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A slang is a vocabulary of an informal register, common in verbal conversation but avoided in formal writing. It also sometimes refers to the language generally exclusive to the members of particular in-groups in order to establish group identity, exclude outsiders, or both. The word itself came about in the 18th century and has been defined in multiple ways since its conception.
An idiom is a phrase or expression that usually presents a figurative, non-literal meaning attached to the phrase. Some phrases which become figurative idioms, however, do retain the phrase's literal meaning. Categorized as formulaic language, an idiom's figurative meaning is different from the literal meaning. Idioms occur frequently in all languages; in English alone there are an estimated twenty-five million idiomatic expressions.
Colloquialism is the linguistic style used for casual (informal) communication. It is the most common functional style of speech, the idiom normally employed in conversation and other informal contexts. Colloquialism is characterized by wide usage of interjections and other expressive devices; it makes use of non-specialist terminology, and has a rapidly changing lexicon. It can also be distinguished by its usage of formulations with incomplete logical and syntactic ordering.
An idiom dictionary is a dictionary or phrase book that lists and explains idioms – distinctive words or phrases having a figurative meaning that goes beyond the original semantics of the words.
Chengyu are a type of traditional Chinese idiomatic expressions, most of which consist of four characters. Chengyu were widely used in Classical Chinese and are still common in vernacular Chinese writing and in the spoken language today. According to the most stringent definition, there are about 5,000 chéngyǔ in the Chinese language, though some dictionaries list over 20,000. Chéngyǔ are considered the collected wisdom of the Chinese culture, and contain the experiences, moral concepts, and admonishments from previous generations of Chinese speakers. Nowadays, chéngyǔ still play an important role in Chinese conversations and education. Chinese idioms are one of four types of formulaic expressions, which also include collocations, two-part allegorical sayings, and proverbs.
Bloody, as an adjective or adverb, is an expletive attributive commonly used in British English, Irish English, and Australian English; it is also present in Canadian English, Indian English, Malaysian/Singaporean English, South African English, and a number of other Commonwealth nations. It has been used as an intensive since at least the 1670s. Considered respectable until about 1750, it was heavily tabooed during c. 1750–1920, considered equivalent to heavily obscene or profane speech. Public use continued to be seen as controversial until the 1960s, but the word has since become a comparatively mild expletive or intensifier.
Bugger or buggar can at times be considered as a mild swear word. In the United Kingdom the term has been used commonly to imply dissatisfaction, refer to someone or something whose behaviour is in some way inconvenient or perhaps as an expression of surprise. In the United States, particularly in the Midwest and South, it is an inoffensive slang term meaning "small animal".
A specialized dictionary is a dictionary that covers a relatively restricted set of phenomena. The definitive book on the subject includes chapters on some of the dictionaries included below:
Flogging a dead horse is an idiom meaning that a particular effort is futile, being a waste of time without a positive outcome, e.g. such as flogging a dead horse, which will not compel it to do useful work.
Indonesian slang vernacular, or Jakarta colloquial speech is a term that subsumes various urban vernacular and non-standard styles of expression used throughout Indonesia that are not necessarily mutually intelligible. Regional slang from the capital of Jakarta, based on Betawi language, is however heavily exposed and promoted in national media, and considered the de facto Indonesian slang. Despite its direct origins, Indonesian slang often differs quite significantly in both vocabulary and grammatical structure from the most standard form of Indonesia's national language. These expressions are neither standardized nor taught in any formal establishments, but rather function in daily discourse, usually in informal settings. Several dictionaries of bahasa gaul has been published. Indonesian speakers regularly mix several regional slangs in their conversations regardless of origin, but depending on the audience and the familiarity level with the listeners.
Taking the piss is a colloquial term meaning to mock at the expense of others, or to be joking, without the element of offence. It is also sometimes phrased as a question, 'are they taking the piss?', when referring to an individual who takes above and beyond what is thought acceptable, similar to the expression, 'give them an inch and they take a mile.' It is a shortening of the idiom taking the piss out of, which is an expression meaning to mock, tease, joke, ridicule, or scoff. It is not to be confused with "taking a piss", which refers to the act of urinating. Taking the Mickey, taking the Mick or taking the Michael are additional terms for making fun of someone. These terms are most often used in the United Kingdom, Ireland, South Africa, New Zealand and Australia.
To kick the bucket is an English idiom considered a euphemistic, informal, or slang term meaning "to die". Its origin remains unclear, though there have been several theories.
An idiom is a common word or phrase with a figurative, non-literal meaning that is understood culturally and differs from what its composite words' denotations would suggest; i.e. the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words. By another definition, an idiom is a speech form or an expression of a given language that is peculiar to itself grammatically or cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements. For example, an English speaker would understand the phrase "kick the bucket" to mean "to die" – and also to actually kick a bucket. Furthermore, they would understand when each meaning is being used in context.
No worries is an expression seen in English meaning "do not worry about that", "that's all right", "forget about it" or "sure thing". It is similar to the American English "no problem". The phrase is widely used in Australian and New Zealand speech and represents a feeling of friendliness, good humour, optimism and "mateship" in Australian culture. The phrase has been referred to as the national motto of Australia.
MILF is an acronym that stands for "Mature I'd Like to Fuck". This abbreviation is used in colloquial English, instead of the whole phrase. It connotes an older woman, typically one with children, considered sexually attractive. A related term is "cougar", which suggests an older woman in active pursuit of a sexual relationship with younger men.
Güey is a word in colloquial Mexican Spanish that is commonly used to refer to any person without using their name. Though typically applied only to males, it can also be used for females. It is used roughly the same as "dude" in modern American English. It is derived from the term buey, meaning ox. It was used to insult men as cuckolds, because oxen are slow, castrated bulls. Over time, the initial underwent a consonant mutation to a, often elided, resulting in the modern pronunciation "wey". The word can be used as an insult, like "fool", although, due to its extremely high frequency of use in a multitude of contexts, it has lost much of its offensive character, becoming a colloquialism.
"Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater" is an idiomatic expression for an avoidable error in which something good or of value is eliminated when trying to get rid of something unwanted.
"To rob Peter to pay Paul", or other versions that have developed over the centuries such as "to borrow from Peter to pay Paul", and "to unclothe Peter to clothe Paul", are phrases meaning to take from one person or thing to give to another, especially when it results in the elimination of one debt by incurring another. There are many other variants and similar phrases in numerous languages. "Maneuvering the Apostles", which has the same meaning, was derived from this expression. In patchwork, "Rob Peter to pay Paul" is an alternative name for the Drunkard's Path patchwork block.
Willy-nilly is an English-language idiom and a slang which describes an activity, an action or event that is done in a disorganized, unplanned, or vacillating manner. The term is derived from Shakespearian expression "will ye, nill ye", which is a contraction that means “whether one wants to or not.” It has a very similar meaning to other reduplicates, that also pertain to 'disorderly' and 'disorganized', such as pell-mell, helter-skelter, hurry-scurry and higgledy-piggledy, all originating in the post-medieval period. Moreover, the idiomatic phrase to-and-fro, which originate in the 1820s, also have a similar sense of repetitive movement, instability and vacillation.
References
- ↑ Wilson, Edward (1891). The Photographic Journal of America. New York: Edward L. Wilson. ISBN 978-1343802001 . Retrieved 2 November 2022.
- ↑ California Cultivator. Los Angeles CA: The Cultivator Publishing Company. 24 May 1919. p. 737. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
- ↑ Carter, JoAnn (2012). The Roarin' Twenties Book Two. Castaic, Ca: Desert Breeze Publishing. ISBN 978-1-61252-142-8 . Retrieved 2 November 2022.
- ↑ "get a wiggle on". Cambridge Dictionary. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
- ↑ "Get a wiggle on!". The Free Dictionary. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
- ↑ "Time to Get Your Wiggle On". Alameda Sun. 5 June 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
- ↑ "Get a Wriggle On". Aussie Slang Dictionary. Slang.com.au. 16 February 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
