Hey, Dit Dots! A Coastal N.C. Vocabulary Quiz

It has been said that England and the U.S. are two nations divided by a common language. But you don’t have to travel overseas to find English words and phrases that are virtually impossible to decipher to outsiders. The coastal region of North Carolina is home to a host of terms that make little sense to dit dots (a local term for tourists, used in parts of the Outer Banks).

It is probably safe to say that no one has done more to research and document the dialects of North Carolina than Walt Wolfram, a professor of English at NC State and director of the North Carolina Language and Life Project. So, in an attempt to educate and entertain, we sat down with Walt and came up with a vocabulary quiz on some words you might hear in coastal N.C. Most of these terms are used only in specific parts of the Outer Banks, though one or two can be heard in other parts of eastern N.C. You’ll find the answers at the bottom of the quiz, under the photo.

1). Dingbatter

A. noun: an outfielder in baseball

B. noun: a mixture of breadcrumbs and milk

C. adjective: inebriated or crazy

D. noun: tourist or outsider

2). Pizer

A. noun: a clumsy person

B. noun: porch

C. verb: to fail or botch a task

D. adjective: extremely salty

3). Whopperjawed

A. adjective: crooked or not straight

B. adjective: false or untrue

C. adjective: describing a fish that takes the bait, but not the hook

D. adjective: vain or self-important

4). Slickcam

A. noun: a tourist from New York or New Jersey

B. verb: to gut or clean a fish

C. adjective: smooth or without ripples

D. noun: gasoline

5). Meehonkey

A. adjective: describing someone with a cold or the flu

B. noun: a sand castle

C. adjective: broken or not functioning properly

D. noun: the game of hide and seek

Answers:

1). D, used in the Outer Banks, particularly Ocracoke. As in, “There are a lot of dingbatters on the island this summer.”

2). B, used in the Outer Banks. As in, “They were sitting on the pizer to enjoy the evening breeze.”

3). A, used throughout the Outer Banks and eastern N.C. As in, “You need to re-hang that picture, it’s whopperjawed.”

4). C, used to refer to water in the Outer Banks. As in, “The sound was slickcam last night.”

5). D, used in the Outer Banks, particularly in Ocracoke. As in, “The kids were out playing meehonkey all afternoon.

To hear the Outer Banks vocabulary, as used by the locals, check out this brief excerpt from the documentary film “The Carolina Brogue.”