Portland, Oregon - Glossary of Words and Phrases
Words:
Alphabet District - The northwest Portland neighborhood where streets are lettered alphabetically (Burnside → NW Couch, Davis, Everett, Flanders, etc.). Often overlaps with Nob Hill / NW 23rd.
Bangers – A USL League Two Soccer team that embodies the quirky, community-centered, and celebratory vibe that Portland knows and loves.
Big Pink – The US Bancorp Tower on Southwest Oak and Fifth Avenue.
Blazers – As in the Portland Trailblazers NBA team.
Bridgetown - A nickname for Portland because of its many bridges crossing the Willamette River and Columbia River Gorge region waterways.
Cherry Bombs – As in the Portland Cherry Bombs FC; is a USL Women’s League franchise.
Civil War – Annual football game between University of Oregon (the Ducks) and Oregon State University (the Beavers).
Coast (or the coast) – A beach or ocean adjacent area in Oregon. Example: Cannon Beach, Seaside, Pacific City, etc.
Couch – A street in Portland. Pronounced like koo-ch. Named after Captain John Heard Couch.
Freddy’s – As in Fred Meyer stores.
Food cart - An individual cart/vendor.
Food pod – A cluster of food carts in one lot or plaza.
Food truck – Mobile version of food cart/vendor.
Fire or the Fire – As in the Portland Fire WNBA team.
Gorge or the Gorge – As in the Columbia River Gorge.
Half calf – Half regular coffee, half decaf.
The Hof – As in Fehrenbacher Hof cafe in Goose Hollow.
Marionberry – Type of blackberry grown in Oregon.
MAX or the MAX – As in Metropolitan Area Express, Portland’s light rail system.
NoPo – North Portland.
PDX – Nickname for Portland International Airport. Sometimes used as a general nickname for Portland, Oregon.
Peacock Lane – A Portland street known for it’s elaborate holiday displays in December. A tradition in Portland.
Pickles – As in the Portland Pickles, Portland’s summer collegiate baseball team. (see page __ for more information)
Pill Hill – Marquam Hill. Home to OHSU, Portland VA Medical Center, and Shriners Children's Portland.
Powell’s – As in Powell's City of Books, Portland’s iconic independent bookstore and one of the largest bookstores in the world. The flagship store occupies an entire city block in downtown Portland on Burnside. Additional area locations include Hawthorne, Cedar Hills Crossing, and PDX Airport.
Rip City – 1970 term said by Blazers announcer Bill Schonely. Now a nickname for Portland.
Spendy – Expensive.
Stumptown – Historic nickname for Portland dating back to the 1800s, when the city grew so quickly that tree stumps from cleared forests were left in the streets and sidewalks.
Taproom - A brewery or bar space connected to a brewery where beer is served on tap.
The Pearl – As in the Pearl District of Portland.
Thorns – As in Portland Thorns FC, Portland’s NWSL women’s soccer team.
Timbers - As in Portland Timbers, Portland’s MLS soccer team.
TriMet - Portland metro public transit system that runs buses, MAX, and WES.
Umbrella – A needless instrument that only tourists or older ladies use. Sorry, not sorry. *See “Portland polite.”
Unipiper - As in The Unipiper, Portland’s beloved unicycling bagpiper often seen in costumes, Brian Kidd.
Voodoo – As in Voodoo Doughnuts.
The West Hills – Shorthand, locals use for the hills west of downtown.
Willamette - River in Oregon that runs through Portland. Rhymes with dammit.
Winterhawks – As in Portland Winterhawks, Portland’s WHL hockey team.
Phrases:
“City of Roses” or “Rose City” - It comes from Portland’s long history with roses and the International Rose Test Garden. It’s also the city’s official nickname.
“It’s just a [little] mist” – Either “it’s just a little mist” or “it’s just a mist” refers to the density of normal PNW rain which is usually mistier than pouring.
“Keep Portland Weird” – Portland’s unofficial motto by Terry Currier (former longtime owner of Music Millenium) in 2003. No offense to Austin, Texas who coined the original version of the phrase in 2000.
“No Worries” – As in “no need for you to worry about it. It’s or I’m fine.”
“Oh, yeah, no.” – While confusing to tourists, this basically means “no.”
“Portland polite” - A friendly but slightly passive-aggressive style of niceness.
“Raise the Chairs” - Raise the Chairs is a popular fan tradition associated with the Portland Pickles baseball team.
“R.C.T.I.D.” – Rose City ‘til I die (Timbers chant).
“The mountain is out” – If you’re in Portland, that means Mount Hood is visible.
