# Do non-Southerners not say "wreck"? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 19, 2009, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-non-southerners-not-say-wreck/506948 "2009-08-19T13:47:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![tacoloco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@tacoloco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tacoloco)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2009, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-non-southerners-not-say-wreck/506948/61 "2009-08-21T01:53:22Z")
I grew up in Eastern PA and we always called 'em “accidents”. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2009, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-non-southerners-not-say-wreck/506948/62 "2009-08-21T06:20:44Z")
> [@tacoloco](#): > > I grew up in Eastern PA and we always called 'em “accidents”. There is a serious problem with that terminology though. Sometimes car wrecks aren’t accidents like in police chases and intentional suicide. There may be no “accident” about it. ---
**Author:** ![AppallingGael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9bd4f/32.png) [@AppallingGael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AppallingGael)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2009, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-non-southerners-not-say-wreck/506948/63 "2009-08-21T08:32:24Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > And here, I thought this thread was going to be about people saying ‘ **wreck** havoc’ instead of ‘ **wreak** havoc’. Don’t forget about “reaping havoc”. NYC. I never thought much about it and don’t really feel like starting now, but probably I’d say I had a fender-bender, you had an accident, and he had a wreck. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-non-southerners-not-say-wreck/506948.md?page=3)