Definition:"To have. 'Ah ga ah goh.' I have to go."
Source: Page 47, Valls, Lito. What a Pistarckle! A Dictionary of Virgin Islands English Creole. St. John, U.S.V.I., 1981.
Definition: "verb; to have. Man, I ga all de trouble I need, kindly don' bring no mo' here to me."
Source: Page 71, Roy, John D. A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands. St. Thomas, USVI, 1975.

Definition: "Street. Danish. [St. Thomas voice.] Pronounced GADAH. Gade should not be used separately from the street name. Thus, it is 'Kongensgade' not 'Kongens Gade.'"
Source: Page 47, What a Pistarckle!

Definition: "gone in," someone who has gone crazy, lost his mind on drugs. ("He gahn EEN, mehson.").
Source: Page 80, Sterns, Robin. Say it in Crucian! A Complete Guide to Today's Crucian for Speakers of Standard English. St. Croix: Antilles Press, 2008.

Definition: "originally a reference to a person from Antigua but generally means a person originally from another Eastern Caribbean island not including the U.S. and British Virgin Islands (down islander). The term is used as a slight originating in the 'garrot bird,' a bird that steals objects.".
Source: You Know U From the Virgin Islands When U Speak This Language, on Facebook, 2010.
Definition: (spelled "Garrat") "A derogatory term used by native Virgin Islanders to aliens....Although it is sometimes accepted as jocularity for the most part, it carries pejorative connotations of crudeness, stupidness and bad manners."
Source: Page 48, What a Pistarckle!

Definition: "1. Covered porch. 2. Covered sidewalk; a distinctive architectural feature on St. Croix. Covered sidewalks are considered public walkways, not private property."
Source: Page 47, What a Pistarckle!
Definition: "noun; porch, veranda. Come le' we go cool out on de gallery."
Source: Page 71, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.

Definition: "go" or "gone."
Example: "Leh we gane." = "Let's go."
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: "Ganga man = Tshiluba the same word, meaning 'herbalist.'"
Source: Page 80, Emanuel, Lezmore Evan. "Surviving Africanisms in Virgin Islands English Creole." Diss. Howard U, 1970.

Definition: Street reference to one who is well respected.
Source: You Know U From the Virgin Islands When U Speak This Language, on Facebook, 2010.

Definition: "from "garcon," a French patois speaker.
Source: You Know U From the Virgin Islands When U Speak This Language, on Facebook, 2010.

Definition: "1. Egret bird (Adreala ibis). Also called cattle bird, cowbird or tick bird as they feed on cattle ticks. In P.R. 'Garza' or 'Garrapatoza.' Local saying, 'Tan pan cattle an' talk cattle.' Stand upon cattle and gossip about cattle. Said of an ingrate. 2. Long-legged or thin person."
Source: Page 48, What a Pistarckle!
Definition: "noun; local name for egret, also a long-necked or long-legged person. Dat boy growin' so fas', he tall like a gaulin."
Source: Page 71, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.

Definition: pronunciation for "give," used for Standard English "give/gave," "get/got" and "have/had."
Example: "I gee he da ting." "So I trow her a couple of lines and geh she hooked man." = "I flirted with her a little bit and got her hooked." "I geh two ah dem" = "I have two of them."
Alternative spellings: gee
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: (St. Croix) "Geh from ya!" = "Go away!" (St. Thomas, St. John, BVI) "Get from heh!"
Source: You Know U From the Virgin Islands When U Speak This Language, on Facebook, 2010.

Definition: Build a house before you get married.
Source: Ronnie Lockhart, on Facebook, 2009.

Definition: pronunciation for "get it" or "got it."
Example: "Afta we geit, we pick up de tred from de kite and we stat walkin back" = "After we got it, we picked up the kite string and started walking back."
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: "See "kenip."

Definition: Used in an expression to mean "Case closed!"
Example: "Ok, den we cud call it George!"
Source: Wilfred, on Facebook, 2010.

Definition: a small bundle of possessions.
Example: "Pick up your georgie-bundle and geh out my house."
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!
Definition: "A bundle with one's personal effects. [Rare.]"
Source: Page 48, What a Pistarckle!
Definition: "noun; bags, luggage, belongings. Pack up yo georgie bundle and go, an' don' come back no mo'."
Source: Page 71, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.

Definition: pregnant, having a baby.
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: Literally, "give Jack his jacket." Give the devil his due.
Source: Ronnie Lockhart, on Facebook, 2009.

Definition: idiomatic expression to mean a person putting on airs.
Source: Page 56, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: A woman that is half woman and half goat that lived up in the hills of St. Croix (close to Pearl B. Larson Elementary.)
Example: "If you don't behave the goat foot woman is going to come afta you."
Posted by: Sharlene M. Payne (Whitehead), 2009. 
See also: "cow foot woman" (St. Thomas).

Definition: proverb, to mean what seems quite alike could be completely different.
Source: Page 59, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: idiomatic expression, something someone says that comes true, usually something negative.
Source: Page 56, Say it in Crucian!
Definition: "1. Jinx. 2. Said of a person who is prophetic. Not necessarily foretelling evil. The St. Croix Avis of 1 Nov. 1867, editorialized a propos the recent hurricane disaster in St. Thomas -- 'But this chastisement from God is for a wise purpose; and the people of this little spot on the surface of the Earth -- St. Croix -- may at a future time , expect their share of punishment.' And so they did, for on Nov. 18 they were visited by a disastrous tidal wave. The editor of the Avis could well have been accused of having 'Goat Mout.'"
Source: Page 49, What a Pistarckle!
Definition: "verb: to jinx; to say something bad and have it come true (derived from the belief that grazing goats will kill grass). Don' come roun' hea' to goat mouth mi family."
Source: Page 72, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.
Example: "Don't put yoh goat mouth on me."
Source: Larry, on Facebook, 2010.

Definition: "The calabash fruit and tree (Crescentia cujete). From Carib Indian 'coul' meaning half a calabash. Generally speaking, a 'gobi' is the fruit on the tree. A calabash is a utensil made from it....'Dita' in Puerto Rico. The gourd-like fruit has many uses ranging from eating bowl to musical instrument. An early historian, Dutertre describes the Carib Indians as squatting like so many monkeys round a large 'couy' which served them for a dish, their food consisting of a strange medley of crabs, turtle and other fish, with plantains boiled together, each Indian dipping his cassava bread into the calabash."
Source: Page 50, What a Pistarckle!
Definition: "noun; calabash, used by some to refer to the smaller-sized calabash, others use it to refer to calabashes when they are still on the tree. Look it dey unda de gobi tree."
Source: Page 72, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.

Definition: God is in no hurry.
Source: Ronnie Lockhart, on Facebook, 2009.

Definition: "gold digger," a woman interested only in a man's money.
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: pronunciation for "going to" or "gonna."
Example: "Dey ain gon do dat."
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: (1) expression to mean someone has disappeared into the bush, "gone back to nature." (2) something is missing, or (3) something is broken.
Examples: "He gone bush mehson." "Meh cellphone gone bush mehson."
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!
Definition: "This is probably a retention from slavery days when runaway slaves would take to the bush."
Source: Page 123, What a Pistarckle!
Example: "Well after that power outage and power surge tonight my flat screen gone bush. A mess!"
Source: Arthur, on Facebook, 2010.
Example: ""toaster gone bush"
Source: Merilee, on Facebook, 2010.

Definition: local name for millipedes (not to be confused with fast-moving centipedes which have a nasty bite, millipedes are the slow-moving rounded creatures that look like snippets of coaxial cable).
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!
Definition: "noun; a black millipede with eighty-two legs, it does not sting. Dem gu'l fraid a gongalo bad; I goin' go fin' one to race dem wid now."
Source: Page 72, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.
Definition: from the Yoruba word "gongoluto," for larvae sometimes found in dung hills.
Source: Emanuel, Lezmore Evan. "Surviving Africanisms in Virgin Islands English Creole." Diss. Howard U, 1970.

Definition: "noun; straight hair. Da chil' mus' be ge' her fadda good hair because her modda own knotty like mine."
Source: Page 72, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.

aftanoon/

evening/night"

Definition: generally the first greeting when you meet someone, especially in a business setting, but even said sometimes when walking into the post office and encountering the people in line. "Good aftanoon" begins at the stroke of 12 noon - people often check a clock or watch to see whether "good mahning" has officially switched to "good aftanoon." "Good evening" is used from around dusk, 5 p.m.ish to full dark, when "good night" takes over as a greeting (as opposed to Stateside English, where "good night" is a farewell).
Source: Pages 10-11, Say it in Crucian!
Definition: "Good night - evening greeting of arrival or departure, not necessarily implying good-bye. Good night, how all you do this evenin'?"
Source: Page 72, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.

Definition: ready, prepared.
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: (BVI) an extremely large head..
Source: You Know U From the Virgin Islands When U Speak This Language, on Facebook, 2010.

Definition: To insult. Speak harshly."
Source: Page 51, What a Pistarckle!
Definition: "verb; to insult, or to speak in a harsh manner. All I do was aks de man a question, and he gouch mi."
Source: Page 72, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.

Definition: (prefix) - "grand" ("granmuddah," "grandahtah," etc.)
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: Pronunciation for "ground." Definition: "1. Floor. Literally, Ground. 'Soberao' in P.R. 2. Name given to heavy swells of dangerous nature and effects occuring occasionally along the northern coasts of some of the Virgin Islands. Also known as groung swell or groung seas. They generally set in during October and are caused by gales in the North Atlantic. In Jamaica, they are known as 'North Seas.'"
Source: Page 52, What a Pistarckle!
Also, "groung - noun; a vegetable patch. Mi granny used to plant a groung behind she house, bu' now she too ol' to look afta' it."
Source: Page 72, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.

Definition: "Tree and fruit (Eugenia floribunda). 'Mirta' in P.R. Species named in 1800 from speciman collected on St. Croix."
Source: Page 53, What a Pistarckle!

Definition: "A liqueur made by steeping guavaberries and other condiments such as raisins, prunes, almonds, French cinnamon and vanilla in rum. It is a traditional Christmas libation."
Source: Page 53, What a Pistarckle!

Definition: "A liqueur made by steeping guavaberries in local rum which is aged and used only during the Christmas season. [First seen in St. Croix Gazette of 16 Feb. 1813.]"
Source: Page 53, What a Pistarckle!

Definition: slang for marijuana.
Source: Page 80, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: Traditional Good Friday dish. Typically, herring. Also made with saltfish.
Source: Ronnie Lockhart, on Facebook, 2010.
Definition: (spelled "gundi") "Dish made of ground pickled herrings, salt cod, salmon or lobster with mashed potatoes, onions and colored with beets. Served with hard boiled eggs."
Source: Page 54, What a Pistarckle!

Definition: "Water course, whether stream or dry bed. Also the ravine so formed. From the Hindustani, 'ghaut."
Source: Page 54, What a Pistarckle!
Definition: "noun; a natural drainage stream that carries rain runoff."
Source: Page 73, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.
Definition: "Any small stream or stream bed. Example: 'Dey washing clothes in de gut.'"
Source: Page 10, Seamon, G.A. Virgin Islands Dictionary. St. Croix, USVI. 1968.

Definition: "noun; the abdomen. He gettin' a big guts. See dunguts."
Source: Page 73, A Brief Description and Dictionary of the Language Used in the Virgin Islands.

Definition: "Parrot fish. Pronounced GOOTOO. Probably from Spanish, 'Cotorra' = Parrot. Known as Macca on St. Croix. Among the French people in St. Thomas lore has it that God, asfter naming all the creatures of the earth, had forgotten to name the parrot fish. The fish nibbled at God's feet, telling him, 'How come yoh ain gie me ah name. I good too!' To which God responded, 'Yes, that's a good name. You're Good Too.'"
Source: Page 55, What a Pistarckle!

Definition: pronunciation for "girl."
Alternative spellings: gyal, gel, gyual
Source: Page 81, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: girlfriend.
Source: Page 81, Say it in Crucian!

Definition: "going on"
Example: "Wa gwan?" = "What's going on?"
Source: Page 81, Say it in Crucian!

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