Canadian Terms Beginning with P

Parkade - A parking garage, especially in western Canada. Americans call it a "parking garage" or "parking structure".

Parliament Hill - The hill in Ottawa, Ontario where the Parliament buildings stand.

PC - 1. Short for "Progressive Conservative" a political party in some regions of Canada. 2. Sometimes referring to "President's Choice," the in-house brand of the Real Canadian Superstore supermarket chain.

Peg, The - Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Pencil Crayon - A coloured pencil often coming in packs of 8, 12 or more. Mostly used by school children.

Penitentiary - A federal corrections institute (jail) for longer-term convicts. "Pen" for short.

Pepsi - A derogatory term used to refer to francophone Quebecers. Derived from the perceived popularity of Pepsi Cola in the French-speaking population of the province. Sometimes used as "Pepper".

Péquiste - A member or supporter of the Parti Québecois, a political party originally advocating independent rule for Quebec.

Pickerel - A regional term for a Walleye (fish).

Pile O' Bones - A historical term for Regina, Saskatchewan.

Pissed - Drunk. Not generally used to mean "angry," as it is in the USA. Often elaborated as "pissed drunk".

Pitter Patter - Short for "pitter patter, let's get at her," which means "stop wasting time; get to the point; hurry up, etc."

Play Structure - A climbing structure commonly consisting of a slide and monkey bars for children to play on that is often found on school grounds and in parks.

Pogey - Unemployment benefits. Also spelled as "pogie"

Pogo - A brand name for a corn dog, a hot dog dipped in batter and then deep fried.

Pop - The commonly used term for any soft drink.

Porch climber - Moonshine or homemade alcohol. In Ontario it specifically refers to a beverage mixed of beer, vodka, and lemonade.

Postal Code - The Canadian equivalent of a ZIP code. Postal codes are six characters long and are a mixture of three letters and three numbers.

Poutine - A serving of french fries topped with cheese curds and covered with hot gravy. Originated in Quebec.

Poverty Pack - A mere six-pack of beer.

Puckster - (slang) A hockey player.

Pulling - A regional term (Saskatchewan) which describes the act of buying liquor or cigarettes for minors.