The Arb — Nickname for the Nichols Arboretum, a 123-acre "living museum" featuring overlooks and trails through woods and fields, including a stroll along the Huron River. The Arb's collection of Michigan native plants and plants from around the world make it a beautiful place to visit in any season.

The Arch — The archway through West Hall at the southeast corner of the Diag, also known as the Engineering Arch (from days gone by when the College of Engineering was located on the U-M Central Campus).

Big Blues — The name campus bus drivers and many students use to refer to campus buses.

The Big House — The Michigan Stadium is the largest college football stadium in the country (in terms of seating capacity: 107,501). Ironically, during a game there's rarely room to sit. (Read about the history of the Big House.)

The Brewery — An historic former brewery on Ann Arbor's north side, now home to several UM departments.

Burlodge — The nickname for Bursley residence hall on North Campus.

The Cube — Just to the north of the Michigan Union (in Regent's Plaza) is "The Cube," by artist Bernard Rosenthal. See also "Spin the Cube."

The Diag — The large area enclosed by campus buildings had humble beginnings: pasture and outhouses. Students used it as a shortcut and cut a diagonal swath in the pasture with their incessant steps. While students may relieve themselves there from time to time, the Diag is a common area in which students meet. Heed the advice of students: "Don’t step on the M."

The Dude — The James and Anne Duderstadt Center, formerly the Media Union, opened in 1996 as a special place to provide faculty and students with the tools and collaborative space for creating the future. Located on the University of Michigan North Campus, the Duderstadt Center houses the Art, Architecture, and Engineering Library, the College of Engineering Computer Aided Engineering Network (CAEN), the Digital Media Commons, and the Millennium Project. The Mujo Cafe provides a space for refreshment and social interaction.

The Fish — Ray Fisher Stadium, the home of Wolverine baseball.

The Fishbowl — The glassed-in area facing the Diag where Angell, Haven and Mason Halls meet.

Football Saturdays — Los Angeles has its ozone alerts, and Ann Arbor has its Football Saturdays. On these Saturdays of U-M home football games at Michigan Stadium (during Fall Term), the town is flooded with football fans from far and wide. Townies know to avoid the area's traffic backups and they pay attention to when the game starts; the city streets and freeways out of town are generally guaranteed safe from pileups for three-and-a-half hours once the game commences.

The Grad — The Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library.

The Half Ass — A cafe/hangout/music and poetry venue located in the lower level of the Residential College, also known as the Half-Way Inn.

The Halo — In 1998, Michigan Stadium was renovated and expanded. Six rows of seats accommodating an additional 5000 fans were added around the top of the stadium. The new seating area was surrounded by a yellow parapet bearing familiar Michigan icons, including the winged helmet and University seal, and lyrics from "The Victors." This yellow parapet was nicknamed "The Halo" and was cited by many as departing from the traditional style of the venerated stadium. It has since been removed.

The Hill — A campus "neighborhood" of residence halls, adjacent to the Medical Center, including Couzens Hall, Alice Lloyd Hall, Mary Markley Hall, Mosher-Jordan Hall, Oxford Housing, and Stockwell Hall.

Michigan Time — The tradition of starting every class, meeting or event 10 minutes late.

MoJo — The nickname for the Mosher-Jordan residence hall located in the Hill/Observatory area.

The Mud Bowl — Since the 1930s, the grassy area at the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house at the corner of Washtenaw and South University has been turned into a mud pit to host this event on the Saturday afternoon of Homecoming Weekend. Crowds of onlookers assemble to watch two rival fraternities duke it out in the dirtiest football game you'll ever see! In addition, two sororities play each other during halftime.

The MUG — The ground floor food court in the Michigan Union.

Nat Sci — The Natural Science Building, designed by architect Albert Kahn and completed in 1915, which originally housed the departments of Botany, Geology, Mineralogy, Zoology, Psychology and the School of Natural Resources.

The Pringle — Part of the UM Medical School, the ultramodern Basic Science Research Building Auditorium (located on Zina Pitcher Place), with its undulating, sloped roof is affectionately known around campus as Pringle Auditorium.

The Rock — The painted rock at the corner of Washtenaw Avenue and Hill Street. If you go by it on your way to the store, it will have been painted something different by the time you make your return trip.

Spin the Cube — Refers to pushing the kinetic sculpture, The Cube, so that it spins on its axis. Watch that its corner doesn't whack you in the head on its way back around! (See also "The Cube," above.)

Stepping on the M — The brass M set in the center of the Diag (see Diag, above) was donated by the University's Class of 1953. Ever since then, students have made a pasttime of avoiding stepping on it. The most common superstition says that if you step on the M, you will fail your first exam at Michigan. Apparently, it's safe to trod on after that.

The Toaster — This curved-cornered, black and stainless steel edifice located on North Campus is home to the UMHS North Campus Administrative Complex.

The U — Shorthand for the University of Michigan. As if there were no other! (None that matter to U, of course.)

The Ugly (UGLI) — Former nickname of the Undergraduate Library (Undergraduate = UG, Library = LI), now called the Shapiro Undergraduate Library. According to trusted informants, the UGLI is also sometimes affectionately known as the SNUGLI—though where the "N" came from, nobody knows!