Bay Area Slang Part 2

It always amuses me when people ask about my accent. Really? If we are on my home turf then it's you that has the accent buddy, not me. I guess I can't really blame these misguided souls for their confusion since the natives can sometimes be difficult to spot in a city where most of its inhabitants were born someplace else.

One good way to detect a native is to listen to the way they talk. Certain words, phrases, and even pronunciations (It's SanFrnSisco not San-Fran-sis-co as the iconic Herb Caen noted in his  local column) can be good indicators of a person's relationship to the Bay Area. Below is a list of common words that can help you identify the natives, and understanding what the heck we are talking about.

The Abridged Dictionary of Bay Area Slang

Bammer-bad or phony.  adj. "I  wanted to dress up for Halloween but all I had was that bammer Sarah Palin costume from 2008." n. "When she was good she was very very good, but when she was bad she was bammer."

Bank-to beat or physically injure. v. "In the third round the champion really began to bank on the challenger." "Yesterday on Muni I saw two women banking on each other over a seat."

Cap-to insult. n. "There is nothing that people bear more impatiently, or forgive less, than contempt: and an injury is much sooner forgotten than a cap." v. "Are you capping on me? I'm warning you, I'm not the kind of person you should be capping on."

Cuts-someplace far away. n. "I would visit her more often if she didn't live in the cuts." v. "I know a cutty place where we can get away."

Fade-put money in on something. v. "Do you want to fade on a pitcher of beer?" "Last night we all faded on a large pizza for dinner." 

Hella-very. adv. "The fog out in The Richmond was hella thick this morning. I could barely see ten feet in front of me." "That burrito was hella bammer so I ended up throwing most of it away."

Moded-embarrassed. v. "All she could tell him after witnessing his failed attempt to jump over the parking meter was, 'you're hella moded.'" "He felt moded that none of his friends came to see him preform at open mic night."

Mug-to give a dirty look to. n. "She was muggin that girl on the bus, that's why she got banked on." "Don't mug me when your the one that should feel moded."

Tight-cool. n. "He thinks that his new haircut is tight, but I think it looks bammer." adj. "Her parents own this tight spot out in the cuts and they said we could stay there over the summer."

Trippin-stressing or freaking out. v. "A crust eaten in peace is better than a banquet partaken while trippin." "I'm not trippin over what she said, I know she wasn't capping on me."