hella

Very, or a lot. The defining intensifier of Northern California, used before adjectives, adverbs, and nouns alike.

In simple English: Very, or a large amount.

• That coffee shop is hella good.

• There were hella people at the show.

• I’m hella tired, I’m going to dip.

Originated in the Bay Area and remains the clearest verbal marker of a Northern Californian. Saying it in Los Angeles will get you identified as a transplant from up north instantly.

Track

Slang

Region

NorCal

Part of speech

adverb

• hecka
• hella tight
• mad
• grip
• dip

• Your first week: How people actually talk
• The Bay: Words that mark you as from up north