20 Words You’ll Only Understand if You’re From Utah

Utah is an amazing place to live, and we even have our very own language! People outside of Utah just don't understand. I mean literally... sometimes they have absolutely no clue what we're talking about. Case in point: here are 20 words you'll only understand if you're from Utah.

1. Powder

No -- we're not talking about that kind of illicit powder. In Utah, powder is addictive, to be sure, because it's our incredible snow. And we love our snow and winter recreation!

2. Sluffing

If Ferris Bueller had been a student in a Utah high school, he'd have been sluffing when he skipped an entire day's worth of classes.

3. Ward

A "ward" in Utah is not part of a hospital or prison. It's a congregation of Mormons.

4. Stake House

Sounds mouth-watering when you say it... but it's really just a larger Mormon church where several smaller congregations gather. Sadly, there's not a ribeye or T-bone to be found.

5. Fetch

Yes, Rover will go get that stick for you. If you're in Utah, you're probably not playing with your dog. It's the polite way of saying that word that rhymes with "duck" when you're exasperated!

6. Epic

There's epic poems, epic events, and coolness of epic proportions. And, in Utah, there's Epic beer. It's, well, epic.

7. Holy War

Brings to mind the Crusades or the ongoing Middle East conflict, right? In Utah, it's a football game. University of Utah vs. BYU -- a private religious university. During Holy War week, friendships are tested and people sporting either red or blue shirts are identifying their allegiances much like the Crips and Bloods.

8. Fry sauce

It's like ketchup, but mixed with mayonnaise and sometimes pickle relish. It's a total Utah delicacy!

9. Iceberg

An old-fashioned drive in restaurant with the best shakes in the state. (And yes, they have fry sauce, too.)

10. Solitude

Ah... Walden Pond and quiet reflection. Not in Utah! Grab your snowboard or skis and barrel down the runs at Solitude Ski Resort. And if it's a powder day, there's no way you'll find yourself alone -- every powder hound in the state will join you on the mountain.

11. Elder

This misleading term isn't the same as elderly. An elder is a young Mormon boy, getting ready for his mission call. He doesn't have much life experience yet; he just graduated from high school.

12. Slots

In Utah, "slots" are "canyons," not gaming machines. It costs a lot less money to do the slots in Utah than it does in Vegas! And we think it's a lot more fun, too.

13. Primary

Not a group of colors or the first in a series. In Utah, Primary is the Mormon version of children's Sunday School. Cute, right?

14. Crown

Prince William would love the delicious burgers and fries at Crown Burger. In Utah, "Wanna grab some Crown?" is a lunch invitation. (Add an order of fries and fry sauce, and you're living peak Utah.)

15. Cougar

Not a big cat, or a reference to The Graduate, In Provo, a Cougar is a BYU student, alumnus or fan.

16. Lagoon

Lagoon is Utah's ultimate amusement park. Roller coasters, snack food, and a water park make this one of the best attractions in The Beehive State.

17. Boarding

No -- not skateboarding. When someone in Utah says he's going boarding, he can only mean that he's sluffing class to hit the powder!

18. Dixie

Utah has its own Deep South. Soon after Mormons settled in Utah, they tried growing cotton in St. George and the nickname stuck.

19. Inversion

No, things are not upside-down. Because Salt Lake City is surrounded by mountains, pollution gets trapped in the valley. When there's an inversion, sadly, it means that you can’t breathe.

20. Conference

It’s not other teams your city plays against. It’s a large gathering of Mormons to hear church leaders sermonize and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing.

Utah folks: do you agree with these words you'll only understand if you're from Utah? Non-local folks: how many of these Utah sayings did you already know? For more weird and wonderful things in The Beehive State, you'll definitely want to check out these bizarre attractions and hidden gems.