the word 'gumption' against brick wall

Language with gumption

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Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

When you’re talking with family, are you liable to let down your guard a little and use a bit more Appalachian English and a bit less Standard American English?

b&w line illustration of open books and a candle

For example, the Standard American English word might be faucet, but the Appalachian English version would be spigot. If somebody looks sick, we might say, “he’s peaked” (that’s peek-ed). Did you hurt your finger? Then we might say you “stoved it up.” Some people say “knowed” rather than “knew.” We’re famous for our double negatives. “I don’t have none of that.” Our present perfect tense has raised some eyebrows, too. “He’s done done it now!” While we’re at it, here’s a little mini-dictionary to amuse the lexicographers:

A little past plumb—–not right in the head
Atter wile—–after a while
Back door trots—–diarrhea
Beer Eats—–fastfood joint
Buss—–kiss
Can’t put an old head on young shoulders—–intelligence differences
Cassins—–tires
Dead dog tired—–weary
Don’t swing so big—–don’t swing so high
Dreckly—–directly, in a short while
Fast as greased lightning—–speedy
Fixing to—–getting ready to
Full of spunk—–spirited
Gittin’ too big for his britches—–conceited
Gommin’ up the table—–making a mess
Gumption—–drive or spirit
Herrit—–hello
Jerk a knot in your tail—–parent to unruly kid
Juberous—–leery
Made the riffle—–completed a business deal
Nary a one—–don’t have any at all
Ninny—–short for nincompoop
Nussing—–nursing
Peep-Eye—–same as peek-a-boo
Pime blank—–exactly
Play purties—–toys
Poor as Job’s turkey—–without funds
Reach me that—–give me that
Rue—–regret
Shirky—–doing a job poorly
Shite poke—–skinny, sickly looking
Slop jar—–a chamber pot
Sober as a judge—–sobriety
Spoondiken—–also known as ‘courting’
This milk’s blinky—–spoiled milk
Three sheets in the wind—–intoxicated
Too slow to stop quick—–pokey
Vittles—–food
Weed monkey—–a loose woman
With—–tree branch, used for punishment
Woods colt—–child born out of wedlock

More articles on Appalachian phrases:

Mountain songs and sayings have living reality (Opens in a new browser tab)

The origin of the phrase Duke’s Mixture(Opens in a new browser tab)

What in tarnation?(Opens in a new browser tab)

2 comments

  1. Love this ! I was raised on such sayings from my W.Va, parents. Classmates & staff at my Yankee school in Ohio didn’t understand. Living now in east Texas, & these folks understand most of it. My Chinese wife has a hard time understanding any english.

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