derived, most likely, by the combination of Scrawed (to cut and then dry) and Cod. |
SELLA | A cellar; or basement. |
SELTS | The Boston Celtics basketball team. |
SHERBERT | Sherbet. Inverse "r" example. |
SHOTS | Shorts, as in cut-off jeans. |
SHOUWAH | Shower. |
SKEAVE | Repulsive or disgusting (often describing another person). From the word schifo in Italian. Very popular term before 1990 in the old Italian-American North End and East Boston neighborhoods. |
SLUSH | Shaved ice with various flavorings added. Also known as Italian Ice. |
SNEAKIZ | Sneakers; tennis or athletic shoes. |
SODER | Soda Pop. See "Tonic." |
SOLDJA | Soldier. |
SOLDJIZ | Soldiers. |
SOX | The Boston Red Sox baseball team. |
SPA | A mom & pop small luncheonette. |
SPEEKAH | Speaker. |
SPUCKIE | A short, stout French roll with pointy ends; bigger than a bulkie roll, but smaller than a submarine roll. If memory serves, grilled sandwiches such as Chicken Parmesan and Meatballs were popular in Spuckie rolls. A sub would be wrapped in paper, while a Spuckie may be wrapped in foil to keep it warm. Purportedly coined from a North End Spucadella roll, and the Italian word Spacatto which means cracked or cross-section. |
SKWAYAH | Square. |
STAHVIN | A person that is hungry; "starving." |
STAYPUHLA | Stapler. |
SUB | A hogie, hero, grinder, "submarine" sandwich. |
SUPPA | Dinner. |
TEMPUHCHA | Temperature. |
TEYEID | Tired; exhausted or fatigued. |
TONIC | Soda pop. |
TRIPLE-DECKER | 3 story wood house, usually all apartments. Also known as a Three-Deckah or Tree-Deckah house. |
ULTZSIR | Ulcer. |
VARIETY STORE | A mom and pop convenience store. |
WEIUD | Weird. |
WICKED | Extremely good. |
WHIFFLE | A short crew cut, or boy's or men's haircut done with clippers. |
WOM | Warm. |
WOTTA | Water. |
YAWW | "Yes" + "Yay" combined; very popular in the 1970s. |
YAWS | Yours; as in "yours truly" or "your's, mine, and our's" (an old slang cliche). |
YOGITT | Yogurt. |
RAT (THE) | A famous metal and punk rock night club in Kenmore Square, short for Rathskeller (closed). In German, rathskeller means "council cellar." |
SANDS (THE) | Short for Blue Sands. A famous bar on Summer Street that catered to patrons ranging from punk rockers to artists to blue collar workers (closed). |
SPIT | A famous 1970s punk rock & new wave night club on Lansdowne Street (closed). |
BACK BAY | The area west of the Public Garden. |
B.C. | Boston College. |
B.P.L. | Boston Public Library. |
B.S.O. | Boston Symphony Orchestra. |
B.U. | Boston University |
CAPE (The) | Cape Cod. |
CHAHLZ RIVAH | Charles River. |
COMBAT ZONE | The old burlesque area of Boston at the foot of Washington Street near Essex Street. |
COMM AVE | Truncation of Commonwealth Avenue. |
HAHVID | Harvard University. |
I.C.A. | Institute of Contemporary Art. |
LANDSDOWN | Lansdowne Street, Boston. |
MASS AVE | Truncation of Massachusetts Avenue. |
M.F.A. | Museum of Fine Arts |
PRU (The) | Prudential Center. |
QUINCY MARKET | Faneuil Hall Marketplace. |
SCOLLAY SQUARE | The old burlesque area of Boston at the junction of Tremont, Court, Hanover, and Cambridge Streets. |
T (The) | The MBTA transit authority. |
CHATTIM | Chatham, Massachusetts |
CONKIDD | Concord, Massachusetts |
EVRIT | Everett, Massachusetts. |
FLORIDER | The State of Florida. |
GLOSSTA | Gloucester, Massachusetts. |
HOPKINGTON | Hopkinton, Massachusetts |
INDIANER | The State of Indiana. |
LEMMINSTAH | Leominster, Massachusetts |
MEDFID | Medford, Massachusetts. |
NEWHAMSHA | The State of New Hampshire. |
NEWHAMSHIN | A Person From New Hampshire. |
NEWYOK | The State of New York. |
PEEBAHDEE | Peabody, Massachusetts. |
P-TOWN | Provincetown, Massachusetts. |
QUINZEE | Quincy, Massachusetts. |
RHODEYELIN | The State of Rhode Island |
RUHVEEA | Revere, Massachusetts. |
SUMMAVILLE | Somerville, Massachusetts. |
VAHMONT | The State of Vermont. |
VAHJINYA | The State of Virginia. |
VINYID | Martha's Vineyard island. |
WATTATOWN | Watertown, Massachusetts. |
WINTRUP | Winthrop, Massachusetts. |
WHISTAH | Worcester, Massachusetts. |
WOOBIN | Woburn, Massachusetts. |
BURRY | Roxbury neighborhood. |
EASTIE | East Boston neighborhood. |
DOT | Dorchester neighborhood. |
J.P. | Jamaica Plain neighborhood. |
ROZZY | Roslindale neighborhood. |
SOUTHIE | South Boston neighborhood. |
TOWNIE | A Charlestown neighborhood person. |