Toronto slang is the unique informal vocabulary used by some Canadian English speakers in the Greater Toronto Area. It is considered a multiethnolect known as Multicultural Toronto English (MTE). It's commonly associated with Millennial and Gen Z populations in ethnically diverse districts of Toronto, and is a biproduct of the city's multiculturalism. It is spoken specifically within the Greater Toronto Area, Hamilton, Barrie, and Ottawa. To a lesser extent, Toronto's distinctive slang has been exported to other diverse neighbourhoods and urban Canadian cities as well, which include parts of Montréal, Calgary, and Edmonton.
History
The origin of Toronto's slang can be traced back to widespread migration from the Caribbean, East Africa, and the Middle East to Canada from the 1960s to the 1990s. During this period, a significant influx of immigrants from countries such as Jamaica, Trinidad, Guyana, Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Somalia, and Ethiopia predominantly settled in Toronto and other parts of the region. With many of these immigrants fleeing war, conflict, and poor economic conditions, they were left with limited financial resources and, as a result, found homes in Toronto's lower-income communities. These neighbourhoods rapidly transformed into vibrant melting pots, filled with a diverse array of cultures and ethnic backgrounds. This cultural amalgamation played a crucial role in developing Toronto's urban dialect, which is rooted in Toronto's multiculturalism and draws heavy influence from Caribbean, East African, and Middle Eastern languages.
The second-generation descendants of these immigrants significantly contributed to embedding Toronto's distinctive slang into the city's culture. Faced with limited economic opportunities within their communities, these individuals turned to creative outlets like rap music, fashion, and athletics for both expression and livelihood. Their influence in these areas helped shape the city's popular culture, especially among the youth in the Greater Toronto Area. Consequently, their unique manner of speaking, shaped by the multiculturalism of their communities, gained widespread adoption throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s. This linguistic evolution not only reflects Toronto's multicultural heritage but also serves as a unifying cultural element for the city.
Vocabulary
Here is a list of common words in Greater Toronto English:
Adjectives
"Bare" (very/a lot/many) [originates from Jamaican Patois]
"Beat" (something that looks ugly, can be used to describe an object or person) "Beg" (someone who is needy, can also describe something as pitiful) "Blem" (describes an individual who is high or intoxicated) [originates from Jamaican Patois] "Cheesed" (pissed, mad, angry) "Dess" (short for desperate, can also describe something as pitiful) "Deezed" (describes an individual as muscular and strong) "Dutty" (dirty, bad, ugly) [originates from Jamaican Patois] "Dry" (uncool, lame, boring, uninterested) "Fried" (describes an individual who is high or intoxicated) "Greezy" (something impressive or attractive in a fashionable use) "Likkle" (small, little) [originates from Jamaican Patois] "Live" (used to describe something as lively or exciting, usually an approval or endorsement of an events atmosphere) "Marved" (hungry, starving) "Merked" (ugly, unattractive) "Miskeen" (pathetic, innocent or poor) [originates from Arabic] "Mod" (crazy) "Moshup" (something that is ruined, messed up or botched, commonly used to indicate a situation has gone away) [originates from Jamaican Patois] "Neatly" (used to emphasize the quality or manner in which an action will be carried out) "Next" (describes something other than what is currently discussed, often emphasizing a disregard or need for an alternative) "Namebrand" (something that is important or of high quality, usually used to describe an individual) "Peng" (describes a person who is attractive) [originates from Jamaican Patois] "Soft" (describes something that is permissible and does not require worry) "Sweeterman/Sweeter-ting” (an attractive person) "Vexxed" (annoyed, upset or irritated) [originates from Jamaican Patois] "Wassi" (something crazy or unusual, usually describing the actions of a person) [originates from Jamaican Patois] "Waste" (describes something as undesirable or dissatisfying) [originates from Jamaican Patois]