yeah no
yah nohphrase
SlangDifficulty 2 of 3: Regional
Definition
A polite refusal. The "yeah" acknowledges what you said; the "no" is the actual answer.
In simple English: A soft way of saying no.
Examples
“Want to come to the 7am hike?” “Yeah, no, I’m good.”
Yeah no, that’s not going to work for me.
Usage notes
The mirror of "no yeah". Californians read these instantly; the final word always carries the meaning, and the first one just softens it.
At a glance
- Track
- Slang
- Region
- Statewide
- Part of speech
- phrase