Definitions

1
Definitions

• SLANG An informal non-standard vocabulary
  composed of coinages, arbitrarily changed words,
  and extravagant, forced, or facetious figures of
  speech.
• JARGON The specialized speech of professions
  and trades.
• CANT A type of language whose purpose is to
  make spoken communication unintelligible to
  people outside the group.

2
Cockney Rhyming Cant

• holy friar liar
• chicken perch church
• rob my pal gal
• artful dodger lodger
• God forbids kids
• Oliver Twist fist
• apples pears stairs

• sepposeptic tankyank
• trouble strife wife
• jam jar car
• dog bone telephone
• tea leaves thieves
• Britneys beers
• (Irish) queers

3
Why Do People Use Slang?

• Group identification To distinguish ins from
  outs.
• Reaction to formality and the established way of
  doing things.
• Fulfills natural desire for novelty and colorful,
  interesting speech.

4
What Happens to Slang?

• It dies out.
• It becomes standard English.
• It remains in the language as slang.

5
Slang can die out

• 19th century conbobberation, blustiferous,
  slang whanger
• 1920s razzmatazz, applesauce, scram, 23
  skiddoo
• 1930s stiff, palooka, flatfoot

• 40s 50s hep cat, dig, bug, square, rat
  fink, groovy
• 60s 70s far out, spacy, flipped out, bad
  trip
• 80s gag me with a spoon, totally, tubular,
  groty to the max

6
Slang can become Standard English

• frisky, gambler, conundrum, mob, bored, flout,
  fretful, club, dwindle, freshman, glib, hubbub,
  scoundrel, trip, hike, tidy, tantrum, sweater,
  clumsy, swagger, blizzard, rambunctious

• Listed as slang in 1929 Encyclopedia Brittanica
• bootlegger, fake, fizzle, hike, hobo,
  racketeer, o.k.
• cool?

7
Slang can remain slang

• 10th century dizzy
• 13th century booze
• 14th century gab, bones (dice), piece
• 15th century broad
• 16th century kid, rot-gut
• 17th century grub, hick, lousy, beat it, guy
• 18th century frisk, spunk, hush-money, pig

8
Slang List from 1993 Sun Article

• Cheesy tacky
• Hitting on flirting
• Hoochie good looking girl
• Hottie good-looking guy
• Dis to show disrespect
• Dope - good

• Hoopty - car
• Peeps - parents
• Phat good
• Props respect
• Ragging on making fun of
• Styling dressing well
• Word up the truth

9
Slang list from 2000 article

• Banging wonderful
• The bomb top notch
• Boo girlfriend
• Homeboy friend
• Keep it real be yourself
• Represent to perform up to expectations

• My ting my girl
• My shorty my girl
• Wack goofy, uncool
• Word is born you can say that again
• You down? Are you with us?