As you’ll see in the movies “Fargo” and “Drop Dead Gorgeous”, Minnesotans are known for elongating the letters ‘a’ and ‘o’ in speech. For example, ‘bag’ becomes ‘bahg’.
If you want to sound even more like a native, use these Minnesota sayings below.
You can become a pro after you dive into Give Me The Mike’s Best of Minnesota guides. Find editions featuring the best museums, pizza, breakfast, and more.
A Minnesota slang dictionary
94, 35W, 62
Highways/interstates (don’t say ‘I-494’ or ‘Interstate 35 West’)
“A scissors”
Instead of “a pair of scissors” or simply “the scissors”
Can you hand me a scissors?
Anyhoo
‘Anyhow’
Aquatennial
The summer festival for the city of Minneapolis
Also on Give Me The Mike…
What you should know before visiting Minneapolis
“Borrow me”
To lend; similar usage as other parts of the country
“Will you borrow me a dollar?”
Breezers
Hockey pants
Broasted chicken
A type of fried chicken made in a pressure cooker
Also on Give Me The Mike…
4 places serving the best Broasted chicken in Minnesota
Camp Snoopy
What the amusement park inside Mall of America was previously called; it featured Peanuts characters. Some Minnesotans will still call the current Nickelodeon Universe by its former name
“Could be worse”
What a Minnesotan says after hearing bad news
Bob: “Barb, I got in a car accident. The headlight is smashed, but that’s about it.”
Barb: “Could be worse.”
Crosstown
Also known as Highway 62; the freeway runs parallel to 94 in the south metro and travels just north of the airport
“Darn tootin!”
Use that phrase anytime you want to say “damn right!”
“Didn’t care for it”
Stating that you didn’t like what you just consumed
“Judy, what did you think of the hotdish?”
Judy: “I didn’t care for it.”
Dinkytown
A neighborhood near the University of Minnesota filled with bars and restaurants
“Dontcha know”
Slang for ‘don’t you know’; it’s used mostly as filler at the end of sentences and usually is said to invoke a response
“Barb and her husband just moved from Brainerd to Bemidji, dontcha know.”
Duck, duck, gray duck
What nearly everyone else calls ‘duck, duck, goose’; while playing the game, you announce colors of ducks (blue duck, yellow duck) and the person who is ‘it’ is the gray duck
Eat Street
A diverse array of locally-owned restaurants along Nicollet Avenue starting just south of downtown Minneapolis
“Fer cute”
see definition of “Oh for cute” below
“For cripes sake!”
Mild anger
“For Pete’s sake!”
see definition of “Oh for Pete’s sake” below
“Geez” or “Geez Louise”
Disbelief; use when “Oh for Pete’s sake!” (definition below) is too dramatic
“Good gravy”
Express surprise or anger when you don’t want to use profanity
“Good grief”
Exhaustion; also used by Charlie Brown
Note: the Peanuts were created by Minnesotan Charles Schulz
“Gosh darn it”
Signifies disappointment
The Great Minnesota Get Together
The Minnesota State Fair, a 12 day extravaganza held at the end of summer ending on Labor Day
Also on Give Me The Mike…
11 foods worth eating at the Minnesota State Fair
Halloween blizzard of ’91
A major storm from October 31 – November 3, 1991 which brought 28″ of snow to the Twin Cities; still brought up in conversation
Hotdish
What others would call a casserole; most popular is the tater tot hotdish
“I didn’t hate it” or “I don’t hate it”
How a Minnesotan will passively insult something when asked for their opinion
“Hank, what did you think of the concert?”
Hank: “I didn’t hate it.”
“I’m just gonna squeeze right past ya there”
How a Minnesotan says ‘excuse me’
“I’ma just scoot right past ya there”
Yet another way to say ‘excuse me’
“Interesting” or “that’s interesting”
A passive-aggressive phrase used when something should be judged and critiqued but the Minnesotan saying it doesn’t want to explain their reasoning because they feel it would be offensive
“Ish”
Something is gross or yucky
“It’s fine” or “It was fine”
A Minnesotan’s way of saying it isn’t fine at all, but you don’t want to say it was bad
“Barb, how’s my Jello-O salad?”
Barb: “It’s fine.”
Jell-O salad
This is not the typical marshmallow fluff; Jell-O salad is flavored gelatin — aka Jell-O — with fruit, vegetables, marshmallows, nuts, and maybe even cottage cheese inside
“Jesus, Mary and Joseph!”
An exclamation which typically signifies fear; used by Kristie Alley’s character in the movie, “Drop Dead Gorgeous”, a fictional mockumentary set in Minnesota
Juicy (or Jucy) Lucy
A hamburger stuffed with molten-hot cheese; there’s much debate about which restaurant serves the original — and best — one
“Kinda spendy”
An expression used to suggest that something is more expensive than one thought it would or should be
“Gosh Barb, that hat is kinda spendy.”
Kitty-corner
Diagonally across from you; not exclusively Minnesota slang
“Kranz”
How some pronounce ‘crayons’; a select few will call them “color kranz”
Lindau or Killebrew
The roads on the north and south sides of the Mall of America (MOA); Minnesotans can get passionate as to what street they take
The Loop
The ring surrounding Minneapolis and St. Paul by Interstates 494 and 694; not to be confused with the North Loop (definition below)
Loosey goosey
Loose and relaxed; also can be spelled loosie goosie
Submission by Farhad Barukzoy
Lutefisk
A dried whitefish (cod), pickled in lye and served with lots of butter; a Christmastime delicacy for Scandinavians
Meat market
Like a butcher shop; many small towns in Minnesota have meat markets where they will process wild game and farm animals
Also on Give Me The Mike…
19 favorite meat markets in Minnesota and western Wisconsin
Meat raffle
Usually held at a VFW or bar; you buy a ticket, someone spins a wheel filled with numbers, and if it lands on your number, you get to take home various cuts of meat from a butcher shop
Also on Give Me The Mike…
The 5 best meat raffles in Minnesota
MOA
The Mall of America; might be referred to as the MegaMall
McGolden or Mich Golden
Michelob Golden Light, a beer popular with Minnesotans
Midtown Greenway
A bike and pedestrian-friendly trail running through the heart of Minneapolis
Minnesota goodbye
The opposite of an Irish goodbye or French goodbye; typically means you’ll stand around for 20 minutes saying goodbye before people actually leave
Minnesota nice
Outside of Minnesota, it means the friendly strangers and hospitality you’ll encounter here; to some Minnesotans, it equates to the passive-aggressiveness you’ll encounter with the people who live here
Minnesota standoff
When multiple vehicles pull up to a stop sign at the same time and then debate (from their cars) about who has the right-of-way
Nicollet Mall
About 12 blocks in downtown Minneapolis closed off to car traffic (buses and taxis welcome) with restaurants and shopping
Northeast
Hip Minneapolis neighborhood just across the Mississippi River from downtown; also referred as Nord’east
North
The identity and branding of Minnesota as ‘The North’; you’ll see it on merchandise; North is also a neighborhood in Minneapolis
North Loop
Vibrant area full of top-notch restaurants to the northwest of downtown; not the same neighborhood as North Minneapolis
Nuker
Slang for microwave
“Toss that in the nuker for a minute”
Submission by Nick
“Oh fer crying out loud!”
Frustration; it’s reserved for true anger
“Oh for cute!” or “Fer cute!”
To exclaim something is adorable
“Oh for Pete’s sake!”
An exclamation that something is unbelievable; typically not about a guy named Pete
“Oh gosh no”
Used to express surprise
“Bobbie, did you hear Larry died?”
“Oh gosh no”
“Oh ya”
see definition for ‘ya’, below
“Okie dokie”
Said in agreement or to replace the word ‘yes’
“Hey Barb, can you fax those documents?”
“Okie dokie!”
“Ope!”
An expression of discovery; can also be used in exchange for ‘excuse me’
“Ope! So that’s where I left my car keys.”
“Ope! Sorry, I just need to sneak past ya there.”
“Out and about”
To head out of the house, perhaps to run errands
“Hun, I’m going out and about.”
Outstate
Anywhere in Minnesota outside of the Twin Cities metro
Also on Give Me The Mike…
The best pizza in Minnesota
Pop
Soda or Coke; it is all called pop
Princess Kay of the Milky Way
Royalty of Minnesota’s Dairy Industry; at the Minnesota State Fair, their likenesses are carved out of blocks of butter
Rapala
A brand of quality fishing lures made in Finland; popular with Minnesotans
Ruff, or Roof
Many Minnesotans will pronounce ‘roof’, as in what’s on top of a house, like what a dog says: ‘ruff’
Submission by Vaughn
Ski-U-Mah
A slogan used by the University of Minnesota; it is loosely tied to the Dakota language
Skol
Most commonly used by the Minnesota Vikings; a Scandinavian term meaning “cheers” or “good health”
Skyway
Indoor bridges in the sky connecting buildings in both downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul; most are on the second level
Stadium Village
An area on the University of Minnesota campus with the University’s sport venues — Huntington Bank Stadium, Mariucci Arena and Williams Arena (aka The Barn)
Strib
Nickname for the Minneapolis Star Tribune newspaper
Also on Give Me The Mike…
A Star Tribune feature on Give Me The Mike’s Mike Marcotte
Supperclub
A restaurant, typically in a smaller town, that is the fine dining establishment for the community; expect to find a relish tray, wood paneling on the walls, multiple types of potatoes and a good old fashioned cocktail
“The cabin”
Anything that you travel to “up north” (see definition below); could be a house, cabin, trailer, etc
Also on Give Me The Mike…
Exploring Nisswa and Gull Lake, Minnesota
“The Cities”
A collective term describing Minneapolis and St. Paul; also known as the ‘Sin Cities’
Also on Give Me The Mike…
What you should know before visiting St. Paul
Top the Tater
A brand of seasoned sour cream; frequently used as a chip dip
U of M
University of Minnesota; also referred as ‘The U’
“Uffda” (also spelled oofda, oofdah)
An exclamation or interjection; shows dismay, surprise, or being overwhelmed
“Uffda! Listening to Barb talk about her Florida vacation for an hour was tiring.”
“Unthaw”
An expression used after spending time in the cold; a human could unthaw after being outside in the winter; you could also unthaw hamburger from the freezer
Up north
Anywhere in Minnesota north of 94 and outside of the metro; doesn’t matter if it’s northwest, north or northeast; it is mentioned as going “up north”
Uptown
Neighborhood south of downtown Minneapolis even though it’s called Uptown
Warsh
Instead of ‘wash’; a phrase not used by all Minnesotans
“I’m gonna go warsh the clothes”
Submission by J.R. Jepsen
“What fer?”
How to pronounce ‘what for?’
“Gladys, can you go to the grocery store?”
“Ya sure, what fer?”
Submission by J.R. Jepsen
Welp
Added to the beginning of a sentence as a transition
“Welp, I suppose I should get going…”
Submission by Anna Anderson
“What the heck?”
Exclamation when a Minnesotan is startled
“Who wants to come with?”
The Minnesota way of asking, ‘Do you want to go with me?’
“I’m headed to the store. Who wants to come with?”
Wisconsin
A neighboring state where Minnesotans go to buy fireworks and Spotted Cow beer; many Minnesotans have distain for Wisconsinites
“Ya” or “ya sure”
Yes; if it’s pronounced as “Ya. Sure.” with pauses between the words, that means there’s a level or passive-aggressiveness/sarcasm coming from the person who said it
“Ya know”
see definition for ‘dontcha know’ above
“You betcha”
A phrase declaring you agree
“You don’t say”
Expresses amazing or disbelief; can come with passive-aggressiveness/sarcasm
Submission by Gary Lee Brooks
“You wanna go with?”
Used to ask someone if they wish to go along
When using this phrase in other parts of the country, you could be asked, “with what?”
Submission by Sharon Dexheimer
“Yous guys”
Referring to a group of people
Can you think of Minnesota slang that should be on this list? Tell me!
Also on Give Me The Mike…
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The best one of all is “Minnesota Standoff” When two or more people pull up to a 4-way stop, and then proceed to wait/argue about who should go. Usually precipitated by the person who just barely had the right of way, but didn’t want to risk angering the other motorist
Love this! Thanks for the suggestion.