22 Chicago Slang Terms That’ll Make You Sound Like an Actual Local (Not a Tourist)

Welcome to Chicago!

Where we don’t just have an accent—we’ve built an entire language from Polish grandmas, Irish cops, and South Side rappers that sounds like gibberish to everyone else.

I spent weeks digging through Reddit threads and speaking to lifelong Chicagoans to compile the slang you’ll actually hear.

This isn’t a cute travel blog—this is how we really talk.

Let’s get into it.

1. Adding “S” to Store Names

Want to spot a transplant instantly? Listen to how they say store names.

Real Chicagoans pluralize everything: “the Jewels” for Jewel-Osco, “Aldi’s” for Aldi, “Targets” for Target. Makes zero sense. We don’t care.

“I’m running to the Jewels” sounds better than the corporate version, and that’s all the justification we need.

You’ll catch yourself doing it within six months.

2. Jagoff

The most versatile insult in our arsenal.

A jagoff is any jerk, idiot, or generally terrible person you encounter during your day. Bad driver? Jagoff. Corrupt alderman? Jagoff. Guy who steals your parking spot? Complete jagoff.

You’ll say it 47 times during your first winter commute.

Bonus variations: “jagbag” and “jabroni” when you’re feeling creative.

3. Pop (Never Soda)

Call it “soda” and watch every Chicagoan in earshot cringe.

It’s pop. Every carbonated beverage is pop. Coke? Pop. Sprite? Pop. That weird orange stuff? Still pop.

This is Midwestern law, not a suggestion.

4. Gym Shoes

Forget everything you know about footwear terminology.

We don’t say “sneakers” or “tennis shoes”—they’re gym shoes, period. Roughly 90% of Chicagoans use this term versus the national standard.

Going for a run? Lace up your gym shoes. Playing basketball? Gym shoes. Walking the dog? You guessed it.

5. Ope

You won’t notice you’re saying it until someone points it out.

“Ope” is the sound Chicagoans make when squeezing past someone or bumping into them accidentally. Usually followed by “let me just squeeze by ya” or “sorry there.”

It’s involuntary. Genetic, even.

Here’s the thing—these basic terms are just the beginning…

6. The Lake

There’s only one lake that matters in Chicago.

“The lake” always means Lake Michigan. Need directions? “Head toward the lake” means go east. Meeting someone? “By the lake” needs zero clarification.

It’s our compass, our beach, and our identity all in one massive body of freezing water.

7. Frunchroom

This phonetic masterpiece is pure Chicago.

The frunchroom (front room) is that formal living room facing the street that you only use for guests. It’s where you entertain people you’re trying to impress, not where you lounge in your underwear.

That’s what the back room is for.

Every Chicago bungalow has one.

8. Gangway

Not a crime scene—just architecture.

A gangway is the narrow walkway between buildings that gets you to the backyard. In dense neighborhoods, these slim passages are the only way to reach your garage or back porch without walking through someone’s house.

Every Chicago kid has run through a gangway at least a thousand times.

9. Dibs

Touch someone’s dibs and prepare for war.

After a snowstorm, whoever shovels a parking spot owns it—marked by placing chairs, cones, or random furniture in the space. This is treated with the seriousness of a legal claim.

Violate dibs at your own risk. Your car will mysteriously get keyed, slashed, or covered in passive-aggressive notes.

Respect the dibs. Always.

10. The L

Even underground, it’s still the L.

The L is our entire train system—CTA elevated trains, subways, all of it. Red Line running underground? The L. Blue Line in a tunnel to O’Hare? Still the L.

It’s how we get around, our constant complaint, and somehow still better than sitting in traffic on the Dan Ryan.

11. Expressway Names (Not Numbers)

GPS says “I-90.” Chicagoans say something completely different.

We use names, not numbers: the Kennedy, the Dan Ryan, the Eisenhower (or “the Ike”), the Stevenson. Lake Shore Drive is “LSD”—which confuses the hell out of tourists.

“Traffic’s a nightmare on the Ike” makes perfect sense here. “I-290 is congested” sounds like a robot wrote it.

12. Dipped/Wet

Now we’re talking food—where Chicago truly dominates.

Order an Italian beef “dipped” or “wet” and they’ll dunk the entire sandwich in gravy. It’s messy. It’s delicious. It’s the only way to eat it.

“Dry” means no gravy, but why would you do that to yourself?

13. Dragged Through the Garden

Chicago hot dogs come with very specific instructions.

“Dragged through the garden” means loaded with mustard, onions, relish, pickle, tomatoes, peppers, and celery salt. Notice what’s missing? Ketchup.

Put ketchup on a Chicago dog and watch locals physically recoil in horror.

14. Chicago Mix

Not a Spotify playlist—this is snack territory.

Chicago Mix is cheddar and caramel popcorn combined. Sweet and savory perfection you’ll find at every gathering, game, and corner store.

Garrett’s made it famous, but the term works for any cheddar-caramel combo.

15. Jewels

Not where you buy diamonds.

“Jewels” or “the Jewels” is Jewel-Osco, our grocery chain. “I’m going to Jewels” is a complete sentence that needs no follow-up questions.

Where you buy your pop, gym shoes on sale, and emergency dibs furniture during blizzards.

But wait—the next few terms get even more Chicago-specific…

16. My Guy/I Got a Guy

This phrase explains our entire city culture.

“I got a guy” means you have a reliable contact for literally anything: plumbing, Cubs tickets, parking tickets, legal issues, roofing, you name it. Born from decades of political machines and tight immigrant communities where personal connections solved every problem.

Furnace broken? “I got a guy.” Concert sold out? “I got a guy.”

It’s the Chicago way.

17. Da Bears/Da

Peak Chicago dialect, made famous by SNL.

Replacing “the” with “da” is real—working-class Chicagoans actually talk like this. Da Bears. Da Bulls. Da mayor. Usually comes with “dese, dem, dose” for these, them, those.

Yes, it’s a stereotype. Yes, people genuinely talk this way—especially older generations on the South and West sides.

18. Goofy

Disney character? Not here.

“Goofy” means someone’s acting foolish or crossing a line. “Stop being goofy” is what you hear right before things escalate, especially in South Side neighborhoods.

It’s dismissive, cutting, and everywhere in street conversations.

19. Opp

Straight from Chicago drill music to everyday vocabulary.

An “opp” is an opponent or enemy, usually in street contexts but spreading wider. “Watch out for the opps” started in neighborhoods like Englewood and went global through drill rap.

Now suburban teenagers use it without understanding where it came from.

20. The Hawk

Chicago winter demands its own vocabulary.

“The Hawk” is that brutal wind off Lake Michigan that cuts through every layer you’re wearing. It’s not just cold—it’s personal. The Hawk hunts you down between the train and your apartment.

“The Hawk is out” is a legitimate weather report and reason to cancel all plans.

21. Minutes, Not Miles

The most Chicago thing that exists.

We measure every distance in time, never miles. “How far?” gets answered with “about 20 minutes”—even though traffic could make it 45.

Distance means nothing when the expressways are parking lots. Time is our only currency.

“It’s 20 minutes away” could mean three miles or fifteen. You just have to know.

Master these terms and you’ll stop getting those “you’re not from here” looks from Lincoln Park to Bridgeport. This isn’t everything—we could write an encyclopedia on drill slang alone—but it’s enough to fake it till you make it.

22. Chicago Handshake

This isn’t a business deal—it’s a rite of passage.

A Chicago Handshake is the city’s unofficial welcome (and punishment) in liquid form: a shot of Jeppson’s Malört paired with a can of a cheap, old-school beer, usually Old Style.

Malört is a wormwood liquor that tastes like grapefruit rind, gasoline, and regret. Locals pretend to hate it. Locals secretly love it.

Order one at a dive bar. The bartender will nod with respect. Your friends will record your face as you take the shot. It’s a bonding ritual built on shared suffering and Midwestern grit.

Did we miss any?

What Chicago slang did we miss?

What terms does your neighborhood use that nobody else gets?

Drop them in the comments.