Comments on: The Great Canadian Word, Unique Phrases and Words of Canada

By: debndave

debndave — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 04:19:18 +0000

Make sure that you do! You’ll sound truly Canadian:)

By: Kira

Kira — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 19:58:09 +0000

I’m going to use a few of these phrases for my school international fair!

By: Kira

Kira — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 19:55:54 +0000

My dad’s family uses pop only when our aunt from Canada visits.

We live in Wisconsin…you would be surprised how many people use “soda”, not “pop.”

By: Emily

Emily — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 05:53:28 +0000

Whipper snipper! My family always used that word for a weed wacker. Not all Canadians use it but I’ve only ever heard Canadians say it. Meaning, Americans don’t say whipper snipper.

By: charlene

charlene — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 03:13:02 +0000

I use the words hassock instead of ottoman, and quiggley hole when the kids dig huge holes in the yard and I’m not sure about these one’s but i use them too whipper snipper or rumpus room for the basement?

By: Marcia Morris

Marcia Morris — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 16:05:34 +0000

Help “fellow Canadians”! (I am proudly “1/2 Canadian” – my Mom was born in 1915 in the small town of Vankleek Hill in NE Ontario. Her name was Pearl Victoria,and sha and my Grandpa Victor Blackwell, spoke a lot of unique phrases as I was growing up in central NY in the 50′s. He was a town blacksmith, along with his father William, in Van Kleek Hill, and continued the trade here in Manlius, when they emigrated in the 40′s. (My Mom pronounced it VAN Klee-kill) Are these phrases familiar to anyone? “By the great horned spoon,” you’ve grown so tall! I’m going out in the yard to talk to Ellen but we’ll only “bat the fat” for a few minutes. (It’s equivalent to the phrase “shoot the breeze” here.) My Mom would look at my dishevelled hair when I woke up, and she’d say to me I looked like “the Wreck of the Hesperus” – a ship that was mentioned in a poem. That’s it! Any of them familar to anyone? I’ve been ever-curious about them for years!! Thanks!

By: Paulz

Paulz — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 18:29:41 +0000

Just a note on pronunciation. Americans often make fun of Canadians for saying “aboot” rather than “about.” Close, but we actually pronounce it “aboat.”

By: debndave

debndave — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 21:49:41 +0000

I just replied about this on another comment but I think you are right. We drove from England to Mongolia with two Americans and they had never heard of the term clicks. Dave and I would say things like the next town is about 50 clicks away. Finally they said “Why do you say clicks” we replied “I don’t know. It’s just what we call km. Kilometers is pretty long when you think about it. Clicks is much better.

By: debndave

debndave — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 21:47:06 +0000

Oh yes, it’s a living room. Do other people say den and family room? We’re definitely living room people. During the Mongol Rally our team mates were American and they asked us why we kept saying clicks. I didn’t realize that it was a Canadian thing. We say only 50 clicks to go. Kilometers has too many syllables )

By: jade

jade — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 06:12:04 +0000

yep, my dad says clicks all the time
living room anyone? vs den or family room…

By: Alouise

Alouise — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 04:27:06 +0000

I don’t know if it’s uniquely Canadian but I’ve heard clicks used quite a bit instead of kilometres. As in, “that car got up to 100 clicks.”
Alouise recently posted..Photo Essay – Dr. Sun Yat Sen Classical Chinese Garden

By: bjk

bjk — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 15:32:54 +0000

Foolscap is used in Canada but not the US. It might be a Britishism but it’s also Canadian.

By: debndave

debndave — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 04:45:55 +0000

Thanks for all the input, awesome additions. I have heard other people say packsack before and ski do is the word we use for snowmobile. As far as Hoser goes, that is definitely a Canadian influence spreading. Bob and Doug Mackenzie made it famous in the 70′s and it ended up taking of eh.

By: Sewbie

Sewbie — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 18:24:13 +0000

Fun article – but many manyof the claims in the comments are not solely Canadian.
Mickie is used a variety or places, though it is an older term that i’ve hear in old movies, Thong is used all the time in Australia and NZ, I nknow some Americans who say hoser, I heat take off all over the place, as with sasquatchm yak, francophone and Kraft Dinner… though a lot of people have also taken to calling it KD.
Or maybe Canadian influence is just starting to spread…?

There’s a lto of word also that i hear all the time here, and not just in the US or elsewhere. Dinner, backpack, Robe (my household says robe, but others respond with Ooohh.. you mean a house coat?) taking a shower, and a nap.

And i notice that those of us who lived in northern ON say packsack…but no one else does! Is there anywhere else in Canada that also says this??
I also remember that the term “sled” was not a toboggan, but a ski-do. And what about crazy carpet? Oh the numerous words we have for our winter supplies…

By: robertmurray

robertmurray — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 15:40:42 +0000

Just wanted to wish everyone a great Christmas this year. It’s been pretty cold in Scotland but I hear it’s nothing compared to Edmonton’s weather.

By: englishguest

englishguest — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 12:14:11 +0000

its so cool looking at how different we use slang :’) over here in england the younger generation calls them traffic cones and the older generation call them pilons, reading your blog has been really interesting!

By: Kyle D

Kyle D — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 03:23:56 +0000

no. i’m fluent in English & french. Parkette = Park , In French! I like in Ontario and never do we use that word.

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By: debndave

debndave — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 17:55:40 +0000

Thanks Andre, I have heard of BunnyHugs. Great Canadian Word indeed!

By: Andrew

Andrew — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 13:09:11 +0000

In Saskatchewan, people call hoodies “bunnyhugs”. I was in my 20s before I learned that was a Saskatchewan expression :S