8 Uniquely New York Words

Whether you’re bopping around Bed-Stuy, frolicking through the Financial District, or ambling across Astoria, there are certain terms you’re likely to hear spoken throughout NYC’s five boroughs. These regionalisms are part of the city’s collective lexicon, though they may sound like a foreign language to those living elsewhere. And that makes sense, as many of these words were coined in New York City’s diverse immigrant communities before being adopted citywide later on. Here’s a look at eight unique words made popular in the city that never sleeps.

When New Yorkers order their morning bagel, they may ask for it with schmear — a term originating in the city’s Jewish communities. This word is derived from the Yiddish shmir, meaning “spread.” While it typically applies to cream cheese, it can also be used to order any spreadable sandwich topping. 

The word “schmear” came to America in the early 20th-century, though in Germany it originally referred to grease used for oiling machinery. As Yiddish speakers emigrated to NYC, “schmear” became a common term when ordering bagels, often topped with lox, capers, onions, and tomatoes as well.

The word “bodega” originated in Spanish-speaking cultures abroad, largely as a means to describe warehouses and other storage areas used to stash wine. But in the 1950s and 1960s, Puerto Rican communities in the Big Apple began using the word as a name for neighborhood corner stores. Nowadays, you’ll find a neighborhood bodega in almost every part of the city, selling breakfast sandwiches, beer, toiletries, and various everyday foodstuffs and household goods.

“Stoop” is derived from the Dutch stoep, meaning “a flight of steps,” typically leading up to a door. Now it’s a common term in NYC, thanks to the centuries of Dutch influence. (The Dutch founded New York City as New Amsterdam in the 17th century.) New Yorkers use the term “stoop” today to refer to the steps leading up to townhouses and brownstones. Stoops serve as communal locations to socialize with other tenants.

The slang term “brick” was coined by African-American communities in New York City and its surrounding locales. It originated in the mid-1990s to describe excessively frigid weather. This word comes from the idea that buildings made of brick are cold to the touch, especially during the wintertime.

“Schlep” is another Yiddish term common in New York, coming from the word shlepen, meaning “to drag.” “Schlep” can be used as either a verb meaning “to haul things in a tedious manner,” or as a noun referring to any long distance that takes a great deal of time to traverse. For instance, you might say that you’re “schlepping across the city” when traveling from the Bronx to Staten Island, or that your morning commute was “a real schlep.”

In some parts of America you would order a submarine sandwich, and in others a hoagie. But in New York City, these long sandwiches are known as heroes. Many attribute this to New York Herald Tribune columnist Clementine Paddleford, who purportedly said these sandwiches are so big that it’d be a heroic act to eat one. However, there’s no known evidence to back up that oft-repeated origin story. What we do know is that the first printed mention of a hero sandwich was in the August 23, 1936, edition of the Times Union in Brooklyn.

A straphanger rides on public transit — either the subway or bus — and holds onto the straps dangling from the ceiling for balance. An early use of the term appeared in a 1905 edition of the Daily News, and it was New York City locals who helped popularize the word. That said, you may hear it around other big cities with vast public transit networks, such as Chicago.

When you head into the nearest bodega and order a “regular coffee,” you might not receive what you personally consider to be your regular order. In NYC, “regular coffee” refers to a steaming hot cup of joe with milk or cream and two sugars. You might get some confused looks if you try this order outside of the city, but most baristas around New York will know what you mean. We don’t know if it originated at a specific coffee shop or bodega, but it evolved from the ordering practices of New Yorkers.