Surf Terms and Slang Dictionary

Hi guys!

It is very normal for beginner surfers to “float” when witnessing a conversation between more experienced practitioners of our so noble sport. And it is so unique, with such a strong community, that even its own dictionary of surf slang, which is almost a language, it has.

To try to end this, I decided to write this post with all the technical terms and slang of the surf that came to mind now. It is worth remembering that there are so many variations by region, that I may have forgotten several. Therefore, the idea of ​​this text is that it be collaborative. Did you see something I didn't put? Simple! Comment in the post I add.

So that you don't get lost at the peak, then, let's go to the famous surf slang…

Surf Terms and Slang

• 360 - maneuver in which the surfer goes towards the top of the wave, takes an entire turn around himself and completes the movement going in the same direction in which he was initially going.
  
• Aerial - one of the most plastic maneuvers of surfing. It is even funny to say that it is ONE maneuver only, due to the multiplicity of variations. It consists of going towards the top of the wave with great speed and, literally, taking flight by performing some kind of movement in the air, to complete the maneuver with a standing landing (really), continuing on the wave.
  
• Aloha - Hawaiian language word that can be used as a greeting or goodbye (hello or bye). Before becoming a greeting it was used as a display of affection, peace and compassion.
• Surf - the surf zone is the line of the beach where the waves usually break when they arrive. The surfer must be aware of the position to catch the waves before they break.
• Backside - when the surfer descends the wave with his back to the wall. That is, being regular (see below), it is when he catches a wave to the left. Being goofy (see below), this is when he catches the wave to the right. It is usually more difficult than the frontside.
• Bench - composition of the seabed in a specific location. It can be sand, stone or coral. It is very common to refer to the peak as “pipeline bench”, “Teahupoo bench”.
• Sand Bank - when the sea with a  sandy bottom   has a shallower block in the middle of nowhere. It is in the surf dictionary, because when it occurs, there is the possibility of good waves appearing.
• Drums or Heat - In competitions, the period in which surfers enter the sea to dispute each other is known as the battery (heat in English). WCT batteries generally last 35 minutes and can have 3 or 2 surfers.
  
• Beat - another surfing maneuver. It consists of going towards the lip (see below) with speed, letting the nozzle of the board come out as if it were going to fly and go back through a rip down the wave again.
  
• Beach-Break - when the surf peak has a sandy bottom, usually in the middle of a beach or on a sand bank. The problem with this type of peak is that the bottom is constantly changing, making reading the wave more difficult.
• Big Rider - these are giant wave surfers, who face real bombs of more than 4 meters and can reach more than 30 meters, as we saw Carlos Burle do in Nazaré, Portugal.
• Bomba or Morra - these are the waves that big riders surf, of more than 4 meters, and can be bigger than a bus or a building. Can you imagine surfing a building? Sometimes the term is also used when there is a very big wave in a series, for example, the series is 1.5m long and there is a 2m wave. This can be considered a bomb. If you like the subject, we made a post with the biggest waves in Brazil.
  
• Brother (Brô) - brother in English is one of the ways surfers call themselves: “Speak, brô, will the swell enter?”
• Caô - means a lie: “Are you with me, brô?”
• Cavada - in this surfing maneuver, the surfer makes a turn at the base of the wave to gain speed to go in the direction of the crest.
  
• Classic - when a peak has its best wind, wave and bottom conditions. On these days the wave walls are perfect, or as the surfers would say, opening, connecting the sections.
• Crowd - when a peak has a lot more surfer than a wave we usually say that it is “crowded”.
• Cut-Back - a very common surfing maneuver. It consists of going forward on the wall, running away from the foam and making a reversal movement, going back towards the foam.
  
• Deck - rubber that some people stick on the tail of the board to put the back foot.
• Right - wave that breaks to the right. To catch it, the surfer must head to the right after the drop. The curious thing is that seen from the sand, the surfer is surfing to the left. Ideal for regulars, who surf the front-side rights.
• Drop - when the surfer is rowing to catch the wave, the first challenge is to stand. The second is to perform the drop, which is the act of descending the wave  to surf   the wall or go straight into the foam after it breaks.
• Left - wave that breaks to the left. To catch it, the surfer must move to the left after the drop. The curious thing is that seen from the sand, the surfer is surfing to the right. Ideal for regulars, who surf front-side lefts.
• Flat - the flat sea is the sea without waves. Don't take the risk of reaching the sea to surf and find it flat by reading our posts.
  
• Floater - surfing maneuver that consists of surfing on the lip (see below) of the wave before descending it again.
  
• Free-Surfer - soul surfer, who only surfs for pleasure. He doesn't like competition and confusion. Enjoy the nature and lifestyle of surfing.
• Frontside - when the surfer descends the wave facing the wall. That is, being regular (see below), it is when he catches a wave to the right. Being goofy (see below), this is when he takes the wave to the left. It is usually easier than the backside.
• Goofy - is the surfer who uses his left foot as a base, that is, back on the board, as opposed to the regular. For him it is better  to surf   waves to the left, which he surfs from frontside.
• Grab Rail - when the surfer is surfing backside, he lowers and puts his hand on the edge of the board to pick up a tube.
• Haole - is the guy who is not from that peak, but comes from outside  to surf   there. It comes from the Hawaiian language. It means white man, Caucasian, any foreigner, of foreign origin. Etymologically it means “one who does not breathe”, as the Hawaiians realized that foreigners did not breathe 3 times after their prayers, as tradition dictates.
• Inside - when the waves are big, most beginners stay inside, that is, closer to the coast, catching smaller waves.
• John - is the famous  wet suit   (rubber) used by surfers on cold days. The coolest ones even use it in the sun, even though they know the clothes are heavy and get in the way a little. It can be a short john, when the bottom is a short, or a long john, when the bottom goes up to the ankle.
• Lay Day - is the famous and not very pleasant day without waves, with a totally flat sea. The term is widely used in competitions, but it can already be heard in the vocabulary of the average surfer too.
• Line-Up - line where most of the waves start to break and that is why most surfers stay. It is similar to surf, but this designates the waves, while line-up the positioning of the surfers.
• Lip or Crest - top part of the wave wall, where it begins to break, forming foam.
• Local - they are the natives of a peak, people who live near it and end up surfing almost always there. Not to be confused with localism, which is the practice of a kind of “xenophobia” with surfers who are not from the peak in question.
• Longboard or longboard - very large and wide board that provides a more classic surf, with fears effort and more plasticity. Sizes vary, but planks are usually over 7’0 ″.
• Lycra - flexible surf suit for days with less cold water.
• Mahalo - marrálo, as it is pronounced, means “thank you” in the Hawaiian language. It is considered a sacred word as well as aloha. In the Hawaiian language, some words are endowed with spiritual strength in popular belief, so they must be used honestly and wisely.
• Maral - wind that blows from the sea towards the land, leaving it storm or stirred. It is worse for surfing conditions, as it makes the waves break faster, closing.
• Maria-paraffin - woman who loves to give surfers a hard time. You can't see  a surfboard   that goes crazy.
• Marola or Merreca - very small sea, but with some surfing conditions. It has even turned into an adjective or adverb: He is a very merrequeiro (maroleiro).
• Outside - waves farther from the shore than inside or anywhere after the surf.
• Quebradeira or Quebra-Côco - that type of wave that closes, that is, it breaks everything at once, making surfing impossible. Unless you want to have a cow and broth festival.
• Keel - part of the structure of the board. It can be removable or fixed and is under the tail, serving to give more or less stability and speed, depending on the surfer's goal. Nowadays it is more common to use 3 or 4 fins on the board.
• Quiver - there is no direct translation for the term, but it is the set of boards that a surfer has for different sea conditions.
• Wall - when the wave opens and breaks from left to right, we say that the wall is forming on the right of the wave, as it is literally what you will see if you look right at the wave. This is where the surfer should go when completing the drop.
• Pico - favorable point for surfing.
• Point-Break - when the surf peak has a rock bottom. When the ideal conditions of wind and swell come in, the wave always ends up being the same, making its reading easier and more accurate. The problem with this type of fund is that the probability of getting hurt on a cow or broth is greater than on a beach break.
• Priority - rule created in competitions to define who has priority in the next wave. It usually applies to those who have been outside for the longest time without catching any waves.
• Rabear - is something you shouldn't do when surfing. When a surfer is already on the wave, going down the wall, and another surfer falls in front of him, making it impossible for the first to continue on the wave.
• Rabeta - the back, or tail, of the board. It can have different formats and each one works in a different way.
  
• Torn - another surfing maneuver. when the surfer gets on the wave and makes a sudden descent movement.
  
• Reef-Break - when the surf peak has a coral bottom. When the ideal conditions of wind and swell come in, the wave always ends up being the same, making its reading easier and more accurate. The problem with this type of fund is that the probability of getting hurt on a cow or broth is greater than on a beach break.
• Regular - it is the surfer who uses his right foot as a base, that is, back on the board, unlike the goofy. For him it is better  to surf   waves to the right, which he surfs from frontside.
• Rowing - movement of alternating strokes that the surfer makes to get around when lying on the board.
• Series - the waves always come in series, almost never alone. It is very common for surfers to be sitting on the board when suddenly five or six waves come in a row. Then he needs to wait for the next series.
• Shaper - is the artist who designs and makes surfboards.
• Storm or Scramble - when the sea is messy because of the amount of wind, with very irregular wave formation and random breaks.
• Strep or Leash - famous rope that holds the surfer's ankle to the board.
• Swell - storm on the high seas. When a swell occurs, you can be sure that waves will reach the shore. Very common for the surfer to say a big swell is coming tomorrow.
  
• Tail Slide - maneuver in which the surfer skids the tail of the board. It can be made from frontside or backside and is usually combined with a cut-back.
  
• Take-off - act of lifting on the board after the stroke to make the drop.
• Terral - when the wind blows from the land to the sea. It is the best wind for surfing conditions, when it doesn't blow too hard, as it makes waves break more regularly.
• Tomar na Cabeça - do you know when you are very low, a big series enters and there is no time  to paddle   either outside or in the sand? So, what will happen next is to take it in the head.
• Tow-In - surfing practice that involves the use of jet-ski. The jet-ski pilot pulls the surfer by a rope and enters the wave to put him already standing on the drop inside the wave. Usually used in large waves.
• Tube - one of the most classic surfing maneuvers. When the surfer is under the shoulder of the wave intubated, picking up speed to get out of there before the wave closes over him.
  
• Wildcard - competitor who is not automatically classified for a division, but participates in one or more of its events because it is a good peak location or a sponsor choice. Every WCT event, for example, has space for two wildcards.
  
• Wipe out, Vaca ou Caldo - famous act, but nothing desirable, of falling off the wave due to lack of balance or during a maneuver.

I know that there are many expressions that are not here, because it changes regionally, but ... let's agree: you put it in the comments and I add it in our dictionary.

Hope this helps!

Thanks, bro!

Frequently Asked Questions

How can understanding surf terms and slang enhance the surfing experience, especially for beginners or non-locals?

Understanding surf terms and slang helps beginners integrate into the surfing community, improves communication with other surfers, and enhances overall understanding of surfing culture. It's particularly useful in local contexts where specific slang may be common.

How does understanding surf terms and slang benefit surfers, and what role does slang play in surf culture?

Understanding surf terms and slang benefits surfers by facilitating communication and enhancing understanding of the sport. Slang plays a significant role in surf culture, reflecting the community's unique vocabulary and expressions.