Slang : position in the language

[jophefs]

Slang is one of the vehicles through which languages change and become renewed, and its vigor and color enrich daily speech. Although it has gained respectability in the 20th century, in the past it was often loudly condemned as vulgar. Nevertheless, Shakespeare brought into acceptable usage such slang terms as hubbub, to bump, and to dwindle, and 20th-century writers have used slang brilliantly to convey character and ambiance.

[Zahir]

Informative post, jophes! :thankyou:

[charline7504]

hey !
i can add that slang words are also a part of our culture. for example in france slang words depend of the part of france you live!
but it is very difficult to learn all the words in a foreign language. !
bixoux kissess charline

[cmo]

Yap, SLANG is in all languages. Even if we stick to English language, we will find a lot of slangs from Australia, New Zealand, UK, USA, etc. When the usage becomes so common, the particular slang tend to be included in the dictionary as a new official word.

:flash: :flash: :flash: :flash:

[nadine]

years ago, a friend of mine from california visited philippines never used slang, she said (that her school stated) using slang words in america is uneducated.. what's your point of view? ty

[la i]

slang generally evolves and become part of the lingua franca or accepted idioms as with regular and widespread usage they gain eventually gain "respectability" Examples in Filipino are "astig, erap, parak, etc" just as bod, cops, fantabulous, dick, etc. became integrated into modern English.

[trailblazerstravelntours]

years ago, a friend of mine from california visited philippines never used slang, she said (that her school stated) using slang words in america is uneducated.. what's your point of view? ty

Hi, Nadine! It is a person's choice if she prefers not to use slang words. We can probably use slang words appropriately, that is, always consider the situation. I consider language to be as colorful as life itself. It could be a little boring without slang words around. Anyway, I want to share this article which I find amusing and informative. :WINKING:

“Slangs” have further enriched the language and made communication much easier. So many slang words are freely used by even American men of letters that often it becomes difficult to differentiate between a literary or slang expression. Example:

On a visit to America, an old British lady, wary of slang words, asked her American-born granddaughter: "Promise me that you will not use two words while I am around. One is swell and the other is lousy".

"Why sure, grandma", replied the girl "what are the words."

As a slang word, "hip" stands for sophistication and for fashion, hipper and hippest being its superlative forms. If a lady is referred to as being the hippest in her group, don't think that someone is referring to her substantial behind but to her sophistication, her excellence in fashion.

"Waste'em! means kill them in military slang. After thousands upon thousands have been so wasted, one may refer to the event as "no big deal". Good examples of "no big deals" are the massacres in Mai Lai and in Kosovo.

Even the most finicky about the use of slang would run the hardest to grab someone else's loose "buck". One elected leader in Islamabad stole it while the other robbed it. You may, if you like, put it the other way round. Both are abroad, having "hell of a time".

If you want to praise some thing, you may use either of the words 'hot' or 'cool'. You may call a deep-freezer as 'hot' and a room heater as 'cool' - both words stand in slang for good and attractive. If you are really much impressed, add the word 'way' to either. You may say: "That is cool, way cool, man". Or, you may call it "groovy - real groovy". Isn't that expressive and convenient?

(extract from the "PakistanLink" site, article by S. Arif Hussaini)



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