14 Bay Area Slang Words We All Need To Start Using

I went to San Diego State thinking it would mostly be surfer bros and Southern California natives like myself, but boy was I wrong. This whole new culture was full of Baydestrians from The City or The Town, people from Sactown, and others from San Jose who were conflicted as to whether or not they could claim ‘The Bay.’ I’m a huge fan of language and culture, and the reality is the Bay Area has some of the most unique vernacular in the United States, and when used properly, it’ll make your life easier and more fun:

1. Hella

Let’s start with the most obvious one. Hella can be used as an adverbial substitute for ‘very’ or as an adjective in place of ‘a lot of.’

Adverb: “I’m hella tired.”

Adjective: “There’s hella people here.”

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