How to Seattle: An introduction to the local lingo

SEATTLE — Emerald City, Jet City, Rain City. Seattle has a lot of nicknames — and let’s not forget, Transplant City!

Census data shows that only around 30% of Seattle adults were born in Washington and that the state far outpaces others with its ratio of transplants.

Despite being a mix of newcomers, the Seattle area is full of its own signature idiosyncrasies, including language. Asked what words and phrases they’ve heard used specifically in and around Seattle, hundreds of readers shared ideas. We used their suggestions to put together this guide to the city’s dialect.

Rain, rain, go away

Lots of places have clouds, rain and sunshine, you may be thinking. Why would Seattle need its own words?

According to readers, the unusually high rate of gray skies changes what we emphasize with language. “Partly cloudy” is a descriptor for places where sunshine is routine (jealous!). Here we like to highlight “partly sunny” skies instead, said a reader named Karen.

“Other places have passing showers; we have intermittently clear skies,” seconded Caroline Zelonka. “Spend a few years in Seattle and you’ll understand why we get excited about ‘sunbreaks.’ "

A sunbreak describes “short-lived openings in the clouds in Seattle’s infamously sun-starved climate,” clarified a reader.

Another hopeful phrase for discussing Seattle’s cloud cover is “it’ll burn off,” as in, “We can tell by about 9 or 10 in the morning on an overcast day whether the clouds will burn off,” said Jim Macpherson.

To address the rain head on, we have plenty of options. Favorite terms include “liquid sunshine” and " Seattle mist.”

A reader named Greg who says he lived in the Seattle area his whole life until 2019 offered the following definitions:

-- Showers: small drops

-- Mist: drops almost floating in the air

-- Scattered showers: small drops here and there

-- Rain: larger drops than showers, and more of them

-- Pouring down: big drops and even more of them

-- Light rain: large drops but with more distance in between them

-- Light showers: small drops but more distance between them

The rainiest time of year is, of course, The Big Dark (approximately November through February), which is filled with short, gray days. The ominous phrase means basically “anytime that isn’t summer,” according to one reader.

It ends with sunbreaks and false hope in Mayvember and Juneuary, the months following April that are supposed to feel summery but usually don’t. A reader named Angie defined Juneuary as " Seattle’s last gasp of winter before summer finally arrives on July 5th.” The period is also referred to as “June Gloom.”

From the mountains to the sea

The Emerald City has no shortage of words to describe its natural beauty.

Reader Steven Crawford says Seattleites use a “marveled tone” while describing mountain visibility with words and phrases like:

-- The mountain’s out: The sky is clear enough to see Mount Rainier.

-- Rainbake: A day or moment in which you can see Mount Rainier and Mount Baker.

-- Rainier has a cap: There’s a lenticular cloud, or mountain-wave cloud, over Mount Rainier. These “cloud caps” appear saucerlike, almost like UFOs, and generally portend rain, according to KING 5 News’ weather blog.

When it comes to the vast body of saltwater surrounding Seattle, the rules are pretty straightforward. You can call it “the Sound,” “Puget Sound” or refer to the " Puget Sound area.” Just don’t call it “The Puget Sound” if you’re trying to fit in with locals, several readers noted.

When Google maps isn’t enough

Asking for directions? Here’s how to interpret them correctly.

Firstly, when Seattleites say “Eastside,” we mean east of Lake Washington, including Redmond, Bellevue, Kirkland and Issaquah “and the rest of the techie Seattle burbs,” explained reader Amanda Reynolds. But, she said, that definition changes “even a couple hours away from the city” when it then refers to cities east of the Cascade Mountains, “not east of the lake.”

Within the city, there are some key destinations to know:

-- The Ave: University Way Northeast, a major commercial street and a backbone of off-campus life near the University of Washington (also known as UDub).

-- The Center: Seattle Center, where you’ll find iconic attractions like the Space Needle and Chihuly Garden and Glass.

-- The Market: Pike Place Market, which spans nine acres downtown. Many locals don’t use the full title. (But most important, don’t say “Pike’s Place” unless you want to sound like a tourist, numerous readers said.)

-- The Hill: Capitol Hill, a neighborhood packed with bars and eateries and known as Seattle’s LGBTQ+ epicenter. Michele Sinclair, a Seattle resident of 64 years, warns (with an angry emoji) not to shorten the name to Cap Hill: “Any true Seattleite and ESPECIALLY a ‘Hiller’ just cringes every time!”

-- Pill Hill: First Hill, a Seattle neighborhood nicknamed for its abundance of hospitals.

-- The Quad: Officially called the Liberal Arts Quadrangle (but don’t say that in conversation), this is a scenic gathering place on the UDub campus and a popular place to enjoy viewing cherry blossoms during March and April.

-- The Village: University Village, an open-air shopping center in the University District, with everything from Apple to Lululemon to quirky locally owned shops.

Out on the town

Grabbing some drinks or a bite to eat with new friends? Filthy (cool)! You’ve overcome the dreaded Seattle Freeze — the alleged tendency of locals to ice out newcomers, avoid eye contact and/or never follow through on plans. Now, put on your Seattle tuxedo (a flannel and jeans) and get ready to order.

Firstly, don’t get the wrong idea when someone asks if you want to grab some Dick’s. They’re referring to the classic Seattle walk-up fast-food chain (“usually after a long night when you and your friend(s) are tired,” said reader Andrew Rizo). It may be phrased as “grab a bag of Dick’s.”

“I’m pretty sure no one says this outside of Seattle,” commented reader Tyson Supasatit.

Before a night out, other U.S. residents pregame — getting together and drinking before a social outing like a concert or party. Here in Seattle, we pre-func! “Short for ‘pre-function,’ this means the same thing,” explained reader Aaron Chandler. It’s also sometimes spelled pre-funk.

When grabbing some beer to pre-func with, you may also need some specific vocabulary. Eric Norberg, who moved to the Seattle area in 2014 as a self-proclaimed beer enthusiast (“NOT a snob!”) was initially flummoxed by the words used here to describe his favorite drink.

“Nevertheless, at great personal expense, I persevered,” he said, discovering the meaning behind words like:

-- Half-rack: a 12-pack of beer

-- Rack: a case of 24 beers (This is used less often; it’s also commonly referred to as a case.)

-- Half-quart: a pint of beer (less common)

“In my travels across the country exploring beer culture, this is the only area where I have heard those words used in that context,” Norberg concluded.

Some other beverage words to know are:

-- Fill me up with leaded: Coffee, please!

-- Schooner: a tall glass of beer

-- Vitamin R: Rainier Beer, a brand that, according to its website, “was born in Seattle in 1878 before the state of Washington was even a state.”

[Portland and Seattle are the nation’s beer-snob capitals]

A final word of advice for attending a Seattle gathering: According to reader Steven Crawford, “Don’t bring anything” translates to “Bring a bottle of wine or a six-pack of craft beer.”

More words and their meanings

While not all may be tied to Seattle, here are some other unique — or potentially confusing — words and phrases readers reported coming across in the area.

-- “I moved to Seattle 42 years ago, and the one that stood out to me back then was Seattleites calling an ambulance an ‘aid car.’ But frankly, it’s been so long since I’ve been around anyone being shipped to the hospital that I don’t know if ‘aid car’ is still in use.” — Anonymous reader

-- “A lot of us tend to say ‘yeah no’ if we mean ‘no’ and we’ll say ‘no yeah’ if we mean ‘yes.’ It’s not confusing when you hear it midconversation.” — Juliauna Snell

-- “Some Seattle word usage is opposite than in other parts of the country. When I first moved out here, I was puzzled by reactions when I said that I was doing ‘pretty good.’ Locals thought I was unhappy and asked after me. Where I came from ( Cleveland, Ohio) ‘pretty good’ meant really good, better than just good; in Seattle it meant less than good.” — Maggie Nowakowska

-- “Cruising Alki: Driving back and forth up the waterfront, posing for ladies!” — Anonymous reader

-- “I never heard the word ‘boughten’ used by anyone outside of Seattle. I guess it means ‘not homemade.’ When I looked it up years ago, it was referred to as Northwest dialect, but now it appears to be mainstream.” — Anonymous reader

-- “Nothing unites more Seattleites [than] when the bus pulls up to a stop, the bus is full, but they don’t open all the doors, and everyone says collectively ‘back door!’” — Kevin McIntosh