New Yorkese

[ yawr-keez, -kees ]

noun

1. the speech thought to be characteristic of a person from New York City, as in pronunciation or vocabulary.

Word History and Origins

Origin of New Yorkese¹

An Americanism dating back to 1890–95; New York + -ese

Example Sentences

Mr. Lorayne would hear the names of hundreds of audience members and then rattle them off — “Mr. Stinson, Miss Graf, Mrs. Graf, Miss Finkelstein” — in his rapid-fire New Yorkese.

From Washington Post

“Mr. Stinson,” he continued in his rapid-fire New Yorkese, gathering speed.

From New York Times

So over the years it’s become customary to sub in the vague New Yorkese that Hollywood uses as a universal signifier for white working class.

From Slate

And he speaks only the language of New Yorkese circa the 1980s.

From Los Angeles Times

There’s also the pleasure of hearing the Hebrew and Yiddish phrases — more than I thought I would recognize — that have made their way into contemporary New Yorkese: mazel tov, babke, kishkes.

From New York Times