wasta n.—Gloss: the Arabic word for influence, personal connections; “pull” or “juice.” Note: While not yet fully adopted as an English word, wasta is increasingly familiar to American soldiers serving in the Middle...
prank v.— «Most people born after about 1977 will know that “pranking” is when you call someone up on their mobile phone but hang up immediately afterwards. It’s entered the vernacular as a verb, for example, “I’ll prank...
poot-butt
n.— «Poot-butt—A square; someone who doesn’t know what’s happening; often a child.» —“Examples of Black Vernacular” Hartford Courant (Connecticut) Dec. 30, 1973. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
HBCU n.— «long with other bands from historically black colleges and universities, or H.B.C.U.‘s, it is an example of a robust vernacular American musical form that serves a social function and isn’t aiming at commercial success...
scuffling v.— «In the vernacular of baseball managers everywhere, Barry Bonds is scuffling a little bit right now. Or, if you prefer, in the vernacular of Dodgers fans, he’s sucking.» —“Inside Baseball: History on hold” by...
jillpoke n.— «Case in point: Jillpoke. The word belongs to the vernacular of woodsmen in the western United States, where it is applied to any outsized sucker that has grown up into the branches of the tree. A jillpoke is an encumbrance...