Canadian Slang by Region
Are you interested in knowing some Canadian slang by region? Maybe you are going to move to or visit Canada and you want to make sure you know what certain phrases mean. This article will provide you with some valuable information.
Canadian Slang by Region
The following Canadian slang by region is sorted into groups by either the region that uses the slang word or the area that the slang word refers to. The groups are Eastern Canada, Central Canada, Western Canada, and a group of slang terms used in many areas of Canada.
Newfoundland and Eastern Canada
- The Big O or The Big Owe: The Olympic Stadium in Montreal
- Bluenoser: a person living in Nova Scotia
- Bogtrotter: a resident of New Brunswick, also used for residents of the other Atlantic Provinces
- b'y: man, dude, or buddy
- Caper: a person from Cape Breton Island
- downhomer: a resident of Newfoundland; can refer to someone from any part of Atlantic Canada
- Maritimer: residents of the Maritime provinces on the east coast of Canada
- Newfie or Newf: a resident of Newfoundland
- The Rock: Newfoundland
- Scivey: (SKY-vee) someone who is untrustworthy or stingy
Central Canada
- The Big Smoke: name for Toronto; has been also used for Vancouver
- Blue-eyed Arab: a person from Alberta, named Arab because of the oil industry
- Bunny Hug: (Saskatchewan) refers to a hooded sweatshirt
- ByTown: name for Ottawa, Ontario
- Canuck: Canadian
- Centre of the Universe: a sarcastic term for Toronto, Ontario, because of the inhabitant’s attitudes
- Cow-Town: nickname for Calgary, Alberta
- The Hammer: nickname for Hamilton, Ontario
- The Hat: nickname for Medicine Hat, Alberta
- Hog Town or Hogtown: nickname for Toronto
- Hollywood North: nickname for Toronto because of the amount of film production
- jam buster: a jelly-filled doughnut
- The Peg and Peg City: nickname for Winnipeg, Manitoba
- Takitish: slang for "take it easy"
British Columbia and Western Canada
- Back East: any area east of the Rockies
- British California: nickname for British Columbia because of the similarities between BC and California
- Bush or the Bush: area of hunting, mines, and forests.
- Bushed: a person who has been in the bush too long; someone uncivilized
- Cariboozer: A person from Cariboo Country in BC
- Coastie: a person from Vancouver or the Lower Mainland; someone with city attitudes and dress
- Ditchland or Ditchmond: Richmond, BC, named because of deep drainage ditches in the past
- Elephant Ear: a dessert made of fried dough, usually topped with lemon juice and cinnamon sugar, also called Beaver Tail
- Garden City: official nickname of Richmond, BC
- Gastown: nickname for the old part of Vancouver; named after the steamboat captain "Gassy" Jack Deighton.
- Hollywood North: nickname for Vancouver because of the amount of film production.
- The Island: Vancouver Island, BC
- Left Coast: British Columbia
- Muni, the Muni: the municipal government
- New West: New Westminster, BC
- Poco: Port Coquitlam, BC
- PoCoMo: term for the Tri-Cities: Port Coquitlam, Coquitlam, and Port Moody
- The Rock: Vancouver Island
- The Royal City: New Westminster, BC
- Saltchuck: chuck refers to water; saltchuck usually refers to the straits and other bodies of water between Vancouver and Vancouver Island
- Sasquatch: another name for Bigfoot or Yeti; shortened to Squatch in BC and can refer to someone who is big and unkempt
- Terminal City: Vancouver, BC
- Vancouver Special: term for a house with little or no basement, often has part of it rented out as a suite because of high housing costs
- Whale's Tail: a dessert made of fried dough, usually topped with lemon juice and cinnamon sugar; also called Beaver Tail
Other Canadian Slang
The last group of Canadian slang by region covers slang words and expressions used widely in Canada.
- Beauty: thanks; cool; good fortune
- Beaver Tail: a dessert made of fried dough, usually topped with lemon juice and cinnamon sugar
- bismarck: jelly doughnut
- deke or deke out: to trick someone or avoid them
- double-double: a coffee that has double cream and double sugar
- gotch, ginch or gonch: refers to underwear, especially men's
- Had the biscuit: dead, spent, broken
- Head'r: means to leave
- hose: means to trick, deceive, or steal
- hosed: something that is broken
- Jesus Murphey: a widely used slang expression
- joggers: jogging pants
- ketchup potato chips: flavored potato chips
- Mountie: Royal Canadian Mounted Police
- mickey: a small container of liquor
- Poutine: french fries with poutine sauce and cheese curds
- Rink Rat: refers to those who work at a hockey rink maintaining the building and the ice rink
- slack: low quality or disappointment
- Snowbirds: people who leave during the winter months and stay in the southern states of the US
- Tim's, Timmy's, Timmy Ho's, Timmy Ho-Ho's: Tim Horton’s doughnut chain