1. Chuck
What it means everywhere else: A shortened version of Charles, most awesome when paired with Norris.
What it means in South Carolina: A shortened version of the awesome South Carolina city, Charleston.
2. Frogmore Stew
What it means everywhere else: Some kind of stew that’s probably made out of a lot of frogs.
What it means in South Carolina: A super tasty traditional recipe that involves absolutely zero frogs.
3. Peanuts
What it means everywhere else: A type of nut that many unfortunate people are allergic to.
What it means in South Carolina: A type of nut that you could easily eat by the pound if it was served boiled from a roadside stand.
4. USC
What it means everywhere else: The University of Southern California in Los Angeles.
What it means in South Carolina: California’s USC has nothing on the University of South Carolina. Nothing!
5. Flurries
What it means everywhere else: A little bit of snow that sometimes doesn’t even stick on the ground.
What it means in South Carolina: Time to panic and stock up on enough food to make a serious apocalypse prepper feel unprepared.
6. North
What it means everywhere else: One of four directions on a compass.
What it means in South Carolina: The lesser Carolina.
7. Orange
What it means everywhere else: A kind of fruit or a color.
What it means in South Carolina: The color you bleed if you’re a hardcore member of the Clemson Tiger Nation.
8. Half Rubber
What it means everywhere else: Something that is made from fifty percent rubber.
What it means in South Carolina: A game that’s sort of similar to baseball, played with a rubber ball that’s been cut in half.
9. Sandlapper
What it means everywhere else: Maybe someone who laps up sand?
What it means in South Carolina: A South Carolina resident, especially one who lives near the beach.
10. Hash
What it means everywhere else: Something you smoked once in college.
What it means in South Carolina: Delicious meaty goodness (pick your favorite meat) served over rice.
11. Buggy
What it means everywhere else: Something a horse pulls.
What it means in South Carolina: The cart you push your groceries around in at the store.
12. Peaches
What it means everywhere else: A type of fruit that Georgia is famous for.
What it means in South Carolina: The most delicious fruit in the world that your state produces more of than Georgia.
13. Fixing
What it means everywhere else: When you repair something that’s broken.
What it means in South Carolina: When you’re about to do something. For example, “I’m fixin’ to go down to the store.”
14. Shag
What it means everywhere else: A kind of carpet, hairstyle, or something a little more adult if you’re from the UK.
What it means in South Carolina: The Carolina Shag, an awesome, informal beach dance.
15. Vinegar
What it means everywhere else: A liquid that can be used for cooking or cleaning.
What it means in South Carolina: The only appropriate base for a delicious South Carolina BBQ.
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16. Okra
What it means everywhere else: A vegetable that you sometimes throw in soup or stew.
What it means in South Carolina: A vegetable that you fry beyond recognition, making it a billion times more delicious.
17. Moss
What it means everywhere else: That green stuff that grows on dirt and rocks on the ground in moist areas.
What it means in South Carolina: Gorgeous hanging Spanish moss that hangs off South Carolina trees and always makes you feel like you’re in a Southern Gothic novel.
18. Palmetto
What it means everywhere else: Uh… gross. Isn’t that a type of cockroach?
What it means in South Carolina: The plant your state got its nickname from and a word found in the name of 80% of the local businesses you frequent. And yeah, those freaky flying cockroaches too.
19. Mosquitos
What it means everywhere else: Annoying insects that bite and leave itchy welts.
What it means in South Carolina: Things that come at you in vicious swarms that look like something out of Hitchcock’s “The Birds.”
20. Bless Your Heart
What it means everywhere else: That’s nice, right? It’s like someone is wishing you well.
What it means in South Carolina: The coldest, most condescending thing your grandma will ever say to you.
21. Vines
What it means everywhere else: Invasive plants that grow up the sides of buildings.
What it means in South Carolina: A kudzu plant that you’re pretty sure is just going to swallow your house, and you, and your whole family, and your dog someday.
22. Ants
What it means everywhere else: Picnic ruining insects.
What it means in South Carolina: Painful memories of stepping on a fire anthill while wearing sandals and limping home with dozens of welts on your feet and ankles.
23. Hushpuppy
What it means everywhere else: What you tell your dog when he’s barking.
What it means in South Carolina: The most delicious food known to man, made of fried cornmeal and magic.
24. Sweetgrass
What it means everywhere else: One of those weed type plants that grows along the side of the road.
What it means in South Carolina: Something that about fifteen of your baskets are made from.
25. Swamp Fox
What it means everywhere else: A fox that lives in a swamp.
What it means in South Carolina: A South Carolinian Revolutionary War general, Francis Marion, who was one of the fathers of guerrilla warfare, and who you learned about in every U.S. History class ever.
26. Messie
What it means everywhere else: The way a five year old might try to spell messy.
What it means in South Carolina: The terrifying lake monster that is definitely swimming around the bottom of Lake Murray.
27. Sweet Tea
What it means everywhere else: A popular southern drink, served ice cold.
What it means in South Carolina: Your one true vice that you must have every day of your life.
28. Dinner
What it means everywhere else: The last meal of the day, eaten in the evening.
What it means in South Carolina: The second meal of the day, eaten around noon, before supper in the evening.
29. Water Tower
What it means everywhere else: A large globe-like structure that holds a town’s water supply above ground.
What it means in South Carolina: A peach water tower that’s shaped like something that makes you giggle every time you pass it on I-85.
What other words mean something completely different in South Carolina? Tell us in the comments below!
