Quinta Brunson Of 'Abbott Elementary' Teaches Stephen Colbert Philly Slang

By Taylor Linzinmeir

January 6, 2023

Photo: Scott Kowalchyk/CBS ©2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc.

Abbott Elementary creator and Philadelphia native Quinta Brunson recently taught Stephen Colbert a lesson while appearing on The Late Show.

Brunson walked Colbert through some of her home town's unique vocabulary. "I thought it would be fun if you could teach me a few Philly terms that I don't understand at all," Colbert said. During the segment, he went through a few words, including "jawn" and "mac machine," and guessed what they mean.

For "jawn," Colbert guessed that it was simply a boy's name. Brunson corrected him by saying, "No, it is not a boy's name —But it can be a boy, or a girl, or this desk, or this cup... Jawn is a person, place, thing or idea. Some would call it a noun." Colbert then guessed that a "mac machine" is simply another name for a computer. Apparently the term "breaks" Brunson's brain. "A mac machine is the same thing as an ATM. And I only found out recently that mac machines are only in Philadelphia, so all my life I've been calling ATMs mac machines."

In his defense, Colbert did correctly guess what "wit/witout" and "hoagie" mean. Check out the whole video below.

Abbott Elementary aires Wednesdays on ABC. Brunson stars in the show as Janine Teagues.

Advertise With Us
Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.