One of the greatest lexicographic enterprises of the 20th century has now reached its goal, with publication of the sixth and final volume by Harvard University Press. It’s the Dictionary of American Regional English, recording the copious variety of words we use in the 50 United States.
The first five volumes cover regional vocabulary A-Z with some 50,000 entries. The sixth volume is lagniappe, with maps, index, questionnaire, bibliography, and more.
If you have the dictionary at hand, you can look up the meaning of words like these:
all-overs (South)
boodle (New England)
chankings (New England)
dipsy (Pennsylvania)
enty (South Carolina, Georgia coasts)
flummadiddle (New England)
gnat’s eyebrow (South Midland, West)
hincty (Black speakers)
ish (Minnesota, Wisconsin)
Johnboat (Mississippi and Ohio valleys)
knurl (New England)
lonesome waters (Kentucky)
Mormon…