On one of our very first trips to Canada I remember finding Canadian English extremely intriguing: the vowel differences! The mixed spelling system! The use of the quintessential “eh”! I love it all, but I think what has surprised me most as a freshly-carded, permanent resident of Ontario has been all the new English vocabulary I’ve been learning! And as the good little linguist I am, of course, I’ve kept a list of these Canadian English gems to share. 😊

Washroom (aka bathroom/restroom)

This was one of the first linguistic differences that stood out to me oh-so long ago. “Washroom” is virtually the ONLY way Canadians will ever refer to this place. In restaurants, airports, shopping malls, someone’s house, anywhere you go, if you throw out a “restroom” or a “bathroom”, it’ll likely be met with either blank stares or comments about what exactly Americans do when going to the toilet.

Hydro (aka electricity)

This one really threw us off when we were searching for our apartment. Sometimes utilities are included in the rental agreements here, and we’d see places mention both “hydro” and “water” in some form or another, which had us thoroughly confused. “Hydro” seems like a synonym for “water” to us, silly Americans, but with enough listings, we eventually realized we never saw “electricity” or “power” listed and were able to deduce. Evidently hydropower is so common here in Canada that the shortened form will do.

Tuque/toque (aka hat/beanie)

Another one we learned early on and have all but adopted ourselves is “tuque”. Such an important part of the Canadian wardrobe, a tuque is a winter hat that might be called a variety of things south of the border, but up here, it’s most definitely a tuque (which rhymes with “Luke”). Where this word comes from, much like its spelling, is hotly debated, but whatever you want to call it, just be sure you’ve got a good dozen before winter sets in.

Parkade (aka parking garage)

Like many large countries, you’ll get a bit of a variety in how people refer to certain things from one region to another, which is exactly the case with “parkade”. We first saw signs for a parkade in downtown Calgary and had all sorts of wild imaginings of what went on there, but as it turns out, it’s just a Western Canadian way of saying “parking garage”, not nearly as exciting as we thought.

Dart (aka cigarette)  

I’m surprised these things even come up anymore, haven’t we all but killed smoking in North America? But somehow, we actually have heard “dart” used in casual conversation a few times. I feel like it’s mostly used jokingly among those under a certain age, but if you want to understand some really niche Canadian jokes, you do have to know that they call cigarettes “darts”, which is actually much less offensive than some other countries’ alternatives…

Keener (aka over-achiever)

A bit more abstract of a word, “keener” was a little harder to suss out from context alone; however, since it’s used pretty regularly, we were still able to catch on pretty quickly. To call someone a keener means you think they are an over-achiever. They’re the ones who do all the extra credit assignments or get overly excited about something they’re very passionate about, like me with English dialects, for example.

Pogos (aka corndogs)

Here we have our first Kleenex situation. Pogo is a popular brand of corndogs in Canada, and because of their superb timing (and marketing), their name will forever be entwined with that of the famous sticked festival food. How do the makers of Pogo Sticks feel about this? I have no idea, but it is now definitely on my Canadian bucket list to have a Pogo pogo.

Soccer baseball (aka kickball)

I’m pretty sure I burst out laughing when I first heard this one. You know that sport we all played in school? The one that’s basically baseball, but you kick the ball instead of hitting it with a bat? Yeah, Canadians very creatively call that sport “soccer baseball”, which is just so deliciously on-the-nose!

Bristol board (aka poster board)

When we officially moved in, one of the first things we wanted to get set up was a small sound proof area for work, and for that, we needed a large tri-fold poster board, which proved to be extremely difficult to source. That is until we realized we weren’t using the most common word for the item we wanted. I mean, “Bristol board”? Really? How do you even learn things like this unless you participate in a local science fair?

Duotang (aka folder with brads)

And while we’re on the topic of office supplies, another one that really threw me off was “duotang”. I wasn’t even sure that this was English at first, but evidently, it’s what Canadians call a very specific style of folder: the two-pocket ones with the brads in the center. Yeah, as far as I know, we don’t have a specific word for this in the US, so maybe it’s worth picking up?

Molsen muscle (aka beer belly)

Possibly my absolute favorite Canadian expression has to be the beloved “Molsen muscle”. Molsen is the most popular national beer brand in Canada, and if you are particularly fond of them, you might have your very own Molsen muscle, which is, in my opinion, a much cooler way of saying “beer belly”.

Cobra chicken/Canada goose (aka Canadian goose)

Another joke-turned-expression is the good ol’ “cobra chicken” – half cobra, half chicken, that’s right, it’s the Canada goose. And while “cobra chicken” is really just for fun, Canadians actually do say “Canada goose” and never “Canadian goose” as we do. I guess they haven’t applied for citizenship yet.

So that’s my list as it stands now! Stay tuned for more Canadianisms as we continue to learn and adapt to life Up North.