Why Do New Englanders Say ‘Wicked’?
Ask someone from Boston how their day is going, and there’s a strong chance they’ll say it’s “wicked good” — a phrase that includes a word whose dictionary definition means the opposite of good entirely. It’s one of the most recognizable quirks of the New England dialect, showing up everywhere
from Good Will Hunting (“My boy’s wicked smart”) to local retailer Newbury Comics’ slogan, “A wicked good time!” But why “wicked”? Are the god-fearing Puritans and the Salem witch trials to blame, as one popular theory suggests? While that makes for a colorful story, the truth is more complicated. There...
