Everyone has a word or phrase that purely defines who they are, how they speak or the way they act. In this case, the slang word that defines me most is LOLOL. Almost everyone in American knows the slang word as “LOL,” which stands for laughing out loud. LOLOL means the exact same thing as the slang word “LOL” but it represents a continuation of someone or multiple people “lots of laughing out
In the essay if Black English Isn’t a Language, Then Tell Me, What is? by James Baldwin and Mother Tongue by Amy Tan both shows idea of uses of slang and language in different context. In the essay if Black English Isn’t a Language, Then Tell Me, What is? Baldwin states that how language has changed and evolved overtime, Baldwin describes how black English were used as white English, in civil rights movement where blacks were treated as slaves and the used slang language to communicate so that the whites won’t understand. This slang was taken from black language and now everyone uses to make the communication short. In the essay Mother Tongue Tan explains that how language could affect people from different culture. Tan states that how Asian students in America struggle in English. Tan also states that her mother is smart but she couldn’t communicate in English. Tan thinks that’s a big disadvantage for her mother and people coming from different countries cannot show their talent because of their weakness in communication.
Nicknames. They are something that everyone is familiar with in one way or another. However, most people have little, if any, personal experience with nicknames. In Italian-American culture, nicknames play a major role in everyday life. Nicknames are formed with a certain unspoken format, and they have a particular importance. In Italian-American culture nicknames, even though to others they may seem harsh and cruel, are terms of endearment and give a sense of belonging.
William Lutz in “the world of doublespeak” states that jargon is the specialized language of a trade, profession, or similar group, such as that used by doctors, lawyers, engineers, or educators” (391). Also to someone not associated with a specific group and their language jargon will not make sense. It is often used by individuals who wish to sound more intelligent or important. As mentioned in “the world of doublespeak” by Lutz that “jargon as doublespeak often makes the simple sound complex” (391). For example, when the news says intruders instead of bad people or execution instead of killing or when lawyers use the term “involuntary conversion” of property when discussing the loss or destruction of property that is considered using jargon. Lutz finds mainly doctors, lawyers and high educators that are responsible for the spread of jargon
Slang is the key reason words take on new meaning. A teenage girl may say a guy is hot! This does not mean he is sweating, it means he is good looking. This is an example of slang. People familiar with slang will understand this meaning, while those unfamiliar will not. As our culture changes so does our slang and words take on new meanings. Let’s take a closer look at the word burn. Some of the definitions may surprise you.
For example, a lot of colloquialism was used when Aibileen, a character in The Help, said, “I reckon that’s the risk you run, letting somebody else raise you chilluns” (Stockett 2). Because African Americans were treated unequally, they were denied a good education just because they spoke very differently than white people. The speech of an African American was one of the many reasons why whites were racist towards them. Also, Aibileen used slang when she said, “Around Lunchtime, when my stories come on tee-vee, it gets quiet out in the carport” (22). An African American’s word choice may be considered colloquialism because they use a lot of slang in their daily language. Aibileen, from The Help, is one character that talks with a very uneducated mannerism. Overall, the way that an African American talks can decide on how a racist a white person was towards
...word should be used by comedians or not, the answer is it depends with the comedian or the person who is using the word after all it is just a word with different meanings to it.
In One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey, McMurphy often uses the power of laughter to overcome what is going on in the world around him. Laughter lightens the feeling in the book, and at times gives it a warmer feeling. It also helps develop, and shape the characters throughout the entire story.
So I decide to look deeper into the language of the subculture. What I found was a language that was so divergent to anything else I have heard before. The language of hip hop was almost backwards from the English language. I found that words were interchangeable with other words, for the soul purpose of making them mean other things. For example the word dope could actually mean something cool or awesome, but in the literal sense the word dope actually refers to drugs (Baldwin, James). When first researching this I wasn’t surprised at all because I too use this form of language amongst my friends. I also found that within hip hop culture, people do have the tendency to use explicit language as well, for instance the use of the “F” word is very common but not with everyone in the subculture. The style of rapping is different with each individual and is looked at as something that identifies you in the
African American Slang has had many other names: Ebonics, Jive, Black English, and more. The Oxford English Dictionary defines slang (in reference to language) in three different ways: 1) the special vocabulary used by any set of persons of a low or disreputable character; language of a low and vulgar type 2) the special vocabulary or phraseology of a particular calling or profession; the cant or jargon of a certain class or period 3) language of a highly colloquial type, considered as below the level of standard educated speech, and consisting either of new words or of current words employed in some special sense. Whatever one’s perspective on slang, it is a natural and inevitable part of language. In this paper I will discuss examples of current slang being used that some people may not understand.
One student stated that “as long as I know how to speak slang and proper English, I should be ok” (Godley, p. 708). However, nearly all students felt a need for speaking AE or, at least, avoiding slang in work settings (Godley, p. 708). Students’ arguments in favor is maintaining AE in work situations appeared to be navigated by the belief that AAVE is perceived as negative in mainstream society (Godley, Page 709).
I heard some funny retro expression like “JK,” which means one is “just kidding,” and “on the square,” which means one is not. I heard a familiar “JBF” and “TIMATOV!” but also “TPR!” and the “CFG!” “TMS!” (temporary motion sickness?), “KOT!,” and the more universal “Cute!” This is just how people talk, I thought to myself. Feel the wonder of the
The use of slang between college students is apparent, but can be hard to notice if you are a student using these words. Students create slang for sex, dating, drinking, and just about everything else they might come into contact with on a daily basis. An example of this that I noticed immediately when I arrived on campus is the use of the word ‘lit’. In my hometown we did not use it but from what I concluded by looking at yik yak posts is that ‘lit’ means drunk or high. I’m not sure if that is completely correct, it might be a term used for being both drunk and high, but no one really defines it, they are just
Many words and phrases make up our lexicon. When any of us our in a hurry or someone else is in a hurry we say a las millas, meaning super fast. When we are out and we smell something very bad we use the word abombao. The word mira means look, my family uses this word for everything, to get our
African Americans have been known to speak with a certain type of slang for a number of years. The definition of slang is known as a type of language that consist of words and phrase that are typically known as informal. During the mid-1900’s the term Ebonics was coined from Ebony and is now known as the language of the African Diaspora. A common misconception of Ebonics is that it is broken or sloppy English, these are certainly not true. Ebonics is contributed to certain patterns and practices due to the native tongue of African Americans.
The movie industry has its own set of unique jargon that both the actors, directors, and crew members need to learn in order to understand the trade and make the production run smoothly. Everyone on the set has a specific role to play, whether it be the lead actor to someone holding the boom during filming, and each group has developed their own language in order to make their lives easier. This lingo originally established in Hollywood allowed for cast and crew to assign each other different tasks in preparation for the next stage of production, while not mixing up any of main scene for filming at hand. The language itself has remained predominantly inside of the movie industry, but a few terms have managed to become infused into mainstream