In Southern and Appalachian speech, "a body" means "a person" or "one." It’s an old Scots-Irish English construction that stuck around in mountain talk long after disappearing from standard English. When you hear it, you’re hearing centuries of speech history still alive in the hills.
I hear 'a man' way more often than 'a body' - I think this one is more old timers.
Hillbilly Dude Says...
I hear 'a man' way more often than 'a body' - I think this one is more old timers.
Pronunciation
[UH bod-ee]
/ə ˈbɒdi/
Meaning & Usage
- A person; one (noun phrase)
Advice from an elder
Mae:
A body can’t be too careful on these roads.
Earl:
True - a body has to watch for deer.
variations: somebody, one, a person
★ "A body" is one of those holdovers from older Scots-Irish English that gives mountain talk its charm. Use it in dialogue and you’ll sound like you grew up sittin’ on a front porch in the Blue Ridge. ★
Origin and Etymology
The phrase comes from early Scots-Irish and Northern English dialects where "a body" simply meant "a person" or "one." Settlers carried it to Appalachia and the American South in the 1700s, where it survived as everyday speech. Over time it faded elsewhere, but remained common among older Southern and mountain speakers.
Usage Notes
Used where standard English would say "someone" or "one."
Still heard among older Appalachian and rural Southern speakers.
Outside the South it’s rare and often used in storytelling to evoke dialect or a bygone tone.
Don’t confuse it with "body" meaning a corpse - this one means a living person.
Created by The Hillbilly Dude, this site is a growing field guide to culture, speech, memory, and meaning - rooted in Appalachia but reaching across the world. Every slang word, saying, accent and story is gathered from first-hand experience and trusted sources. The goal: preserve authentic voices and share them with writers, learners, and culture lovers everywhere - with a little humor thrown in here and there. Read more...
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