Yo, dude, bro, broski . . . rad barrels out there!
Surfer slang has got to be one of the most unique and recognizable slangs in the English language.
Countless movies have portrayed the special way surfers talk, and even cartoons are using the surfer manner of speech for comedic relief.
Case and point, remember ‘Crush’, the turtle, laid-back surfer dude in Disney’s Finding Nemo?
He was speaking in ‘surferese'.
Needless to say, though we know that not all surfers talk like Crush. There is an undeniable surfer slang that one needs to know to understand the world of surfing. Let's dive into the guide
Glossary of Surfing Terms and Surf Slang
After all, you don’t want to be going to a surf camp and not understand some essential terms your instructor is using. Right, bro?
- Starting with "A"
- Starting with "B"
- Starting with "C"
- Starting with "D"
- Starting with "G"
- Starting with "H"
- Starting with "I"
- Starting with "J"
- Starting with "K"
- Starting with "L"
- Starting with "M"
- Starting with "N"
- Starting with "O"
- Starting with "P"
- Starting with "Q"
- Starting with "R"
- Starting with "S"
- Starting with "T"
- Starting with "V"
- Starting with "W"
360 – a surf move consisting of turning the surfboard at a 360-degree angle while on the face of a wave
A-frame – a wave shaped like a peak that breaks both left and right equally
Aggro – aggressive surfing/surfer
Air or Aerial – a maneuver in which the board leaves the surface or the water/wave
Akaw – awesome, cool
Amped – feeling excited, pumped up
Ankle slappers – waves that are too small to ride
Backdoor – going inside a tube/barrel, also known as the curl of the wave, from behind its peak
"Backdoor" describes a wave that breaks in a way that allows a surfer to enter the barrel (or tube) from behind or the side, rather than the more traditional front.
Bailing – jumping off your board into the water in order to avoid a bad encounter
Barney – a surfer that is not cool, untalented, rookie
Barrel – a tube, the curl of the wave, the hollow part of a wave when it is breaking, and one of the most sought after things in surfing
Beach break – the places where the waves break over sandbars
Benny – a person who is not a local
Bitchin’ – awesome, amazing, great—as in 'bitchen waves, bro'
Bodyboard – a small board that you ride on your belly, also known as a booger, a boogie board, dick dragged, or clam dragger
Bomb – a massive wave
Bottom turn – a turn that is made at the bottom of the wave; a very important maneuver that sets the tone for the ride
Break – when the swell of the water breaks, turning into waves and white water
Bro – dude, brother, surfer—can be both male or female
Carve – a maneuver that is a sharp turn on the face of the wave
Caught inside – being caught between the shoreline and the breaking waves
Charging – aggressively going for a wave
Choppy – rough waves due to wind conditions
Chunder – totally unsurfable waves
Clam dragger – female bodyboarder
Clean wave – a smooth wave with no bumps
Closeout – when a wave breaks suddenly and all at once
Clucked – being scared of waves
Crease – damage to the surfboard by the impact
Crest – the highest point of a wave, the top of the wave
Curl – the area of the wave where it is breaking
Cutback – a surf move done sharply in the shoulder or the wave or on its flats to get back on the surf line
Cutting off – the action of catching a wave in front of a surfer, who was going for it and was closer to it, stealing a wave—also known as snaking
Dawn patrol – going surfing first thing in the morning
"Dawn patrol" refers to surfers catching the first waves of the day at sunrise, enjoying calm water and ideal conditions before the crowds arrive.
Deck – the top surface of a surfboard
Dick dragger – a derogatory term referring to the action of lying down on your board while riding a wave, usually used for bodyboarders. A female version is a clam dragger.
Ding – any damage done to your surfboard
Double up or Humpback – when two waves combine; one large wave closely followed by a smaller one
Drop – the first part of a ride, when the surfer goes down the face of the wave
Drop-in – synonymous to cutting off but also to drop down the face of a wave
Greenroom or Inside the Greenroom – the inside of a barrel
Grom – a young and inexperienced surfer; also known as a grommet or gremmie
Grubbing – falling off the surfboard while surfing
Gun – a big wave surfboard
Hang eleven – used to describe a male surfer who rides naked
Hang five – riding a surfboard with one foot placed on the nose of the board and five toes hanging over the nose
Hang loose – the salutation that accompanies the sign of Shaka
"Hang loose" is a hand gesture (thumb and pinkie finger extended) that signifies a relaxed, carefree attitude and promotes a laid-back, friendly vibe.
Photo: ©️ Jakob Owens via unsplash.com
Hang ten – riding a surfboard with both feet placed on the nose of the board and your toes hanging over the nose
Header – to fall off a surfboard from the front, head first
Heavy – big, awesome waves that are sometimes dangerous
Helicopter – a surf move where the surfer spins their surfboard around from its nose
Hit the lip – when a surfer turns up their surfboard to hit the falling lip of the wave, allowing the surfboard to be smashed down
Hodad – a person who hangs around the beach and does not surf
Hollow – barrels, tubes
Impact zone – the place where the waves are breaking the hardest and where beginners tend to get hurt
Inside – the place between the shore and the impact zone
Into the soup – inside the foam, the white water
Jacking – when the wave swells rapidly, from deep waters to shallow ones
Jake – a surfer who inadvertently is in the way of more experienced surfers
Juice – the power of the wave
Junkyard dog – a surfer with poor style
Keg – a barrel, a tube, and something that holds beer after surfing
Kick out – finishing the ride by going over the back or through the wave
Kickflip – rotating the surfboard 360 degrees while in the air
Kneeboard – a special type of board meant for riding on knees
Kook – a rookie surfer or someone who isn’t very good at surfing
Layback – laying backward on the wave
Leash – the piece of material that ties the leg to the surfboard, grab one here
Left – a wave that breaks on the left of the surfer, from the peak
Line up – the area in the water, away from the swell, where the surfers wait to get their turn at catching a wave
Lines – the swell, when it is approaching the shore
Lip – the upper-most part of a wave, right before it breaks
Localism – hostility by local surfers towards non-local surfers
Locked in – when a surfer gets caught inside a crashing wave
Longboard – a surfboard with a round nose that is at least 8 feet long
Lull – the moment of calm between swells
Macking – huge waves breaking or when it's really fun and powerful
"Macking" refers to surfing on big, powerful waves that are considered impressive or challenging, often characterized by their size and force.
Photo: ©️ Thomas Ashlock via unsplash.com
Making the drop – catching a wave and sitting on the lower part of the wave’s shoulder
Maxed out –waves that are too large to break without closing out
Men in grey suits – sharks
Messy – irregular and unpredictable waves
Mini Simmons – surfboard hull design style invented by Bob Simmons
Mullering – wiping out
Mush or Mushburger – soft non-surfable waves, without any energy
Namer – a surfer who shares a secret surf spot with others
New school – trick surfing
Noah – shark
Noodle arms – tired arms
Nose – the front and pointed part of the surfboard
Nose guard – a rubber tip meant to protect the nose of the surfboard
Nose riding – a longboarding move where the person surfs on the nose of the board
Nug – a good wave
Off the lip – re-entry
Offshore – winds that are blowing from the shore towards the ocean
Onshore – winds that are blowing from the ocean towards the shore
Outside – the place beyond the lineup; beyond the place where the waves break
Outside break – the furthest place from the shore where the waves are still breaking
Over the falls – refers to when a surfer goes over the lip and into the face of the wave
Overgunned – when the board is inappropriate for the surfing conditions
Overhead – when a wave is higher than an average surfer
Paddlepuss – a person who plays in the white water and is afraid to stray from the beach
Party wave – a wave that several people are surfing
Peak – the highest point of a breaking wave that generates both left and right surfable shoulders
Pearl – when a surfer buries the nose of his/her surfboard into the wave
Peeling – when a wave breaks perfectly
Pig dog – a position that reflects the surfer grabbing onto the rails while inside a barrel
Pintail – a surfboard tail shape that is perfect for hollow surfing
Pit – the barrel of a large and strong wave
Pit dive – when you don't make the drop and end up diving into the bottom of the wave
Pocket – the power pocket of a barrel or powerful wave and where you want to position yourself
Pointbreak – a type of wave that is found around a point of land, a coastline with a headland
Pop up – the move surfers make to move from lying on the surfboard to standing up to surf
Pull in – turning the surfboard up to enter a barrel
Pumping – decent surfing conditions
Quimby – a beginner surfer who is usually annoying
Quiver – a surfer’s surfboard collection
A "quiver" is a collection of different surfboards that a surfer uses to match various wave conditions and personal preferences.
Photo: ©️ Chelsey Horne via pexels.com
Racy – a fast surfable wave
Rad or Radical – awesome and impressive surfing
Rails – the sides of the board
Rail bang – to take a surfboard between the legs, while falling. Can also be one surfer hitting the other surfboard on the rail of another surfer while riding a wave
Raked over – to be pounded by strong waves when paddling out to catch a wave
Re-entry – when a surfer goes through or over the lip of the wave and then goes back in
Regular footed – a surfer who surfs with their left foot forward (this means that they don’t face the wave on lefts)
Ricos – rich, perfect
Right – a wave that breaks on the right of the surfer, from the peak
Riptide – a stretch of water that is particularly turbulent
Rock dance – the moves made by surfers who exit the water through a rocky section
Rocker – the curve under the surfboard
Section – the location in the water where the waves aren’t breaking and where surfers are waiting their turn to advance and ride
Set – a series of waves that are approaching the lineup
Shacked – riding a great, big barrel; not quite barrelled with the lip, just overhead
Shaka – a sign surfers use made from extending the thumb and the little finger
Shape – a word used to rate the quality of the breaking waves (perfect shape is when the wave breaks evenly)
Shore break or Shorepound – mostly unsurfable waves that break very right on the shore
Shoulder – the part of the breaking wave that is unbroken
Shove-it – the act of moving the surfboard (180 or 360 degrees) under the surfer, while riding a wave
Shubie – a person who buys a surfboard and surf clothing, but does not surf
Sick – astounding, impressive, amazing
Sketchy – bad form when surfing
Slotted – a surfer well-positioned inside a barrel
Soft board – a surfboard with a soft surface, meant for beginners
Soup – whitewater
Spat out – the action that occurs when a surfer exits a barrel alongside air and foamy water
Spit – the water that gets sprayed out from a barrel
Sponger – a derogatory term for a bodyboarder
Stall – a surf move meant to slow down the surfboard
Stick – a surfboard
Stoked – pumped, extremely happy, excited
Sucking dry – the action performed by powerful breaking waves causing the seabed to become exposed
Surf camp – surf vacation with accommodation included where an instructor teaches surfing
Surfer’s knots – swellings on the frontside of the leg, below the knee, as a result of kneeling on the surfboard waiting for a wave
Swell or Groundswell – surfable waves
Tail – the backside of the board
Take off – to catch a wave
Through – the bottom of the wave as it starts breaking
Tombstoning – when the surfer is wiped out and sinking below the surface and their surfboard is bobbing up and down connected to them through a leash
Tow in – used by big wave surfers, it refers to being towed in by a jet ski to the place where the big waves are
Tube – barrel, the hollow of the wave
Tubular – awesome, great, rad
Turtle roll – a technique used to get the surfboard to go through a breaking wave; it implies hanging on to the rails, turning over so that the surfer is fully submerged and the fins of the surfboard become visible
Twin fin – a twin fin surfboard
Victory at sea – waves big and unrideable like the movie
Wall – a face of the wave that has no area to ride on
Washing machine – getting rolled around underwater by a breaking wave
Wave hog – a surfer who will not share a wave
Wax – the substance surfers use on their surfboard to help with traction
White water – a broken, foamy wave
Wipeout – falling off a wave while surfing
Worked – getting knocked off by a wave and then being in the washing machine
We hope you found our glossary of surfing terms useful! It’s a great tool for beginners to use when learning how to surf.
If any of the surf slang caught your eye, why not grab a SURF SLANG T on Amazon and wear your favorite phrase with pride?
Cristina helped put the original post together and Wave Tribe staff have expanded on it over the years. BookSurfCamps.com, a themed travel website offering a vast collection of surf camps and holidays. She is also a passionate traveler, cat aficionado, and novice writer.
Thank you also to Derek of MiniSimmon.com for some additional words on the list.
✅ Updated January 2024