The Word Hella
Category: Local Flavour Local Flavour [Edit]
The East Bayand other surrounding areas
Oakland, CA 94610
- Good for Kids:
- No
80 reviews for The Word Hella
80 reviews in English
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Review from David N.
Seattle, WA
10/9/2010
Seattle People use it all the time...
Great adjective/emphasis word such as Hella Dope, Hella Funny, Hella Tight, Hella Fly, and Hella Filthy.
I never get tired of it..Listed in: Reviews on Trending Topics
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Review from Rene T.
Washington, DC
5/22/2011
shart (sh-ärt) [noun, verb]: gas followed by mass; to emit gas followed by mass.
Jim was HELLA mad when his fracking dog sharted on his expensive pennyloafers. good dog, serves that yuppie bastard right. -
Review from CT L.
San Francisco, CA
2/16/2009
"Hella" is a slang I think originated from the streets of San Francisco.
Derived from a contraction: Hell of a, meaning "really" or "a lot of."
On occasions, I am guilty of saying:
* Hel-LA far, dude! Ain't gonna go to San Ho for some fro-yo!
* Man, that hel-LA stinks! Is that your breath or do you normally smell like that?
* She is hel-LA ghetto, drinking Kool-Aid as champagne!
Don't use this word hella much, or you will become HELLAAA annoying to non-NorCal folks.
I dedicate this review to Janette W, who knows when and how to use it. -
Review from Cara Y.
Oakland, CA
2/16/2009
Having been born and raised in the SF East Bay, I grew up saying this pretty much incessantly - and I don't care how annoying I was.
So there! -
Review from vaughn e.
Oakland, CA
1/10/2009
It is time to euthanize the word "hella" as in:
"I HELLA heart Oakland!"
"It was HELLA nasty."
"That dude was HELLA stupid."
I cannot stand this term from the Bay Area vernacular. That includes the derivatives - "hekka" and "hecka."
I have used "hella" once or twice, and I now regret that it found its way into my vocabulary. It wasn't until I moved to the Bay Area that this insidious word had revealed itself to be hella annoying and hella overused.
Just bury it along with "swell," "daddio," "tubular," and "jive turkey."Listed in: for the love of oakland...
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Review from Rachel H.
El Cerrito, CA
2/24/2009
I used to use this word a lot. I grew up in Berkeley, where it was used liberally as is everything in Berkeley, and then I used it to annoy people from SoCal when I went to UC Santa Cruz.
As I've grown up I've used it less and less, and now I can't use it at all, because my husband was born in 1966, has never used this word, and on the rare occasion that I use it he makes HELLA fun of me because I sound like his High School students.
RIP Hella.
P.S. I never used "Hecka" or even worse "Hecksa". That is just wrong. -
Review from Bart F.
Mountain View, CA
1/27/2009
Being that I have lived 95% of my life in California, it is only natural to pick up the lifestyle, personality, and verbiage that only one who has lived in the Sunshine State can grow adept to; and rightly so. What other state contains a more extensive makeup? What state contains the beautiful women and beaches of San Diego; or the smog and materialism of Los Angeles; the fertile lands of the Central Valley; the
abundance of dirt in Barstow; the renaissance and culture of San Francisco; the filth of Bakersfield; the magical herbs of Sonoma County; or the fine wineries of Napa Valley?
*raises hand"
Me: Pick me, pick me - I know!
*teacher points and chooses Bart*
Me: CALIFORNIA!?!?!
Now that we've established that California is the most beautifully diverse state in the whole wide world, one must understand that this state might as well secede in theory as it has already seceded in thought. By having such a demographic potpourri, mixed minds have led to the creation of increasingly addicting native facades that boggle the mind. Some of these odd addictions include: tribal band tattoo's, rub-on tans, calve implants, over-sized sunglasses, orifice bleaching, and the abundant use of the word "hella." Pretentious, indeed.
Like a thief in the night - "Hella" has found a way to unhinge the back window of my vocabulary and rob me of my maturespeak. For instance, I have two different speech patterns: the way I speak with "my boys"..[mainsteam and more vulgar] and maturespeak - the way I speak to my Grandma..[well-spoken and refined]. I wouldn't dare curse in front of my sweet little Pennsylvania Dutch granny. However there was this one time that I let the term "hella" slip...
*sitting on Grandma's couch*
Grandma: I'm tired of cooking - let's eat out tonight. What would you like?
Me: I don't know, Grandma. Let's try something new.
Grandma: How about going to a pizza restaurant? We can get you some pizza and root beer like when you were little. Do you eat much pizza anymore in California.
Me: Oh, no Grandma, I eat pizza all the time.
Grandma: Really - how much pizza do you eat?
Me: Hella, pizza!
*pauses in disbelief*Listed in: Bart's Rants
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Review from Van P.
Orange County, CA
8/3/2009
WTF ?!?! You can review WORDS on YELP !?!? HELLAAAAAAAA DOPEEEE !
Sorry I don't know about you but I use this word once every sentence for each sentence. HELLAA OVER-USED. whatever. HELLA PPL HELLA use this word anyways.
And even though I was born in NORCAL but raised in SOCAL and still RESIDE in SOCAL, I CAN still use this word. SO don't be hatin. CUZ I WILL HELLLAAA CUT YO ASS. SAHHCURRITTYYYY !! =P -
Review from Angela C.
Oakland, CA
2/16/2009
There should be an invisible force of energy that squeezes tightly around the neck of every individual who uses this annoying word.
But then I guess I'd be hella dead. -
Review from Jen A.
San Francisco, CA
3/19/2009
Born and raised in SF, how could I not give this controversial word 5 stars. It's been part of my vocabulary since my elementary school days.. although back then I would use the word "hecka" instead of "hella" because all the other kids would start doing the "ohhhh, you said a bad word.. I'm telling Mr/Mrs (insert name here)". Ahh yes.. "hella" is the most nostalgic word.. I used to think that the whole world used this word until I went to New York and people was using "Mad" in substitution of "Hella".
Anyway, it's a hate it or love it situation. And in this case, I Hella love it.. SO BITE ME! -
Review from Brittany H.
San Francisco, CA
1/27/2009
I remember being young - really young, and hearing a friend of mine point to a guy and say, "he's hella fine".
:thinks to self: hella? What could that ever mean?!
Anyways, I hung around her more and more until I finally understood this brand new word in its context.
Since then, I've always said it. I don't care if it's annoying! My East Coast family say "wicked" and don't get any crap for it - why should I for saying a local word as well?
I definitely know that saying "hella" in a formal or professional situation is inappropriate - and therefore I do not use it during those times.
The only thing that makes saying "hella" better is using the word "hyphy" after it.
Better yet, I might as well recite the lyrics to "Super Hyphy" by Keak da Sneak to make more of a profound statement... yadidamean?! -
Review from Dani A.
Sacramento, CA
7/16/2009
Sorry, I do use it. And no, I don't think I'm hella cool cause of it.
I (hella) use it. And I'm (hella) sorry if it makes you (hella) annoyed, cause people who use (hella) this much are usually (hella) annoying.
But we're known for (hella.) Las Vegas folks know Nor Cal folks use the word (hella.) So Cal folks know we use the word (hella.) Various others know us by our (hella.)
So, here's to NorCal pride.. I'll only do this once. Yay areaaaa! :D -
Review from Linda C.
5/22/2009
Hella sweet that there's a page for the word!
It's definitely a northern californian thing, so I had to lose it for a while when, you know, I did my time away.
Glad to be back, amongst peeps who know how to use it.
But it is kinda cute listening to so-cal or out of state people *try* to use it after they learn about it. "Hell-a? Hel-la? He--la?" With all kinds of weird accents...
:) -
Review from Jack M.
Boston, MA
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Review from Loli L.
San Francisco, CA
12/31/2009
A few months ago, I came to terms with the fact that I exist in a vocabulary age-gap
Me: That's hella nice!!
Local teenager: Did you just say, 'hella?'
Me: Yeah! That was hella nice.
LT: (laughing) Oh, man. That's boosey*.
*Boosey- whack (wack)
I almost gave up on "hella" when Gwen Stefani came out with that ridiculous song. Still, I can't shake it off. I think it's hella awesome and I have hella love for it. I love you hella!!!Listed in: No Particular Reason, Oakland for Tourists
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Review from Bebe E.
San Francisco, CA
1/23/2009
Unfortunately, I find myself victim to this word at least a few times a week.
It's an addiction that is incredibly hard to break.
However, it is handy for people to identify where I am from.
"OMG so I saw this HELLA cute guy in the cafeteria today..."
"Are you from Norcal?"
"Yeah, how do you know?"
"It's the hella"
awesome. I'm one of those people. -
Review from Krista C.
3/19/2010
The last time I used this word was when I said, "Did you just say HELLA? You're 30 years old. Put down the XBox controller, and speak like an adult for chrissakes."
People use this word as a quantifier when they mean to describe something that is a large amount. Instead of saying "very", "really", "a lot", "many", or any other justifiable word in the English language they default to "hella".
Congratulations! You have the vocabulary of a preschooler.Listed in: Why are these on YELP? Oh…
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Review from Gina G.
New York, NY
2/21/2009
To each his own. And I proudly claim "hella" as one of mine.
I grew up in Northern California, but now that I am living in New York City, I find some of my Cali-isms slowly disappearing. I adore public transportation. I say "caw-fee." I root for the Yankees.
But when I need a word to express an extremity of emotion, nothing else comes close. It encapsulates all sorts of grammatical qualifiers, and it is brilliant in phonetic design. It literally rolls off your tongue. I love words like that. More importantly, it's a part of who I am and reminds me of where I come from. Ain't no shame in that.
I've noticed that my New York City friends, who are from all over the country, have added it to their vocabulary. Intentional or not, I don't think it matters. When you hear East Coasters, Midwesterners, and Southerners using the word, you know it's hella cool. -
Review from Bernadette R.
East Bay, CA
7/17/2009 1 photo
Wow....dumb and dumb - for the word and the use of it.
Prefer the east coast "wicked" to the sucky Norcal use of "hella." -
Review from Angie G.
Los Angeles, CA
7/22/2009
I heard this utterance waaay too often from the mouths of the babes I used to teach in EPA. I tried to no avail to say, at school we use more academic language like "very", "quite", "really". My kids even expressed their understanding that hella was a sort of contraction for "hell of". While I admired the critical thinking skills evident in that one, I was like WTF would hell of mean anyway? Well, in my head.
Out loud, I stuck to "in the classroom we use academic language....blah blah.
In summary y'all, Me NO likey! As for y'all though, I LOOVE "y'all"! :)
p.s. I don't like wicked or tight either! The latter is particularly disturbing from the mouths of elementary aged kids!!Listed in: My Old Neighborhood (Silicon…
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Review from Trav W.
San Francisco, CA
2/16/2009
Ingrained in my bay-area bred brain. We said "hecka" as little kids because "hella" was almost like swearing. The perfect storm of time, place, and shitty public education made "hella" a permanent part of our vernacular, so you transplants are just going to have to deal. I don't go back east and throw 'tude around because you people raped the letter "R".
Simple solution for hellahaters: If you're that serious about never wanting to hear it again, go back to wherever you came from. "Hella" was here before you, and it thinks you're hella dumb.Listed in: How to Live in the…
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Review from emi s.
San Francisco, CA
2/28/2009
......is as cool as it gets, and even us metalheads (well, meatheads) used it in the 90s.
The fact that I use it with the neck roll elicits gasps and laughter and I hella love it.
I use in place of "bloody" or "effing". No, wait, that would be fucking to you. -
Review from Elijah W.
East Palo Alto, CA
2/20/2009
I mean I hella use the word 'hella' like hella times in the day. I have read hella articles articles and hella threads where they woulda hella break down the word..'hella'. And it would be hella funny to me because hella people would hella assume that it was supposed to hella serve some other purpose then what it is hella meant to be: AN INTENSIFIER.
Another thing that hella baffles me is why hella people would hella consider anyone hella slow or of hella low educational standard if they hella or even sparingly used the word 'hella'. Now that's HELLA DUMB. It's slang folks. And I hope that I don't need hella defintions in order to define slang and the signifigance of a few words to different regions and areas.
So as you can see, I hella like the word 'hella'. Born and raised in SF so it's hella been a part of our language. Kinda infused into our everyday know-how ya know? Plus it's hella dope/fresh/cool that one word can automatically tell Non Nor-Cali folks where your from. HELLA RAD!
hahaha...i HELLA love being me.
HELLA BIG SHOUT-PUT TO MY BOII MATTHEW P!! -
Review from Jason L.
3/25/2010
"That is HELLA tight! That concert was awesome, but there were HELLA people there. Damn, that's HELLA expensive. I had to wait HELLA days for that to come in the mail..."
I feel like I lost my roots by not using Hella as much. I don't understand why people hate this word. Nor Cal Represent! Going to college in So cal, I don't understand why its so shocking. I have used and heard hella in New York and other parts of the US sometimes.. Only in So Cal (special people) find it strange. I should not talk crap because I'm slowly becoming a beach bum having lived in so cal the last 10 years.
I will never forget having a conversation in the dorm cafeteria and using the word hella. My dorm mates giggled (yes giggled not laughed) at the word hella. They sounded like Goofy right before he says "Aw shucks.." or like a school girl waiting to watch New Moon or a Justin Timberlake show. If you think saying Hella is wrong. A giggle from a growth man is WRONG! Every time I use it in so cal some girlie-man giggle. Anyways, I have to give Hella 5 stars!
Now a days, I try not to use hella as much, because I'm not in college or high school. I am trying write and speak in complete sentence to act professional. Plus, I am slowly forgetting how to use hella in the correct context. Still a great slang when trying to describing something extremely large or cool or the opposite. PRO: I got my roommate to use hella in everyday conversation, without knowing it. I did convert one So cal native. CON: Parents or teachers look at the word hella as a deadly sin to the English language. You are better of using traditional curse words. High Recommended in social settings. Let's spread the awareness!! We should wear support HELLA Day ribbons! -
Review from Mace M.
San Lorenzo, CA
3/25/2009
I say hella more than anyone on the planet. Hence my nickname, my design company, and my clothing company. I drop the word hella on average once every six words. It is easily the best word, or if it can be thought of as an invention, it is the best ever thought up, by anyone in the history of man.
Anyone saying the world "hecka" in its place, or dissing the world hella, will be severely punished by the long dick of the law... and by law I mean me.
If you like hella, you should add me.
Stay tuned for new site and shirts!!! -
Review from Lisa N.
10/9/2010
10^27!
And a town in Iceland.
What's not to love?
I hella love hella!Listed in: Random things
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Review from Alie C.
2/17/2009
I gotta admit, the word "hella" is in my regular vocabulary. I didn't really realize this until I moved to upstate New York. As soon as the word "hella" left my mouth, my New Yorker friends told me to never ever use that word again.
I guess the term similar to it in the city is "mad" which has now replaced "hella" in my conversations.
I have to admit, however, it slips once and a while.
Its an annoying word but it is quick to say and I still find it pretty rad. -
Review from Cat C.
2/25/2009
It sounds better than "wicked," you all have to admit that! I use it at least a numerous times a day, I just can't help it. At 21, I probably have about four more years left to use it. I even sometimes incorporate hella when speaking Cantonese to others, example: Hella chow yeung.
Hella I hella love u! -
Review from G L.
San Francisco, CA
3/12/2009
I'm local Oakland raised, older than most of the young whipper snappers here on Yelp, and I have been saying hella for a hell-of-a long time. I wish I'd some how expunge it from my vocabulary but when I'm pissed off or excited it just comes out.
When I was in my mid 20s , fresh out of college, I had a job where I would have to go work for a month or so at a time in Raleigh, NC, (this was around 1989). All my NC co-workers nick named me Hella because I always said it and they had never heard that expression before.
I will say that I find it completely phony and superficial in regard to all those who use this local colloquialism with forceful purpose..example: "I hella love Oakland" and the T-shirts geez, this word is an affliction, a curse of sorts not something to be thought of as cool, just like having baggy pants down to your knees is not cool with your drawers hanging out because you don't have a belt because you are in jail and might hang yourself...but that is another rant for another time and another place. -
Review from Jeff S.
Long Beach, CA
3/1/2009
I grew up using this word in Sacramento. Now that I'm in LA, I never get to hear anyone say it, unless someone visits from Sac. Whenever I hear it, it reminds me of my youth.
Way cooler than the lesser known "hecka". -
Review from Jackie K.
New York, NY
4/17/2009
Hella Hella Hella
FUCK YAH!
p.s. all you so-cal transplants can suck it! -
Review from Alysia W.
2/18/2009
I don't tell you how to talk, so don't tell me [:
Judging others is HELLA lame.
Nuff said. -
Review from Yvonne N.
7/21/2009
So my first year of college, I moved to San Diego and was sitting next to this guy in Spanish class. I slipped out the world "hella" and he got hella mad at me! Oops, did I just say "hella"?
"Wicked" is an incompetent replacement for "hella". That movie is "wicked" cool - I guess. There was "wicked" sauce on my noodles - No.
Helllla hatin'
Don't hate. -
Review from Amoura B.
San Francisco, CA
2/19/2009
oooh, I hella love how it just rolls off the tongue!!!
I'm not sure about it coming from The Town (& Jaeger - yayo's slang for coke, & not the kind that wants to teach the world to sing...lol), but I'm not mad at this review...that's one of my favorite terms ever & a true sign of being from The Bay - you KNOW!!!! Yay aireeeeeeeeeeeeAAAAAAAAAAAAA...
Don't like it? You can always kick rocks & mosey on back to WHEREVER it is you're from...just sayin... -
Review from Claud D.
Watsonville, CA
2/28/2009
I love the word because it belongs to the Bay Area. Who cares if SO-Cal people don't like it, a lot of them are assholes anyway! ahhaha ;) I hate when non-nor cal people use it though...Gwen Stefani and rappers putting it in their songs? Ugh, get your own word.
* I just noticed that I have used "hella" in a previous yelp review! hahaha -
Review from Kat F.
4/22/2009
Personally I'm not a fan!
This is extreme west coast speak. I've never, ever heard this term used in Toronto unless someone has just returned from the west coast, usually Vancouver or San Francisco.Listed in: The Most Random Things I've…
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Review from Uncle Fishbits Aeneas X.
Belvedere Tiburon, CA
2/14/2009
My review:
I was going to bookmark it to review later, because it is so conflicting. I grew up with it here in the Bay as an innocuous word, and almost got beat up and cut for using it in Colorado. It provides derivative, self-effacing deprecation... a simple exclamation that isn't crude...
but I hate it. And am okay with it (albeit dislike most contractions).
So I go to bookmark it, and the box pops up and says,
"To try: the word hella"
And I thought that was hella funny. -
Review from Jason B.
Philadelphia, PA
6/11/2011
I'm not much of a fan of either the word "hella" or "The Word Hella".
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Review from Karen F.
2/17/2009
Is this REALLY yelp-able?
Slang words are yelp-able?
Anyhow I first heard the word hella when I lived in Callifornia in the early to mid nineties - it just wasn't said alot on the East Coast.
And many years later when Gwen Stephani (No Doubt) released "Hella Good" I just had to laugh.
3 stars because it got played out - like, "like" "ya know" and "Awesome". -
Review from Pamela R.
2/21/2009
I hella use the word hella
If only Gwen Stefani had not given in away to the world.
People in Southern Cali made fun of me for using the word throughout college
and people in Dallas just find it cute.
I just can't imagine not using the word hella at least 3 times a day.
