It’s time for this month’s Appalachian Vocabulary Test.
I’m sharing a few videos to let you hear the words and phrases. To start the videos click on them.
1. Ugly: bad-tempered, mean, misbehaving. “Granny and both my grandmothers cautioned us children about being ugly to others. Simply put we were not to do it, although sometimes we did.”
2. Unfitten: unfit, unqualified. “I hate so say it, but he’s just unfitten to do the job and we need somebody who can do it right.”
3. Unlessen: Unless. “They never made him go to school unlessen he just wanted to go.”
4. Untelling: beyond belief. “Why it’s untelling what she’ll do if she finds out what his been doing.”
5. Upperest: Upper. “He put it on the upperest shelf and I can’t even reach it without dragging a chair over to climb up.”
All of this month’s words are common in my area. Hope you’ll leave a comment and tell me if they are where you live.
Winners
The winners of another set of slightly damaged Celebrating Southern Appalachian Food cookbooks are:
Kaathleen who said: “It’s so hard to believe we are half way through November! Now that the weather has changed for most of us, we are reminded that winter is right around the corner.”
Mary Bratton who said: “Hey Tipper your video last night trying to surprise Matt was precious..
Congratulations to everyone that won a prize!”
Pat who said: “I love all your recipes.”
The winner of the used book Dorie Woman of the Mountains written by Florence Cope Bush is Sanford who said: “Tipper, Florence Cope Bush wrote some very interesting material and would be a joy to read.
Growing up, we never considered rats serving any useful purpose, but your post made me curious enough to find out that rats play important roles in the ecosystem by helping to control waste, aerate soil and numerous other purposes. Needless to say, that does not make me a fan of rats!”
The winner of the used book A People And Their Quilts written by John Rice Irwin is Susan Beal who said: “I love quilts and definitely consider them works of art, and when a beautiful thing has a practical use it’s a two fold gift. I love the line in the book about rowdy children, unbathed old men, and untrained infants… I can just hear my grandmaw now…. Get off that bed with your dirty clothes!!”
The winner of the book Letters to Lori – The Family History and Stories of Opal Corn Myers written by Barbara League is Shawn Wagner who said: “People may spurn our appeal, reject our message, oppose our arguments, despise our persons, but they are helpless against our prayers.”
The winner of the used book Aunt Arie A Foxfire Portrait is Gloria Hayes who said: “I would love to have a copy of this book!”
The winner of the used book Singin’, Praisin’, Raisin’ The Foxfire 45th Anniversary Book is Phil M who said: “I would like to read this Foxfire Anniversary book, it sounds interesting as I have enjoyed everyone I have ever read. However, if I was to win please send my copy to Nancy Boswell. God has blessed me more than I deserve and I would rather her have the book than to get it myself.”
The winner of Paul and Pap’s cd Live to Never Die is GV Perkins who said: “A beautiful song, sung by a truly beautiful voice.”
There’s one past winner I have not heard from:
The winner of the used book The Foxfire Book is Robin who said: “So cool that Katie found one thanks for sharing the photos with us as I’ve never seen these. And…yesterday’s video was a blast watching you drive that tractor!”
Winners send your mailing address to me at blindpigandtheacorn@gmail.com and I will get your book or cd on the way.
Today’s Thankful November giveaway is a used copy of How to Tawlk and Rite Good a Guide to the Language of Southern Appalachia written by Sam Venable. To be entered in the giveaway leave a comment on this post. Giveaway ends December 3, 2025.
Last night’s video: The Panther on Cold Mountain & Other Stories 5.
Tipper
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I had heard all of the words except for the ones that Matt used and all of them were neat. It would be very interesting to read book with all the language in it.
Congratulations everybody!
That would be a super fun read! Love all these words and phrases.
Congratulations to all the winners
I love our language
I’ve heard all these Appalachian vocabulary words, but ugly and untelling are the ones I use the most.
All are familiar. My English teacher once told me “you are hanging around someone who talks a lot of slang. You can write proper English, but you sure can’t speak it”…. Lol my entire family!
When I was in the middle of my career, I was transferred from Atlanta to New Jersey. My first day in the NJ office, a guy asked if I moved up there to learn how to talk right!!! Most of my other co workers loved my accent and would ask me to say things for them.
Congratulations to all the winners! Maybe one day I will make it there.
Reach me that wranch frum up yander on ‘at ‘air banch.
I thank I ud lak that ther book a reyt smart. I do love our App-speak, Tipper! Congrats to all you fortunate winners!
I not only love your vocabulary tests, I also try to incorporate the words into my daily life. Thanks for your inspiration!!!
I’ve heard all of these words, for my Granny used them a lot. Being a transplant to Washington state, My Appalachia language is always a conversation starter. People want to know where I’m from.
I grew up hearing all of these. “Don’t be ugly” is one of my favorites. Even my dogs are so southern that they know what “being ugly” means and they better stop if I catch them! Congratulations winners, a blessed Thanksgiving to all, and special prayers for Granny.
I love the Vocabulary Tests! I really like the clips of all y’all using the words in context. I’ve heard all of them but one. Thanks for continuing to teach us about our language. Love from SC, Jane
I only have heard 2 of these words/sayings. “Don’t be ugly” I have heard and still use today. “Unfitten” was used as “not/ain’t fitten” which I haven’t heard in years.
I love the beauty of your Appalachian language. Congratulations to all the winners.
Thank you for sharing the Vocabulary Tests! That sounds like an enjoyable book.
I use and have heard all of these words and phrases. Congratulations to all of the winners! Have a blessed day everyone!
It’s funny when I hear the words and think they are normal because I use them so much where I live, but then you will share them and I have to add that to the list of things I probably shouldn’t say if Im trying to be”proper” lol. The only one from the list I haven’t heard or used is upperest, but I like it. While I’m decorating for Christmas I can tell my husband to put those things on the upperest shelf.
Congratulations to all the winners!
Ive heard ugly used as i grew up and still use it to this day as i don’t want to be ugly to anyone:) don’t remember upperrest i would say top shelf. heard the rest and like ed my grandmother would have said tawk. i”ve always heard polecat for skunk too. heard and used cardboard box all my life. no you can”t depend on knowing someone is not from the south, randy, as years ago a dear neighbor of mine was born and raised in the hills of pittsburg and she always said y”all. a better clue might be if when they visited you and upon getting ready to leave they said come on go home with us and spend the night. hope ya all had a wonderful thanksgiving. my son cooked the whole meal and served it to me. it was delicious and the star of our meal is always cornbread dressing. oh how i love it. my left arm is getting better and won”t be long till i can type rite. praying for granny and i sure hope she was able to eat a little and enjoy seeing all the family.
I enjoyed all of the vocabulary videos!
I’ve heard and used ugly that way all my life. I’m not familiar with the rest. Congratulations to the winners!
Do you ever feel like your life is in the past tense? That knowledge common to you is ancient history to your compatriots. That you have long since been relegated to the shelf to gather dust? That you are not considered a source of knowledge but of ridicule? That things you have lived are questioned by your confederates as if your thoughts and memories are contrived from a search engine? That the more you recall, the more they disbelieve you? Is it even worth the effort?
Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
Yes Ed. I feel exactly like that at times. Most times, I grin, shake my head, and walk away. LOL
Jeffery in Alabama
Congratulations to all of the winners! This was such an interesting vocabulary post today. “Don’t be ugly, play nice” is one that I heard often while playing with others as a child.
Upperest is the only word in today’s test I have never heard. I wear out the words untelling and unlessen, and no one has ever asked me to explain. My folks dropped the un on unlessen and said, he didn’t go to school lessen he wanted to.
I enjoy hearing accents and words used in different parts of the country. I hope we don’t become so homogenized someday that we lose this.
Living in upper east TN and I haven’t heard any of these except, “Don’t be ugly.” However, I am mostly around the city area of the university which would tend to wash out some of the unique phrases of being brought up in Appalachia. When I first moved to the area over 30 years ago, I was often stumped by “well bless his heart” and “iffen you don’t care to.”
Congratulations to all the past winners! I love the vocabulary tests you put out. Appalachian “talk” is so colorful.
Praying for Granny!
Love your vocabulary shorts. congratulations to all the winners!
I don’t use any of today’s words but could guess the meanings of most. I love the title of today’s give away book and would love a copy.
My grandparents used those words. My mother would correct us if she heard us such verbage.
As always praying for Granny.
Congratulations to all the winners! I hope everyone is blessed with a wonderful day. I’ve been praying for all the prayer requests I see given in on here, and I’d like to encourage everyone waiting on a miracle to hold onto their faith. God does some of His best work when it seems like all hope is gone, and He specializes in the “impossible”. 🙂
The only one I don’t remember ever hearing is, “upperest.” I have heard of the others from my family. Congratulations to the winner.
I know these terms and use them all except “untelling” which now I will use like this-“ That big lie teller better getting to untelling them whoppers they told on me before I have to get ugly to the uppermost!” Congrats to the winners. When I get to reading, I’ve found the only thing worth my time and contemplation is the one and only GOOD BOOK. I always loved to read til I became a nurse and all that college reading really done me up with it! I got no time for that. I have stuff to do. Y’all enjoy cause I’m trying to cut down in that area….i just learned about a bug I saw in action-the dreaded, unstoppable, annoying SPRING TAIL.
Tawlk? No, it’s just plain tawk. You need to get the L out of there!
Tipper, I’m thankful for you and your family — and especially for your Appalachian vocabulary test! I grew up in the city, but my wife is Appalachian, and I’ve learned so much about her upbringing through your test. I have so much fun testing her on them, and we look forward to each one every month.
God bless!
I love hearing and reading of the old ways of saying things.
I recognize and myself use many of the words from your vocabulary tests. Some of my former work colleagues outside of Appalachia didn’t know what to make of me! I’m interested in the wisdom of our Appalachian elders. My grandmother used to say “A bird never flies so high that it doesn’t have to light.”, and “You’ll never be happy if you don’t learn to be satisfied.”. I’ve passed these sayings on to my children.
Nothing better than hearing some of the fun language I use to hear my people say, like some in today’s blog videos.
Congratulations to all the winners!!! Thank you to Tipper for her generosity in sharing not just books and CD’s to the winners, but sharing her family and love of our amazing culture in the Appalachia.
It is always fun to hear new ‘old’ words and their meaning.
congratulations to the winners, God bless you and have a great day
4 of 5 as far as understanding but rarely hear or use most of them. I do not recall having heard “upperest” before. I have heard and used “ontellin” interchangeably for “untellin”, just depending on how the mood struck. Sometimes you know we choose our Appalachianisms just to spoof outlanders. (But almost always just between ourselves as an inside joke.) I am thankful there are families like yours throughout this land (as the comments here reveal).
I say unlessen often and untelling, I don’t think I’ve ever heard tell of. I love to hear words common to most of us Carolinians and attempt to incorporate the new ones y’all introduce me too. Hugs, love and prayers from your southeastern cousin.
The only one I haven’t heard is “upper-rest”. I’d say “topshelf”. LOL
Also, I think the term “ugly” as described is, I believe, universal in the Southland. I knew a guy much older than I from northwest Arkansas who used it in the same context and frequently.
Ugly is the only one I have ever heard.
I don’t use or hear any of these words, but if I did I would understand all of them perfectly and would feel they were as common as using ‘polecat’ for skunk.
Good morning Tipper. I loved last nights reading. I’ve been “binge” watching your early videos. I’m gonna try your Oatmeal Yeast Rolls. I’ll be cutting the recipe in half and freezing half of those. Ive heard old folks in our county say these things. I still use the word “ugly” this way. My maternal grandmother, Edna Ward McCulloch “Little Granny” )she was only about 4’5″, if that) said it to us about a hundred times a day. May all of us enjoy this beautiful Sabbath Day that GOD has gifted to us. You are all in my prayers. May you all find and offer Praises to GOG our Father on this most Blessed of days every week. I love Y’all.
One day I heard you say you were going to put something in a pasteboard box to dry. I was surprised because I had not heard that one before.
Love to hear different accents and dialects and try to guess where they are from.
Pasteboard is made from a paste and has no grain or layering. Cardboard is made by gluing together basic cardstock (heavy paper) in layers. If there is a layer(s) of corrugated paper in the mix then it corrugated cardboard.
As with too many things modernity has made the two into one and that’s a {insert expletive here} shame.
Tipper, I remember Lewis Grizzard always saying the you could tell that someone was not from around here because they talked funny. Us southerners don’t talk funny, we can understand each other. Anyway, I love a good southern accent. Maybe it’s the other folks that sound funny! I would love to have a copy of your book! Enjoy watching all the videos! I hope you had a blessed Thanksgiving!
Jeanette, I don’t have a one bit of trouble understanding the southern accent but these answering machines you have to talk to when you call some places nowadays have trouble understanding me and my southern accent. A few years ago I called to order something from California and was able to talk to a live person, when giving her my address, she said before I could tell her South Carolina, she said I knew by your accent, I lived and was raised in SC. I like to say a dead give away to know someone is not from the south is when they say “you guys” instead of “y’all.”
I’m from far southwestern North Carolina. I didn’t hear anybody say y’all until I was grown. We said yuns or youins. I think I speak Smoky Mountain English as opposed to Southern English.