how do you use the word jawn

A Guide For When and How to Use Jawn

Full Answer

What does it mean to call someone a Jawn?

Jawn is a neutral, all-purpose noun used to reference any person, place, situation, or object. In casual conversation, it takes the place of the word thing. Contrary to popular belief, jawn did not entirely originate in Philadelphia, but developed locally as a variant pronunciation of joint in African American vernacular English.

What is a Jawn in Philadelphia?

Jawn is Philadelphia slang for anything … literally anything. Jawn is used as an all encompassing substitute for any person, place, or thing. Like this definition, an informative jawn. Where does jawn come from? Check out this jawn: The Nationals are 10-4 against Philadelphia this season.

What is a'Jawn'?

'Jawn' is some kind of amazing jawn. Regionalisms are a class of words that most speakers think are a quaint relic of a bygone era, a time before national radio and television broadcasts flattened our vocabulary into general American English, when people were born, raised, and buried in the same town. But nothing could be further from the truth.

Is “joint” a “Jawn”?

“Joint” is like a lesser “jawn.” It tries, but it has limits. Thanks to a few key linguists, we have some actual hard data on the very important era in Philadelphia when “jawn” began to take hold.

How do you use jawn in a sentence?

“Pass me that jawn.” “This jawn is packed.” “He's a good jawn.” If you're from Philly, none of the above sentences may sound strange to you. If you're coming to us from outside of Pennsylvania's borders, they might have you scratching your head.

What does jawn mean in slang?

What does jawn mean? Jawn is Philadelphia slang for anything … literally anything. Jawn is used as an all encompassing substitute for any person, place, or thing.

Why do people from Philly say jawn?

Jawn is a slang term that refers to a thing, place, person, or event, substituing for a specific name. It is local to the Philadelphia Delaware Valley metropolitan area. Jawn is a context-dependent substitute noun, a noun that substitutes for other nouns. Jawn can be singular or plural.

Where is jawn used?

Jawn has been used to refer to a cheesesteak (“Put some onions on that jawn”) and the person with whom someone is cheating on another someone (as in “side-jawn”). The plural can be either “jawns” or “jawn.” We're not a fussy city.

Is jawn a black word?

African American English speakers in Philadelphia adapted joint and created the new word jawn.

Is jawn a Philly word?

Philadelphians also tend to drop hard consonants like t and g off the ends of their words, and so jawn was born. Philly's usage of jawn has become even broader and more all-encompassing than New York's joint, which has established connotations referring to either a place (like a club) or marijuana.

Who coined the term jawn?

At some point in the 1970s, Philadelphia coined the all-encompassing noun “jawn.” The word has remained a treasure in the city's black lexicon and natives have long stamped it as an integral part of their vocabulary.

How do you use a jawn in Philadelphia?

“Side-jawn,” meaning a someone with whom the speaker cheats on his or her significant other, “is a uniquely Philly thing as far as I can tell,” says Jones. “And not something you want to be.” Taste the World! “Jawn” can be singular: “pass me that jawn.” It can be plural, and in a couple of different ways.

What does Boul mean in Philly?

boyBut words that haven't been branded get all sorts of spellings. Philadelphia has no shortage of residents who insist that the way they spell “boul” — a Philly word for "boy" — is the only way that's true.

Is jawn a new word?

Alas, the Merriam-Webster new word list just came out, and there's no “jawn.” The list includes an utterly whopping 370 new words. Among them: yeet, janky, lewk and pwn.

How do you pronounce jawn?

0:321:32Kur Defines Philly Lingo: "Jawn" - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipJehan.MoreJehan.

Can jawn be a verb?

Verb, and third-person singular simple present jawns, present participle jawning, simple past and past participle jawned. "Slang, chiefly Philadelphia, place or thing. (An example) :- "Check out this jawn."( i.e. A woman.)

How do you pronounce jawn?

0:321:32Kur Defines Philly Lingo: "Jawn" - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipJehan.MoreJehan.

What is a john in slang?

Noun. john (plural johns) (slang) A prostitute's client. quotations ▼synonym ▲ Synonyms: see Thesaurus:prostitute's client. (slang, US) A device or place to urinate and defecate: now usually a toilet or lavatory, but also (dated) a chamber pot or outhouse.

What does Boul mean in Philly?

boyBut words that haven't been branded get all sorts of spellings. Philadelphia has no shortage of residents who insist that the way they spell “boul” — a Philly word for "boy" — is the only way that's true.

What's meaning of shawty?

young and attractive womanShawty, shorty, shauty or shortie is a part of the African American Vernacular Language used as a term of endearment but also frequently heard as a catcall. After the 1990s, the term has largely referred to a young and attractive woman. Some people consider this term condescending and pejorative.

What is a Jawn?

Jawn is used as an all encompassing substitute for any person, place, or thing. Like this definition, an informative jawn.

Do Philly residents take pride in Jawn?

We like our regional identities, so it’s no surprise that folks from Philly take pride in jawn.

Is Jawn a versatile word?

We don't need a dictionary telling us what we already know to be true: Jawn is a versatile jawn.

What does "Jawn" mean?

A noun is defined as a place, thing, or person, and true to form, jawn can also be stretched to refer to the last. A jawn could be some guy walking down the street or a pack of people, but it’s commonly used to describe a woman involved in an extra-marital affair.

Where Did Jawn Come From?

How jawn got so popular is a mystery, but most experts agree we can trace the word’s origins back to the term “joint.”

What distinguishes the jawn of Philadelphia from the joint of New York City?

Another element that distinguishes the jawn of Philadelphia from the joint of New York City is how it’s used. New Yorkers regularly refer to objects or places as joints, but the use-cases end there. Jawn can mean so much more.

What does "joint is jumping" mean?

Used in a sentence, Calloway declared that “the joint is jumping” means “the place is lively.” This is still widely used across the U.S. today — think about your local pizza joint.

Is "Jawn" a slang word?

If you’re coming to us from outside of Pennsylvania’s borders, they might have you scratching your head. Jawn is a beloved and time-honored slang word, or colloquialism, that’s been making the rounds in the greater Philadelphia area for decades.

Is "joint" a synonym for "place"?

Over the next few decades, using joint as a synonym for place grew in popularity. In the 1970s, however, it expanded to mean “thing” as well. The Sugarhill Gang’s 1979 hit song, “Rapper’s Delight,” included the line,

Can you use Jawn like a Jig?

This is a popular one. You can use jawn similar to how you’d use the term “thinga-ma-jig.”

Where does the word "jawn" come from?

Sorry Philadelphians, but the linguists are pretty sure “jawn” comes from New York. There are a few instances where “jawn” can be used but “joint,” in, say, New York, cannot. “In Philly you can say ‘I have a lot of jawn to do for school,’” says Jones. “You can’t say in New York, ‘I have a lot of joint to do.’”.

What does "side jawn" mean?

“Side-jawn,” meaning a someone with whom the speaker cheats on his or her significant other, “is a uniquely Philly thing as far as I can tell,” says Jones.

What does "joint" mean in the South?

Originally from the Latin iunctus, it was Old French that turned it into “joint,” meaning a connection or association, multiple things coming together, a juncture. The definition broadened in the American South around the time of emancipation, with the prominence of “juke joints,” bars and clubs that served as safe spaces for black Americans to come together and hang out. The concept of a joint as a place expanded a bit, and is still in use today; think of a pizza joint.

Is "jawn" a positive or negative word?

It can be negative or positive or neutral depending on context. It is a magical word, and did not come about in a vacuum. The rise of “jawn” dovetails with breakthroughs in the study of American linguistics itself. What we know about our ever-evolving speech patterns can, in part, be seen through this one weird word.

Is "jawn" a noun?

The word “jawn” is unlike any other English word. In fact, according to the experts that I spoke to, it’s unlike any other word in any other language. It is an all-purpose noun, a stand-in for inanimate objects, abstract concepts, events, places, individual people, and groups of people. It is a completely acceptable statement in Philadelphia ...

Is it acceptable to ask someone to bring that jawn to the jawn?

It is a completely acceptable statement in Philadelphia to ask someone to “remember to bring that jawn to the jawn.”. It is a word without boundaries or limits. Growing up in the suburbs just west of the city, I heard it used mostly to refer to objects and events.