booya
interj.— «Awaiting trial on grand theft charges, Thomas allegedly flashed a gang hand sign at the deputy and said, “It’s the last thing you’ll see in the back window of your car before you hear ‘booya, booya.’” “Booya” is gang slang for gunfire.» —“2 Charged Under New Terrorist Threat Law” by Howard Blume Los Angeles Times Jan. 6, 1989. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
When Marilyn from Boston, Massachusetts, used the expression Them’s the berries! with neighbors in her hometown of nearby Arlington, Massachusetts, she was surprised they were unfamiliar with it. The phrase means something like “That’s...
“Are we ready to order yet?” Why do restaurant servers use the word “we” when they’re not eating with you or helping you pay the bill? And a story of Cold War intrigue: A young saxophone player’s clever ruse to smuggle information past KGB...