Your Guide to Cannabis Slang

With over 1,000 slang terms for weed, there are arguably more names for this plant than any other. A long history of use, interrupted by periods of prohibition, and now, a thriving international cannabis culture have all given rise to this massive lexicon.

Of course, there are botanical and taxonomic names used to describe weed. However, in this article we’ll focus mainly on marijuana slang terms—colloquial words for the plant itself, its flowers, its users, the act of enjoying it, and more.

But first, we’ll touch upon the etymology of key terms such as “cannabis” and “ganja” to provide a bit of background on our favourite herb.

The Etymology of Weed

Etymology—the study of the origin of words—helps us to understand how, and where, certain terms came into being, and how they’ve changed over time. This field of study becomes particularly interesting when we place cannabis in the crosshairs.

Many ancient cultures harnessed cannabis for holistic and industrial purposes, each bestowing the herb with a different name. As a result, we have the terms below—some of which are only gaining strength, and others that are slowly fading into history.

Discover the etymology of weed’s most popular monikers below.

• Cannabis

The word “cannabis” has its roots in a Scythian or Thracian word^[1]. The Scythians, a group of ancient nomadic warriors that dominated the Pontic Steppe, had a reverence for cannabis. The herb played a ritualistic role in the Scythian “cult of the dead”. During this ceremony, tribesmen would gather in tents and fill them with cannabis smoke.

The Scythian term then emerged in Persian as “kanab”, and then into the Greek “κάνναβις” (kánnavis). An example of the Greeks observing the use of cannabis among the Scythians comes from the writer Herodotus, who reported, “...the Scythians have taken some seed of this hemp, they creep under the cloths and put the seeds on the red hot stones…”.

The Greek word subsequently became the Latin “cannabis”. Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus used this term in the botanical classification of the plant^[2] in 1753, labelling the species Cannabis sativa L. But what exactly does this term mean? While “cannabis” refers to the plant itself, “sativa” means “cultivated”, and the “L” refers to “Linnaeus”.

• Ganja

The term “ganja” pops up frequently in cannabis culture. You’ll find it plastered over magazines and seed packets. Despite its modern use, this term has ancient origins. Cannabis has a long history of use in India, where it still plays a ceremonial role. The Vedic scriptures of Hinduism describe the herb as one of five sacred plants with a guardian angel within its leaves.

Compiled between 1500–500 BCE, the Vedas are composed in the ancient language of Sanskrit. “Ganja” originates from the Sanskrit “gañjā”, in reference to a preparation made using the plant. The word also occurs in Hindi—an Indo-Aryan language that descends from Sanskrit—as the word “gāñjā”.

But why does the term appear so frequently across the cannabis space? And why do so many people associate it with Jamaican cannabis culture? This is the result of a cultural fusion between Africans and Indians in the Caribbean. Sadly, this merging of cultures took place under the conditions of slavery. Ultimately, however, it gave rise to the Rastafari faith, and eventually helped cannabis spread throughout Western culture.

• Marijuana

Marijuana, originally spelled “marihuana” or “mariguana”, stems from Mexican Spanish. The Oxford English Dictionary states that the term may have its roots in the Nahuatl word “malihuan”, which means “prisoner”.

However, this etymology rose to prominence at the hands of infamous anti-cannabis propagandist Harry Anslinger, who attempted to perpetuate racism by associating cannabis with minorities. Anslinger's actions during the era of prohibition have led some activists to suggest that we stop using the term^[3] marijuana altogether.

Bias aside, the true etymology of the word likely has nothing to do with incarceration. Some linguists suggest that such an association stems from accidental homophony. In this case, the term may originate from the Chinese phrase “ma ren hua”, meaning “hemp seed flower”.

Kush, Weed, and Pot

Kush, weed, and pot are essentially slang terms, but they’re used so abundantly that they’ve effectively become part of the widespread cannabis lexicon. While some stoner slang words are fairly localised, these three terms are recognised by users across the world. Let’s take a closer look at them:

• Kush: People often use the term “kush” to refer to high-quality cannabis, but it also describes specific cannabis cultivars deriving from the Hindu Kush mountain range. Kush varieties are often used as the foundation to create novel hybrids, contributing their unique growing traits, effects, and flavours.
• Pot: Why do some of us call cannabis “pot”? It has nothing to do with how we grow it! Rather, the term became popular in the United States during the 1930s, and originates from the Spanish “potiguaya”, which comes from “potación”—an alcoholic drink made from steeping cannabis flowers in wine or brandy.
• Weed: Although usually used to describe an undesirable, invasive plant, “weed” has become an incredibly popular way to refer to cannabis. Users started to call the plant “weed” as a means of disguising their exploits, and it became popular in the 1970s among young people looking to keep their herbal activities under the radar. Of course, that term doesn’t work very well for that purpose these days!

Cannabis Slang Dictionary

Now that you’re familiar with some key cannabis terms and their origins, it’s time to dive into a long list of cannabis slang! These terms range from the archaic to the modern, and from the witty to the downright descriptive. We’ve separated them into different sections so you can come back and browse them with ease.

Slang Terms for the Cannabis Plant

There are so many different names for cannabis! Stating all of them would make for a very long article, so we decided to stick with some of the most popular:

Slang Terms for Cannabis Flowers

You thought the cannabis terminology stopped there? Absolutely not! There's a long list of words that describe the flowers alone:

Slang Terms for Cannabis Users

Cannabis users have been subject to a bevy of nicknames over the decades, and most are rather derogatory and stereotypical. These are some of the most common:

Slang Terms for the Act of Smoking Weed

Even the act of smoking has many titles. Chances are you’re already acquainted with these terms:

Slang Terms for Being High

“Being high” doesn't quite sum up all of the possible states that smoking weed induces. Here are a few other terms you might want to use:

Slang Terms for Cannabis Products

Just like there are thousands of cannabis cultivars available, there are also many different products that derive from the plant. Read the list below to see how many you’ve smoked:

Slang Terms for Cannabis Smoking Accessories and Paraphernalia

How do cannabis users smoke all of these different preparations? They have a large range of smoking paraphernalia at their disposal:

Slang Terms for Weed Culture

You’ll discover myriad slang terms for weed culture as you continue to immerse yourself in the community:

Watch the Marijuana Slang Evolution Unfold

There you have it. You're now fully equipped with a vast cannabis lexicon to draw from whenever you need it. But remember, cannabis culture has evolved underground for decades. As it continues to emerge into the mainstream, we'll likely witness many new words come to the fore. Language, after all, is rather dynamic. Let's see what the future brings!