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From: grass@uiuccsb.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Subject: Re: New Englandisms - (nf)
Message-ID: <6327@uiucdcs.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 22-Mar-84 22:33:11 EST
Article-I.D.: uiucdcs.6327
Posted: Thu Mar 22 22:33:11 1984
Date-Received: Sun, 25-Mar-84 12:42:50 EST
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#R:decwrl:-636200:uiuccsb:10500021:000:569
uiuccsb!grass    Mar 22 11:22:00 1984


When I lived in Somerville (near Boston), the local kids referred to
ANY carbonated beverage as "tonic".  I am a native New Englander too,
and have lived in Connecticut, Mass. in the Boston area and further
out around Framingham and Maine.  It was ONLY in Somerville that
"tonic" was used that way.  In Illinois "tonic" is not club soda,
because tonic contains quinine and a bit of sugar.  Other
odd New Englandisms:  "basement" referring to the W.C. (Eastern Mass.
only as far as I know), "grinder" for a
sub sandwich... There's lots more but I'll leave it at that.