Credit: University of Leicester Student Slang
This month we are moving from word choice to looking at words and phrases we are often told to avoid. We are diving into the world of slang, jargon and acronyms. These words provide character and animate conversations. You can learn a lot about a person by listening to them speak.
You can find out where someone is from and their attitude when they use slang. But you may not learn as much as you hope because slang is also used by people to be secretive. Think secret societies, students and prisoners.
Credit: nwamotherlode.com
Speaking of being secretive, jargon often sounds like a secret language to those outside of the special group in which it is used. Jargon can tell you about someone’s profession, skill or hobby. But when those in the special group try to use it to communicate with the rest of us, we are often left feeling confused and frustrated. Have you ever left your doctor’s office dizzy and scratching your head from the diagnosis or course of treatment they have “explained” to you?
Like jargon, acronyms can feel like a secret code we have to crack. A short-hand puzzle of letters. Almost every profession has their own.
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From military leaders to the U.S. Text Messaging Champion, acronyms are becoming more of a phenomenon as our world continues to expand and our language continues to shrink to fit Twitter’s 140 characters or less constraint. As we learned last month LOL and OMG have already been added to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary proving that acronyms are quickly becoming a part of every day language.
We are dedicating a month to learning all about slang, jargon and acronyms because they are what makes language fun, unique and personal. We’ll hear from some leading experts who will break it down and help us understand why knowing how to interpret slang, jargon and acronyms should be a no-brainer.
Liz Faris, Associate
Collaborative Services, Inc.
* Headline translation: Oh My Gosh! Collaborative Services’ next topic is all good – slang, jargon and acronyms.Thank you for your support!
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