How well do you know your Canadian slang? We recently asked celebrities to translate popular Canuck words and phrases and some of the terms had them drawing blanks.
From "hanging a larry" to "bush party," it seems a few of Canada's unique phrases are, well, a little too unique for some of the attendees at the 2023 JUNOS in Edmonton.
First up on the list of slang was a Saskatchewan classic: a "bunny hug."
JUNO performer and nominee Joel Wood immediately nailed it, correctly identifying that it's "a hoodie."
Alexisonfire also got the answer right, while JUNO winner and performer TOBi said he'd never heard of the term.
Fellow JUNO winner and performers Banx & Ranx had an interesting take on what a bunny hug could be: "Is it like having sex?"
The next slang word up for translation was the term "Wayne Gretzky."
"99 shots?" asked one of the members of Alexisonfire, with another asking if it was an "oil change," cleverly referring to when Gretzky changed teams to the Edmonton Oilers.
But it was Preston Pablo, another JUNO winner and performer, who got it right.
"That's like a coffee with nine sugars and nine creams or something like that," he said.
When it came to explaining the term "bush party," Alexisonfire was right on top of it.
"You're getting your friend's sister to buy the beer, and then you put 'em all in socks and put it in a backpack so it won't jingle around," one of the members said.
"You ride it under the willow tree, you cover it in grass and ice so that the older kids don't find it. Later that night, you go into the bush, and then everyone drinks until you puke, and then people take pictures of you puking."
Classic!
When asked what a "dart" was, most people accurately guessed it to be a cigarette, and Joel Woods and Aysanabee accurately translated "Cowtown" to Calgary, "2-4" as a case of beer, and "hang a Larry" as an expression for turning left.
And lastly, TOBi translated "snowbird" to be retirees who live in Florida during the winter months.
Well done, everyone!
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.
