Brooklynese

noun

Brook·​lyn·​ese ˌbru̇-klə-ˈnēz  -ˈnēs 

: the vernacular speech of greater New York City and environs

Examples of Brooklynese in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

First seen at a night-club table of menacing lowlifes, Ida, whose mother tongue is Brooklynese, suddenly switches to a heavy British accent and dispenses a torrent of highly literary sarcasms. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 4 Mar. 2026

Similarities still exist between New Orleans’ Yat variation and Brooklynese, a dialect popular in New York City, because of the urban centers’ shared Irish and Italian heritage. — Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton, Smithsonian Magazine, 17 Jan. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Brooklyn, borough of New York City

First Known Use

1939, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for Brooklynese

• abcs
• absentees
• addressees
• adoptees
• allottees
• amputees
• antifreeze
• appellees
• appointees
• arrestees
• artistes
• assamese