Test Your Knowledge of American Dialects
Each of the following phrases is common to a specific U.S. dialect. See if you know what each one means and where it is from.
1. “Are you packing a card?”
2. “Check out the second growth.”
3. “Mind if I use your commode?”
4. “Hey, that guy just budged!”
5. “Is there a bubbler nearby?
6. “You’re blocking my dooryard.”
7. “He’s just a leafer.”
8. “Let’s sit in the parlor.”
9. “It’s in the locker.”
Note: This Self-Quiz is adapted from the self-monitoring scale provided by Snyder (1974).
Test Your Knowledge of American Dialects
Union membership, Pacific Northwest.
Timber that has grown back on a previously harvested area, Pacific Northwest.
Bathroom, Deep South.
Cut in line, eastern Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Drinking fountain, eastern Wisconsin.
Driveway, Maine and northern New England.
Tourist traveling to see the seasonal foliage, northern New England.
Living room, Delaware Valley.
Closet, New Orleans.