New England regionalisms

Posted by ESC on January 15, 2005

In Reply to: New England regionalisms posted by Word Camel on January 15, 2005

: : My family originates from central Vermont and New Hampshire (early 1700's) where I still live and I've noticed that many people don't know what I mean when I use these expressions. I would like to know their origin and compare meanings to see if it is different than how my family interpreted them. With us, if someone did something that was "...like **** through a tin horn!", it means they did a lot of it and got through it quickly. If someone "cut a pig in the ass", it means they made a poor decision, usually business related, that would end up harming themselves (if you cut a pig in the ass, you'll ruin the ham which is one of the best parts of the pig). "I'd milk her for what she gives" was used when discussing what to do about anything from a tractor or car to a milk cow that had reached the point of requiring more upkeep and repairs then were worth putting back into them. If one decided to "milk her for what she gives", it meant this was the last use until it broke down again. Then it would be re-cycled for parts, eaten, etc.

: Thanks for contributing. Those are nice ones.

Those are good. I using the "milk her" one as soon as possible.

Looks like one expression made its way south:

CUT A HOG -- "To make an embarrassing mistake or fail in some way; Derives from 'to cut a gut,' referring to a mistake make when dressing an animal." From the Whistlin' Dixie section of Facts on File Dictionary of American Regionalisms: Local Expressions from Coast to Coast by Robert Hendrickson (Facts on File, New York, 2000).