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Trucker to English Translations
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I remember the first solo trip in a truck (before then had no reason to own a CB)
I'm out there strollin' across one of them big roads listening to the radio and found myself
thinkin' "What the hell did he say??" CB language has always had a certain attraction for lots of
people for various reasons. It's interesting that a whole way of talking could develop just
from talking to other people on the road. After watchin' and listenin' for a while I finally
started gettin' it.
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| alligator, n. |
a piece of tire in road. looks like an alligator sunning itself across the road. |
| back door, pron. |
behind you or to the rear ("you got a bear about a mile back on your back door") |
| bear, n. |
generic term for a law enforcement officer
- full blown, state trooper
- county mounty, sheriff's deputy
- city kitty, city police
- diesel cop/D.O.T. man, D.M.V. enforcement
- panda bear, refering to the car color (black and white)
- polar bear, refering to the car color (solid white)
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| better half n. |
your spouse, ie. your wife. (see also momma) |
| big road, n. |
a major highway (I40,I85,I95, etc.) |
| big truck, n. |
an 18 wheeler. More specifically, a long nose - cab over - all dudded up diesel truck. |
| bird dog, n. |
a radar detector |
| brake check, v. |
traffic that is slowing down. It seems that four wheelers will hit their brakes and slow down in the middle of the interstate for no apparent reason, other than to make sure that their brakes still work, hence a "brake check". |
| break, v. |
proper way to gain access to a busy channel (i.e. "break 19 for a radio check") |
| boss man, n. |
your immediate superior/supervisor at work |
| bubba, n. |
a not-so-formal version of good neighbor |
| bull city, n. |
Durham, NC |
| capital city, n. |
Raleigh, NC |
| chicken coop, n. |
weigh stations |
| come on,v. |
back to you only/ go ahead and transmit |
| cottonpicker, n. |
a male bonding term for a friend of yours (positive sense) - can also be used as a mild insult, the equivalent of "jerk" (derogatory sense). |
| dead head, v. |
to haul an empty truck. Driving empty means you usually are not getting paid for the trip, you have to drive somewhere to get a load. |
| diesel car, n. |
a "real" truck (18 wheeler) |
| do what?, v. |
I did not copy/understand your last transmission, could you please repeat it ? |
| double nickel, n. |
means 55, usually in reference to inquiries about the speed limit. |
| driver, n. |
refers to the person you were talking to / the radio operator receiving your transmissions. |
| fire in the wire, n. |
an amplified AM transmission see note 1 (see also foot warmer, side piece) |
| flip flop, v. |
a U-turn ( "Full blown bear did a flip - flop and is south bound and hammered down"). Can also mean the return trip ( i.e. "catch you on the flip - flop"). |
| FM, n. |
am/fm radio ( the term radio by itself refers to the CB ) |
| foot warmer, n. |
refers to a linear amplifier (see also side piece, fire in the wire) |
| forty two, v. |
I understand and agree with you. ("Forty-Two, driver, I heard that idea, I did!") |
| four wheeler, n. |
anyone who is not a trucker (specifically - a car). This term is usually preceded by some form of an expletive (i.e. a "swear word") as truckers are not always impressed by the way some four wheelers drive. This term is not always meant in a bad way as truckers call all cars four - wheelers |
| front door, pron. |
in front of you or to the front ("you got a bear about 2 miles on your front door") |
| gator n. |
(see alligator) |
| gold city n. |
Goldsboro, NC |
| good buddy, n. |
a term no longer used unless you are deliberately trying to annoy someone (it now means homosexual) |
| good neighbor, n. |
same as driver the person you are talking with (this has replaced "good buddy") |
| hammer lane, n. |
left lane of traffic |
| hammer down, v., adj. |
vehicle moving fast ("smokey west bound and hammered down"). Also make a car move fast ("Hammer down driver"). |
| hand, n. |
same as driver. Usually sounds like "han" - it comes from the abbreviated version of "ranch hand" or "cow hand" - someone who is hired to work for another. |
| handle, pron. |
your name on the CB radio - kind of a call sign so that others recognize you. |
| happy happy, n. |
means happy new year ( "have a great happy happy") |
| home twenty, n. |
dwelling. In particular, the person talking's house, appartment, condo, etc. |
| linear, n. |
a linear amplifier. This is the type of amplifier that is used to amplify an AM transmission. |
| local, n, |
call for local information (" break for some local information "). |
| lie book, n. |
it's a time sheet for truckers/one of the things they check at the chicken coops (4 wheelers wouldn't understand) |
| meatwagon, n. |
name for an ambulance. |
| merry merry, n. |
means merry Christmas (" have a wonderful merry merry") |
| modulator, n. |
a type of amplifier used for AM transmissions. |
| momma, n. |
refers to a driver's wife ( see also better half). |
| no-wada-mene?, interj. |
do you understand what I am saying? (right? works here too ) |
| no doubt, interj. |
the truth of your last statement is undeniable |
| parking lot, n. |
a truck that is used to transport several cars "car hauler" |
| pickemup truck, n. |
a pick up truck |
| pickle-park, n. |
Rest Area |
| plain wrapper, n. |
term for an unmarked police car....can also use color of car, ie. "blue wrapper" (see also bear). |
| pre-she-ay-dit, adj. |
thank you very much |
| queen city, n. |
Charlotte, NC |
| radio, n. |
a CB, ie. "what kind of radio are you talking on?" |
| radio check, n. |
a call to see if your radio is working |
| readin' the mail, v. |
just listening to the CB ( not actively talking ) |
| right?, interj. |
what truckers end almost every sentence with |
| seat cover, n. |
name for a seat or more specifically, someone who is sitting in the seat that is indicated |
| shootin ya in the back v. |
police operating radar (usually from an exit ramp) as you drive past them |
| speed limit, n. |
what a four wheeler is constantly unaware of ( besides being oblivious to surrounding traffic). A four wheeler will travel five miles an hour below the posted limit if a state trooper is following them, because it is suddenly extremely important that they obey the law for some reason (they haven't obeyed it before,why start now? ) |
| stand on it, v. |
accelerate with a quickness |
| steppin on, v. |
what a bigger radio is able to do to the not so powerful |
| taking pictures, v. |
police operating a radar gun |
| ten-four, pron. |
means "OK"/ "YES" |
| ten-twenty, pron. |
location |
| ten-thirty three, pron. |
emergency |
| turkey day, n. |
Thanksgiving |
| turn signal, n. |
a light on the back of a vehicle which indicates future direction of movement. This is the one piece of equipment that a four wheeler will only use if there is a police officer immediately behind him, otherwise, the four wheelers simply forget they have one ( although they seem to be aware that the cruise control is mounted on the little stick thingy.) |
| walked on ya, v. |
someone keyed up with you and your transmission was unintelligible. (see "steppin on") |
| wha-cha-thank?, interj. |
similar to right? when used at the end of the sentence |
| yard, n. |
name for the parking lot of a driver's company ("sitting here in the yard, waiting to load up") |
| yardstick, n. |
name for mile marker on major highways |
| YEOOWW BAAABY! interj. |
when a woman is THAT good looking, you will hear this phrase (note: one person's version of good looking may not coincide with yours). |
| yonder, adj. |
a specific direction indicated by the speaker (can be used for any direction ). |
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