7 Phrases You May Have Never Heard Before (Unless You're From West Virginia)

West Virginia has a mountain culture all her own, including a plethora of creative expressions that are as old as the hills. Yet outside the state, you don’t hear these much! How many do you remember growing up with?

wapiko/Flickr

Unless you're from Appalachia, you probably never got caught asking "What for?" West Virginia style ("What fur?") and heard this tongue-in-cheek response: "Cat fur, to make kitten britches."

Mike Mozart/Flickr

The milk "blinked" when it turned sour...which is something that my family usually only realized AFTER they'd poured it over a big bowl of cereal!

Advertisement

Virginia State Parks/Flickr

Growing up in West Virginia, did you live this far back in the sticks?

Advertisement

Related Stories

This Speakeasy Hidden In A Bed & Breakfast In West Virginia Is Perfect For A Date Night

One Of The Country's Most Impressive Rest Stops Is Hiding Right Here In West Virginia

The Whole Family Could Spend An Entire Day Having A Blast At Reed's In West Virginia

Bob/Flickr

Did you ever go nibbing (or nebbing) around the pantry when you weren't supposed to, looking for a snack?

Jason Pratt/Flickr

Did you ever have the painful experience of a hitch in your giddy-up, otherwise known as a leg cramp?

Global Reactions/Flickr

Or maybe it was as worthless as tits on a boar hog or a screen door on a submarine...

Yandle/Flickr

Or maybe you were more the type that could destroy a brick with a feather...or knock off the horn of an anvil with a rubber mallet...

Been a while since you’ve heard some of these expressions, hasn’t it? Probably not since Moby Dick was a minnow (or rather, a “minner” if you’re from around these parts). How about this list of 11 things that only West Virginians say – are you guilty of using any of them? What are some other uniquely West Virginian (or uniquely Appalachian) sayings you grew up with?