Southern Speak

Well truth be told I am not really southern. Some of you may already know that. I was raised in the south but not by southern people. So going out into the world around me was interesting. Other parents weren't like mine. They ate things like corn bread and went to churches where people talked in tongues. I was Catholic so the latter scared the living daylights out of me. We don't even talk out of turn at church. Anyhow, I remember hearing words and phrases used in ways that I didn't understand. They were always funny to me. Here are some of my favorites. Here is my list of

5 Fun Southern Words/ Phrases

1) Short- as in "Don't get short with me." A good definition of this would be snippy. The first time I heard someone use this in a sentence. I had to ask what they meant. I think I didn't hear it until I got to high school.

2) Cattywompus- as in "My necklace got all cattywompus when I didn't put it in the jewelery box." I love this weird word. It just oozes southern sound. I like to use it every once in a while around the big city folks just to get people laughing and talking. It never fails for that!

3) Sugar- as in "Give me some sugar". Meaning affection and or hugs and kisses. I tell my son this all the time. He now protests by saying "No sugar, mommy. No no!" I like giving him sugar.

4) Sass- as in "Don't sass me." Also popular with the little ones. It means backtalk or as my mom calls it, "lip".

5) Come by it honestly- as in "At least she comes by it honestly." My mother in law says this on occasion. It means someone is aware about their own flaw. Like me, I am not a good bowler. I know it. I admit it freely. I still go bowling but I am not going to act like I am a good bowler.