6 Words That Have Completely Different Meanings To Naturals

As naturals, we have our own language, don’t we? It isn’t that we do not want to invite others to the party, but rather if you cannot speak the language either learn or move on.

We have are so busy discussing and learning that we often times forget some may be missing the meaning of our discussions. I see the questions from newbies in hair groups…“What’s is a cone?”,  “What does LOC stand for?”  You see those question slightly less than often than the “What is my hair type?” and although they can be annoying, they are necessary for the newbies to grasp what we are discussing.

When I go spouting off my natural terms in mixed company I may get some rather strange looks and even some gasps. BC for one is most known as Before Christ, so if I’m just talking and rattle off, ” I think it is time for me to do another BC since my ends are raggedy”, someone might just look at me like I am  insane. OK, an exaggeration on my part but you obviously get the point and the idea on just how different natural hair terms or meanings have compared to others.

Not only is this hard for non-naturals to decipher but there are newbies who are struggling with our language and it seems our terms and abbreviations are getting bigger and gaining ground. We keep adding new ones to the list so if you do not want to be totally lost it might be time to see what they mean and how they differ from the ‘real world’.

BC – just explained how this can mean Before Christ but it also can stand for  B.C. Comics and BC Powder, a brand of pain reliever.  None of those even come close to what BC to a natural means.

It means the Big Chop or chopping off all of your relaxed hair so you can be completely natural. Big Chops are not just reserved for newly naturals and often veteran naturals will do a 2nd or even 3rd big chop and not even just to remove damaged hair.

Pineapple – A tasty fruit but the traditional definition is: a large juicy tropical fruit consisting of aromatic edible yellow flesh surrounded by a tough segmented skin and topped with a tuft of stiff leaves.  

So sweet and so amazing and even better when you get it fresh from Hawaii. It is amazing but for naturals it has a very different meaning. Pineapple or pineappeling one’s hair is a nighttime technique to preserve hair taken from the fruit because you hair favors a pineapple when the technique is done correctly. 

All the hair is gathered at the top of the head in a high, but very loose ponytail with a ponytail holder. You will sleep with your hair like that on a satin pillowcase* to also aid in preserving your style.  In the morning you remove the ponytail and either shake and use your fingers to coax your hair back down (if it does not immediately fall down) to give you back your voluminous style from the night before.

Cone – Cones are known as either pine cones (the woody fruit of a pine tree) or the orange cones we all see when construction workers are out and need you to slow down and steer clear of them working.  

Cones for naturals is just short for silicone. Silicones are very effective ingredients in hair and beauty products.  They work by covering hair with a thin hydrophobic (waterproof) coating and that coating will keep humidity out softens the hair.  

Some naturals stay clear of them because they can cause build-up (most are non-water soluble) but it all depends on the individual preference if they like them or not in their hair care products. 

DC – DC is often known as our nation’s capital (Washington DC, District of Columbia ) but for naturals it means deep conditioner* or a deep conditioning*. Deep conditioners are important and should be done after every wash so you will hear naturals discussing this often. 

Poo – often meant for excrement in the real world but for the world of natural it just means short for shampoo. Often we accompany it with no-poo (meaning no shampoo) or pre-poo (prior to shampooing).  

Slip – Most associated with someone falling or even an undergarment that women used to wear under dresses to hide underwear and panty lines.  To naturals slip just means the slipperiness of a hair product, usually a conditioner , leave in conditioner*. We want products that give good slip because that makes our detangling session shorter, more productive and less damaging to your tresses. 

LOC – Loc could be an abbreviation for the Library of Congress or just a short name for Dreadlocks.  For many naturals they could be talking about Dreadlocks but for many others they are talking about the L.O.C. method or the Liquid, Oil, Cream method.  

This is just a method that many naturals use to keep hair moisturized for days without having to re moisturize.  The layering of products in a specific order will maximize moisture retention by adding the liquid then the oil and then the heavier cream.  

Well that’s it, hopefully this short list helps you to navigate the language a bit more if you are a newbie and you still have some confusing term you need help with, leave them in the comments below we would love to help!