Entry · catalog no. 1127
cheddar
/ — /pending
noun · nationwide · 2026
✓ Verified
1.
Money.
“Everybody at the table trying to get their cheddar.”
Origin & Attribution
Traces to the blocks of government cheese handed out to low-income families in the 1980s — getting your cheddar turned survival into a word for securing wealth. In wide use across 1990s rap, including the Notorious B.I.G.'s "Warning."
Region of origin
West
Midwest
N.East
South
Nationwide / diaspora
nationwide · 2026
Spoken by
nationwide
$CHEDDAThe Record · cultural traction
▲ Rising0 yrs
ahead of the mainstream
12/100
peak cultural energy
Introduced to English by the culture — logged here before the mainstream caught on.
Cultural usage — the recordMainstream search interest
First used
2026
in the culture
Recorded here
2026
point of first record
Cultural energy indexed from documented usage, search interest, and citation frequency. The recorded date is the archive’s permanent point of record.
Hear it spoken
By region — how it actually sounds
@auntiereg
Atlanta, GA
@deltasoul
Memphis, TN
Contribute your pronunciation
Citations & Sources
■
Mental Floss, "Slang Terms for Money Explained" — article
submitted
■
+ Cite a source"Warning" — The Notorious B.I.G., "Ready to Die" — song · 1994
submitted
See also