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Weed Slang

Welcome to the ultimate weed slang guide, created to help you get familiar with all things related to cannabis. In the close-knit world of marijuana consumers, code words and inside jokes abound: if you’re new to the herb, a lot of these references might fly right over your head. The good news is, here at Ganjapreneur we are compiling an open source dictionary of every cannabis-related slang term and phrase in the world, and our list is constantly growing. From regional monikers to pop-culture phenomena, we provide a quick and easy reference to help you comprehend any and all dialects of herbal vernacular. If you know of a term that we missed, please let us know!

Cannabis Terminology 101

Marijuana, weed, ganja, grass, dope, dro, etc.: there is no shortage of names for everyone’s favorite plant. The prevalence of these different names may be due in part to the prohibition of cannabis in the U.S. and around the world, which was often a politically-motivated and racially-targeted decision to outlaw behaviors that were common among populations that the government wanted to control. Once it became illegal, people would have needed to obscure their references to cannabis in order to hide the fact that they consumed / grew / sold it, and these names would need to evolve over time as they became well-known by the authorities.

Another potential reason for why there are so many different words for “marijuana” is that smoking weed often leads to talking about weed, which often leads to coming up with unique nicknames and descriptions for how the weed makes you feel… in other words, it’s like a self-replicating fractal, man.


Weed Slang Categories

Weed Measurements

Whether you’re selling or buying, knowing the lingo for different quantities of cannabis is essential if you want to participate in the underground (or “traditional”) market. From a dub to a zip and beyond, we’ve summed up the most common denominations of cannabis you’re likely to encounter on your dealer’s coffee table.


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20 Bag

20 Bag

A bag containing 20 dollars worth of marijuana. The total volume of product you will receive for 20 dollars depends on who you buy it from and where you are located. Typically, a 20 bag contains about 2 grams of weed.

Eighth

Eighth

One of the standard measurements for purchasing cannabis flowers. “Eighth” refers to one-eighth of an ounce or roughly 3.5 grams. Pricing for this amount tends to vary depending on location, quality of the product, and availability, but it can range anywhere from $25 to $60. Because cannabis is measured by weight and not the number of buds received, first-timers may think they’re being cheated if they receive only two or three dense nugs as an eighth, but it should all measure out to the appropriate weight.

Zip

Zip

A slang term for an ounce of marijuana flowers, approximately 28.5 grams. This code name is used by black market dealers on the phone or other communications to not get caught up by the police. The name got its origin because an ounce generally fills up a Ziplock baggie.

Zone

Zone

The origins of this cannabis slang word are hard to locate, but zone is another term used by dealers to signify an ounce of cannabis flowers. It is possible that this term developed in progression first as an ‘O’ for an ounce, then an ‘O-Zee’, then ‘O-Zone’ and eventually simply to zone. However, this is just speculation.

Synonyms for Weed

Mary Jane has many aliases, and much like Carmen San Diego, trying to find her when you’re traveling the world can be difficult if you don’t speak the local language. Luckily, we’ve compiled some of the most (and least) common nicknames that cannabis goes by. Some are regional, some are classical, but all of them mean the same thing.


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Ganja

Ganja

One of the oldest slang terms for marijuana, “ganja” is derived from the Sanskrit word for the flowers of the plant. Brought to Jamaica from India, ganja became a central part of Rastafari culture and wound up influencing the world via reggae music in the 60s and 70s. To this day, it remains one of the most well-known names for weed in the world.

Sticky Icky

Sticky Icky

A colloquial term for excellent cannabis buds that references the sticky nature of trichome dense top-shelf cannabis. The phrase was made popular by West Coast hip hop legends in two songs released in November of 1999. Originally E-40 used the term in his 1999 bop “Do What You Know Good”, and just weeks later the term was featured in the widely acclaimed “Still D-R-E” by Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg.

Pakalolo

Pakalolo

Pakalolo is the Hawaiian word for cannabis, which spread into English language usage during World War II. It gained a resurgence in popularity after its use in a biography on former president Barack Obama, where it’s revealed that he used to smoke pakalolo quite regularly. It tends to be used most often in beach settings, and the term itself can also be used to describe a person who smokes cannabis.

Wacky Tobacky

Wacky Tobacky

A lighthearted term for cannabis flower popularly used in the advent of 1950’s “reefer madness” culture. Wacky tobacky is a reference to tobacco, probably because both were rolled up into paper and then smoked, but one made the smoker a little bit more silly. The word is not often used in modern cannabis culture unless as a joke.

Stoner Terms & Phrases

The “stoner” stereotype has been aggressively pushed in mainstream media for decades, both by proponents and detractors of cannabis. In reality, the effects of cannabis use vary from person to person, but that fact didn’t stop legions of stonified slang terms and references from getting couch-locked in mainstream culture.


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Green Out

Green Out

The distressing feeling of nausea and anxiety that occasionally happens from indulging in too much THC. Greening out often manifests itself as vomiting, dizziness, and excessive sweating as well as paranoia and anxiety. It can happen to anyone from first-time users to experienced stoners, but rest assured that no one has ever died from it.

Shotgunning

Shotgunning

The act of inhaling cannabis smoke or vapor before putting your lips to another person’s and exhaling the cannabis smoke directly into their mouth. The recipient will then inhale the smoke and both parties will get high from the one hit. This is often seen as a romantic gesture, or at the very least one signifying closeness between the participants.

Weedologist

Weedologist

One who studies the science of smoking, growing, and/or being around cannabis and marijuana culture. A weedologist wants to understand the who, what, where, when, and why of every aspect of weed. Before legalization, this job was more of a fun joke, but now there are real cannabis scientists who could claim the title.

Wrecked

Wrecked

The state of being so high on cannabis from smoking, vaping, or ingesting it that you could be considered inebriated. Staring open-mouthed at the TV without interacting with the outside world for hours, eating handfuls of dry cereal without thinking about it, and laughing maniacally at something that isn’t very funny are all activities common of someone who is wrecked.


Browse all terms:

Below you will find our entire catalogue of weed slang definitions. 50 terms are displayed on each page: use the pagination links to browse more definitions in alphabetical order.


Submit Weed Slang

Do you know of a weed slang term that we missed? Please submit it below, and if we’ll consider adding it to our dictionary. Note: we don’t allow terms that are hateful, sexual, or gross.

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