Family Expressions that Wouldn't Make Sense to Anyone Else

"If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance." ~ George Bernard Shaw (Irish Playwright)

Having a mother (and aunts/uncles) from Newfoundland has been a great blessing in many ways. In fact, if I could be surrounded by Newfoundlander's most of the time, I would choose that option. They are great people, for the most part, with a colorful history and a unique grasp of the English language. Growing up, there were common words and phrases used in my house that we not part of the vernacular of my friends or their parents. Since moving to a different province, one that is removed from Maritime culture, I have realized that these words and phrases are very unique to Newfoundland; although my mother asserts that they come from the old English dictionary. I have found myself explaining these terms to people unfamiliar with them and have often found people to be fascinated by this use of language. Fascinated and amused.

King Carn (K-ar-n): meaning ones neck. "Let me stick my nose in your king carn to smell your perfume."
Pole (Poll): also meaning ones neck. "My favourite part on that baby is her pole."
Come to Jesus: meaning a significant disagreement that leads to a verbal argument. "If you bring up my smoking one more time, we're going to have a come to Jesus."
Puddock (Pud-uck): meaning ones throat. "Now jam that sandwich down your puddock so we can hurry up and get out of here."
Streel (St-real): meaning someone who is lazy, typically a woman. "She is such a streel, she won't even do her own laundry."
Slut's Day: meaning someone who chooses to be lazy by lying around in bed all day. "I had myself a real Slut's Day recently and laid in bed reading a good novel all day."
Geezler (Gez-lir): meaning someone who is a nuisance. "That boy has been a geezler all day, getting into everything and making me chase him around."
Covages (Cuv-age-is): meaning greedy or selfish. "That girl is some covages, not even sharing the ice cream with her brother."
Lazier than a Cut Dog: meaning a person too lazy to move. "That boy is lazier than a cut dog...won't even get up off the couch to mow the lawn."
Piss-Burned: meaning a child needing a diaper change because they have peed so much in it that it's going to start irritating their skin. "For the love of God, would you change that child's diaper....he's going to get piss-burned.
Sleveen (Sl-eve-en): meaning a person who is lazy or deceitful. "Don't you trust that man with your money, he's a sleveen and will probably squander it."
Glag (G-lag): meaning someone who is a gossip or who talks about other people behind their back. "Don't listen to a word that glag says, she's so full of the gossip."
I will add more to this list as I remember them.