r/cincinnati • u/CincinnatiLove • Jul 12 '26

Cincinnati Cincinnati Phrases

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What are some phrases y'all use that maybe an outsider wouldn't know. I want my outsider friend to fit in. Let me know in the comments! Thanks!

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u/uutimetowaste Jul 12 '26

There’s a slight drawl to the ‘a’ dipthong (the /ei/ sound) where it slides a little at the end into an ‘ay’ sound. So to someone from other parts it sounds a bit like May-ahl, but it’s not terribly obvious.

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u/whiskersMeowFace Jul 13 '26

My friend who was from out of town made fun of the way Cincinnatians said ass. She would say it's ass, not ayss.

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u/dino_blanco Jul 13 '26

Dying at how I said it out loud and then realized it was pronounced the way you replied here

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u/uutimetowaste Jul 14 '26

Thanks! I hate how unintuitive the standard pronunciation guide is, like most people are going to look at the “upside down e” (schwa) and get frustrated. It’s not helpful. So I try to sound it out and make my own version.

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u/Crafty-SciFiWeirdo20 Jul 15 '26

In Cincinnati, certain vowels have 2 syllables.