California Urban Dictionary - A quick guide for newcomers to the Golden State

I do NOT want this to seem a parody thread, but I know, especially for those coming in from other countries, it's always useful to know some of the local vernacular. Every time I've traveled, I've come across words that I did not know the meaning of, for it was all slang.


So here I will be compiling a list of common words that you honestly don't think about needing a definition for, but are shocked that some people have never heard! If you can think of more, please help me add on, though I ask that we refrain from most swear words/derogatory words.

Also, if you are traveling to the states, feel free to ask what a word means or what something's CA equivalent is and we will try to answer it as best we can.


California

CA - State initals and what we usually refer to our state as. Easier than saying "California."

SoCal - Southern California. Generally considered the area around and below Los Angeles.

NorCal - Northern California

LA - Los Angeles. So Cal pronunciation is Law SAN-jil-is, and people will look at you weird if you pronounce it with the the correct Spanish pronunciation of lows ahn-hell-ace.

Downtown - In the context of this forum, it's safe to assume we mean Downtown Los Angeles. This is the area around the convention center inbetween the I-5, the I-10, and the 110 freeways.


Travel

LAX (Pronounce the letters: L. A. X.) - Los Angeles International Airport.

Freeway - Unless it's a historic route, like Highway 101, we refer to all our major highways/byways/expressways/interstates as Freeways. In SoCal, we have a tendancy to add the word "the" before every freeway and drop the prefix. For example, The 5, The 10 (which means the I-10), The 110, The 101, etc. If a freeway has the letter "I" before it, it's just a prefix for "Interstate" and can be replaced with "The."

"To Call a Cab" - To hail a Taxi, though usually it means you literally have to call a taxi company.

Disembark - to leave an aircraft. It technically means to leave a vehicle, but we only use it for planes. Same as "deplane."

Metro - subway/tube/trolley


Food/Restaurants

Eggs - Yes, I know eggs is normal, but apparantly egg preparation styles is not. If at a restaurant and your waiter asks how you would like your eggs, the most common ways are scrambled, over easy, sunny side up, or poached (which sometimes is just it's own entree).

Soda/Coke - We do NOT say "Pop." You will get a strange look if you say it. Any carbonated beverage is usually called a Soda, but it is sometimes just called a Coke. However, be careful in your usage of Coke, because someone might think you meant you wanted a Coca Cola.

Lunch - A meal you eat usually between 11am-3pm.

Dinner - A meal you eat usually between 4pm-whenever in the evening. "Supper" is not commonly used.

Mickey Dees - McDonalds

In N Out - A burger joint only found in CA and Arizona, I believe. A must try if you've never been here.

CJ's - Carl's Jr. Fastfood burgers.

BK - Burger King

DT - Del Taco. Fast food "Mexican" food.

Fries - French or Freedom, whichever kind you like. "Chips" for those of you from other parts of the world.

Fish taco = literally a taco with fish inside, (always a soft taco, and usually served with a generic white fish, sometimes battered, and with cabbage, a white baja cream sauce (mild) and sometimes also with cheese and salsa) which is good food. try it at Wahoo's or Rubio's or La Salsa.

Carne asada = (CAR-nay uh-SAW-duh) beef steak, marinated, and grilled or fried in a skillet and usually sliced up into small bits, served with guac (guacamole), cilantro. best in a carne asada burrito or carne asada fries. good stuff. best at taco shops that are open 24 hours.

Pollo asada = (PO-yo uh-SAW-duh) like carned asada, but chicken instead of beef. good stuff. (Pollo is chicken)

Carnitas = (Car-NEE-tuhs) pork, marinated, and either roasted or grilled - good in burritos, tacos, on salad, etc. the Chipotle chain (which is nationwide) h

 

thank you very much! This is awesome. Luckily, my wife is fluent in spanish. Apparently she paid attention in school. Don't know why, but whatever. LOL!

 

Excellent job, Miana!! And a great idea for a thread. Here are a few that I thought about. Mine come from having a 15 year old son and working in a K - 8th grade school.

Dog: Friend "What up Dog?" (notice no use of 's or is)

Sick: Cool "That costume's sick!"

Other places to eat:

CJ's: Carl's Jr.

BK: Burger King

DT: Del Taco

 

Thanks Kari, I'll add those!

(We really need a restaurant guide...)

 

I'm waiting until this heat wave goes away to do another downtown site inspection trip... will get a gauge of where places are to eat then.

 

Sounds good.

 

Road trip!

 

I know I never heard it at all in california but does the word "cowabunga" get used

 

Only by SpongeBob!

 

And Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.


So in answer to your question, Never.

 

This is cool Miana!
I'd like to add one item:

People from SoCal hardly ever refer to California as "Cali".
People just say what large city they live closest to. I always tell people I'm from LA. I never say I'm from "Cali".

Kinda along those lines, there is a difference between Northern Califoria people and Southern California people. It's like we're two different states. We both have our own slang, so don't NorCal slang because people won't understand what you're saying.

 

Muy bien, Mi.

I find it ironic that although I grew up in San Diego, I never went to In N Out until I moved to Phoenix. Good stuff, though.

 

Weak = shameful, not cool.
e.g. "Weak, dude." = "You have done something really not cool, buddy."

Tight = awesome, cool
e.g. "Tight costume, man." (has nothing to do with fit)

TJ's = Trader Joe's market chain (known for its great quick-prepare frozen food section and low prices, particularly on vitamins).

Whole Paycheck Market = "Whole Foods Market" (a organic/health food chain that is known for its high prices.) Similar to Wild Oats if you have one of those near you.


MCP

 

I'll include the first two, but I don't really think the bottom two will be relevant, since I don't recal either of those being anywhere near Downtown.

And TJ down here means Tijuana, Mexico.

 

thanks it could help frenchies !

 

Having never been to the West Coast before, I could use all the help/pointers I can get for my trip to LA.

This info is much-appreciated. Thanks to all who posted!

 

Yep, never heard Trader Joe's called TJ's around here, either; but definitely -- the initials TJ mean Tijuana for every Southern Californian I know. And my friends still say "bailed," i.e. to get out of something or to leave in a hurry.

Another big thing -- lots of Spanglish, and plays on Spanish/English words. "You want to go to lunch?" "Sorry, can't go, no dinero today." Or, "Did you see that dude that just came in? He looks 'mucho crazio.'" Stuff like that .

 

jawajames' guide to mexican food names:

fish taco = literally a taco with fish inside, (always a soft taco, and usually served with a generic white fish, sometimes battered, and with cabbage, a white baja cream sauce (mild) and sometimes also with cheese and salsa) which is good food. try it at Wahoo's or Rubio's or La Salsa.

carne asada = (CAR-nay uh-SAW-duh) beef steak, marinated, and grilled or fried in a skillet and usually sliced up into small bits, served with guac (guacamole), cilantro. best in a carne asada burrito. good stuff. best at taco shops that are open 24 hours.

pollo asada = (PO-yo uh-SAW-duh) like carned asada, but chicken instead of beef. good stuff. (Pollo is chicken)

carnitas = (Car-NEE-tuhs) pork, marinated, and either roasted or grilled - good in burritos, tacos, on salad, etc. the Chipotle chain (which is nationwide) has really good roasted carnitas.

rolled taco = once marketed as a taquito, basically it's a tortilla rolled into a tube, filled with meat (and sometimes cheese) and then fried so the tortilla becomes crunchy and holds its shape. usually get them in threes or fives, and they can come covered in cheese and guac.

quesadilla (Kay-suh-DEE-yuh) = at its basic level, a tortilla filled with cheese, folded in half and fried, melting the cheese. often served with salsa, guac, or sour cream. can be made extravagant with the addition of a type of meat.. usually steak, chicken, sometimes some veggies, and sometimes completely going nuts like a bacon chicken philly cheesesteak quesadilla.

california burrito - a burrito stuffed with carne asada, cheese, and french fries. quite tasty.

breakfast burrito - a burrito stuffed with eggs, cheese, potato and usually your choice of breakfast meat: ham, sausage, chorizo (a spicy mexican sausage), etc. can be eaten at any time in the day.

big note: when in southern california there is absolutely no need to go to a Taco Bell or Del Taco. no need. go to a real taco shop (either a chain or a little hole in the wall place) or a quick-serve health-mex place (Baja Fresh, Rubio's, Wahoo's, La Salsa). you can tell a good place because they will most likely have a salsa bar or have bottles of hot sauce on the tables, and not little packets of hot sauce.

speaking of phillies:
a philly cheesesteak sandwich in california will usually come with bell peppers and onions on it, and use a real cheese (and not cheese whiz like they do in philly)

---------------
by the way,
Tijuana is properly pronounced as Tee-HWA-nuh (3 syllables) and not the bad Anglo way of Tee-UH-wan-nuh (4 syllables).

and my pronunciation of Los Angeles is - Law SAN-jil-is (somehow the S moved from Los to An)
San Diego is pronounced San-nee-egg-o (the D can be left silent)
LAX (Los Angeles International airport) is never pronounced "lax" but is always pronounced "ell-ay-eks"

 

Let us not forget Califonia's favorite drug of choice... Caffeine! That can only mean Starbucks! I don't know if they are as popular nation wide as they are here? In So-Cal, you can find a Starbucks on every corner, in a lot of grocery stores and in places like Target and Wal-Mart.

 

Good thinking, James!


(And Helen, did you guys ever find a place in downtown with Carne Asada fries? )

 

Where is this Los Angeles you speak of? Everybody I know calls it L.A. .

And no, Miana, none of my friends can think of a place that sells carne asada fries. Chili fries, si, carne asada fries, no. It's definitely a S.D. thing <g>.

 

This is true, which is why, notice please, we differentiate "TJ's" (Trader Joe's) and not "TJ" which is indeed Tijuana. So ;p right back at ya baby!

MCP

 

Oh yeah, there's always the Los Feliz debate... (ahem ahem).

Los Feliz is a section of the city near downtown, with great eateries, etc. This probably won't apply to most people, but the drivers out there don't want to sounds like idiots, so here goes:

Technically speaking, one would think the pronunciation should be "Luhs-FLEAS" (think "Feliz Navidad"), however as it turns out, the region is named after a family name which was truly pronounced "Luhs-FEE-liz." You hear it both ways.

Bottom line: However you remember to say it. I just wanted to get this in there. Thankew.
Keep it or not, no biggie!

MCP