LITTLE RHODY
MEET
LITTLE RHODY
INSIDER’ S TIPS
The do’ s and don’ ts of Rhody living.
◆ Never put a straw in your Del’ s; only use the squish and sip method.
◆ Accept the fact that most Rhode Islanders won’ t drive more than twenty minutes to meet you. If by some miracle they do, act normal when they show up with a packed lunch.
◆ Know the state’ s area code, 401, by heart— locals will never bother to include it when exchanging numbers.
◆ Get used to receiving directions based on old landmarks or where businesses used to be.
◆ For“ Family Guy” fans, understand that Quahog is not a real town.
◆ Memorize the Block Island Ferry jingle.
◆ Don’ t bring up the fact that you once thought Rhode Island was part of New York.
◆ Have a favorite beach. Be prepared to defend that opinion at all costs.
◆ Also, while you’ re at it, don’ t ask too many questions about the state’ s old Mafia ties.( Just kidding! Mostly.)
All the Way( adjective) The only way to order a hot wiener from Olneyville NY System— expect meat sauce, mustard, onion and celery salt.“ I’ ll take three all the way.”
Bang a Uey( verb) [ bang-a-u-ie ] A fun way of telling someone to make a u-turn.“ Oh, you were supposed to take a left at the old Benny’ s— just bang a uey here.”
Bubbler( noun) [ buhblah ] A public drinking fountain you’ d often find in school hallways.“ I’ m gonna hit the bubbler before class.”
Clicker( noun) [ clickah ] The device you use to change a TV channel, aka the remote.“ The 6 o’ clock news is on, give me the clicker.”
Language Lesson
Between the inexplicable accent and the strange words and phrases that come out of our mouths, Rhode Islanders can be a bit difficult to understand sometimes. These twelve definitions should help you out.
Down Cellar( noun) [ down-cellah ] The basement where all the family’ s snowstorm provisions are kept.“ Honey, we’ re supposed to get eight inches on Monday, go down cellar and make sure we have enough water jugs.”
Downcity( noun) A designation for downtown Providence, specifically.“ It’ s been a rough one, let’ s grab drinks Downcity tonight after work.”
Gravy( noun) What Italian Rhode Islanders call tomato sauce.“ I only take my spaghetti lathered in gravy.”
Grinder( noun) [ grindah ] A sandwich served on a torpedo roll. Out-ofstaters, think sub, hoagie or hero.“ I’ m hankering for an Italian grinder right now.”
Packie( noun) Nickname for a package store, which is a nickname for a liquor store.“ We need to stop at a packie before the big Red Sox game.”
Side by Each( adjective) A term that originated in Woonsocket, this is our roundabout way of saying something is side by side or next to each other.“ Our houses growing up were side by each.”
Supper( noun) [ suppah ] The last meal of the day— some may refer to it as dinner.“ Johnny, it’ s almost time for supper, come inside and wash your hands!”
Wicked( adverb) An emphatic alternate to“ really” or“ very.”“ Did you see the new‘ Family Guy’ episode? It’ s wicked funny.”
ACCENT
BREAKDOWN
You need to know that we Rhode Islanders have a strange relationship with the letter R. Spend enough time with one of us and you’ ll notice we either drop it completely for an H( see: cah and blinkah), or we arbitrarily tack it on when vowel endings are involved( i. e. idear, sodar).
PHOTOGRAPHY( TOP): COURTESY OF NICK MILLARD / GOPROVIDENCE. COM; GRAPHICS: GETTY IMAGES.
10 RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY’ S NEWCOMERS’ GUIDE l 2025