Regional vocabularies of American English vary. Below is a list of lexical differences in vocabulary that are generally associated with a region. A term featured on a list may or may not be found throughout the region concerned, and may or may not be recognized by speakers outside that region. Some terms appear on more than one list.
Historically, a number of everyday words and expression used to be characteristic of different dialect areas of the United States, especially the North, the Midland, and the South; many of these terms spread from their area of origin and came to be used throughout the nation. Today many people use these different words for the same object interchangeably, or to distinguish between variations of an object. Such traditional lexical variables include:
faucet (North) and spigot (South);
frying pan (North and South, but not Midland), spider (New England; obsolete), and skillet (Midland, Gulf States);
clapboard (chiefly Northeast) and weatherboard (Midland and South);
gutter (Northeast, South, West), eaves trough (inland North, West), and rainspouting (chiefly Maryland and Pennsylvania);
pit (North) and seed (elsewhere);
teeter-totter (widespread), seesaw (South and Midland; now widespread), and dandle (Rhode Island);
firefly (less frequent South and Midland) and lightning bug (less frequent North);
pail (North, north Midland) and bucket (Midland and South; now widespread).
However many differences still hold and mark boundaries between different dialect areas, as shown below. From 2000-2005, for instance, The Dialect Survey queried North American English speakers' usage of a variety of linguistic items, including vocabulary items that vary by region. These include:
generic term for a sweetened carbonated beverage
drink made with milk and ice cream
long sandwich that contains cold cuts, lettuce, and so on
rubber-soled shoes worn in gym class, for athletic activities, etc.
Below are lists outlining regional vocabularies in the main dialect areas of the United States.
braht or brat - bratwurst
breezeway (widespread) - a hallway connecting two buildings
bubbler (esp. New England, Wisconsin and the Mississippi and Ohio river valleys) - a water fountain
clout (originally Chicago, now widespread) - political influence
davenport (widespread) - a sofa, or couch
euchre (throughout the North) - card game similar to spades
fridge (throughout North and West) - refrigerator
hotdish (esp. Minnesota) - a simple entree cooked in a single dish, related to casserole
paczki (in Polish settlement areas, esp. Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin) - a jelly doughnut
pop (widespread in North-Central and West) - a soft drink, carbonated soda
sack (Southern Ohio) - a bag at a grocery store
soda (all the Northeast and parts of Wisconsin) - soft drink
toboggan (South Eastern Ohio and Central Kentucky) - a ski cap
Yooper (Michigan) - people who reside in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan
brook - creek. Mainly New England, now widespread but especially common in the Northeast
cellar - alternate term for basement
sneaker - although found throughout the U.S., appears to be concentrated in the Northeast. Elsewhere (except for parts of Florida) tennis shoe is more common.
soda - a soft drink
Mischief Night (or, rarely, Cabbage Night) - night when, by custom, preteens and teenagers play pranks; usually, the night before Halloween
New England
grinder - submarine sandwich
packie (package store) - a liquor store
rotary - traffic circle
tag sale - garage sale
wicked (all of Massachusetts) - very; an intensifier and adverb, as in wicked cold meaning very cold
Eastern New England
bulkhead - cellar hatchway
Cabinet (Rhode Island) - milk shake
frappe - milkshake
hosey - (esp. parts of Massachusetts & Maine) to stake a claim or choose sides, to claim ownership of something (sometimes, the front seat of a car)
intervale - bottomland; mostly historical
jimmies - sprinkles (ice cream topping) see also Mid-Atlantic, below
johnnycake (also Rhode Island jonnycake) – a type of cornmeal bread
leaf peeper - a tourist who has come to see the area's vibrant autumn foliage
necessary - outhouse, privy
quahog - pronounced "koe-hog," it properly refers to a specific species of clam but is also applied to any clam
tonic (eastern Massachusetts) - soft drink
Northern New England
ayuh - "yes" or affirmative
creemee - (Vermont) soft serve ice cream
dooryard - area around the main entry door of a house, specifically a farmhouse. Typically including the driveway and parking area proximal to the house
Italian (sandwich) - (Maine) submarine sandwich
logan (also pokelogan) - a shallow, swampy lake or pond (from Algonquian)
muckle - to grasp, hold-fast, or tear into
mud season - early spring
breezeway - the space between two groups of rowhouses in the middle of a city block
down the shore - shore areas and beaches of Southern New Jersey
hoagie - submarine sandwich
jawn - pronoun used for any person, place, or thing
jimmies - sprinkles (ice cream topping) see also New England, above
parlor - living room
pavement - sidewalk
shoobie - A visitor to the beach (typically the South Jersey shore) for the day (as contrasted with an overnight visitor)
water ice - Italian ice
Yo! - Hello; also used to grab someone's attention
youze - plural form of "you people"
bodega - small corner grocery store
catty corner - on an angle to a corner
dungarees (older) - jeans
egg cream - a mixture of cold milk, flavored syrup, and seltzer
have a catch - play catch
hero - submarine sandwich
kill - a small river or strait, in the name of specific watercourses; e.g. Beaver Kill, Fresh Kills, Kill Van Kull, Arthur Kill (from Dutch)
on line - waiting or standing in a line
potsy - hopscotch
punchball - a baseball-like game suitable for smaller areas, in which a fist substitutes for the bat and a "spaldeen" is the ball
scallion - spring onion
stoop - a small porch or steps in front of a building, originally from Dutch
wedge - submarine sandwich (esp. in Westchester County, New York)
The Midland
barn-burner (now widespread) - an exciting, often high-scoring game, esp. a basketball game
dinner (widespread) - the evening meal; the largest meal of the day, whether eaten at mid-day or in the evening
hoosier (esp. Indiana) - someone from Indiana; (outside of Indiana, esp. in the St. Louis, Missouri area) a person from a rural area, comparable to redneck
mango - green bell pepper, sometimes also various chili peppers
outer road - a frontage road or other service road
pop - a soft drink (except in a large area centered on St. Louis, Missouri, where soda predominates)
alligator pear - avocado
banquette (southern Louisiana) - sidewalk, foot-path
billfold (widespread, but infrequent Northeast, Pacific Northwest) - a man's wallet
cap (also Midlands) - sir (prob. from "captain")
chill bumps (also Midlands) - goose bumps
chuck - toss or throw an object
coke - any brand of soft drink
commode (also Midlands) - bathroom; restroom; particularly the toilet itself
crocus sack (Atlantic), croker sack (Gulf) - burlap bag
cut on/off - to turn on/off
directly - in a minute; soon; presently
dirty rice (esp. Louisiana) - Cajun rice dish consisting of rice, spices, and meat
fais-dodo (southern Louisiana) - a party
fix - to get ready, to be on the verge of doing; (widespread but esp. South) to prepare food
house shoes - bedroom slippers
lagniappe (Gulf, esp. Louisiana) - a little bit of something extra
locker (esp. Louisiana) - closet
make (age) (Gulf, esp. Louisiana) - have a birthday; "He's making 16 tomorrow."
neutral ground (Louisiana, Mississippi) - median strip
po' boy (scattered, but esp. South) - a long sandwich, typically made with fried oysters, clams, or shrimp
put up - put away, put back in its place
yankee - northerner; also damn yankee, damned yankee
yonder (esp. rural) - over there, or a long distance away; also over yonder
barrow pit (esp. Rocky Mountains) – a ditch to conduct water off a surface road
davenport (widespread) - couch or sofa
Hella (esp. Bay Area) - "very" or "a lot of"
pop (widespread in West and North) - carbonated beverages; soda predominates in California, Arizona, southern Nevada, while coke denotes any carbonated beverage in New Mexico.
snowmachine (Alaska) – a motor vehicle for travel over snow. Outside Alaska known as a snowmobile
Skid road or Skid row - a path made of logs or timbers along which logs are pulled; (widespread) a run-down, impoverished urban area
