slang

¹

[slang]

noun

1. very informal usage in vocabulary and idiom that is characteristically more metaphorical, playful, elliptical, vivid, and ephemeral than ordinary language, as Hit the road.

2. (in English and some other languages) speech and writing characterized by the use of vulgar and socially taboo vocabulary and idiomatic expressions.

3. the jargon of a particular class, profession, etc.

4. the special vocabulary of thieves, vagabonds, etc.; argot.

   Synonyms: cant

verb (used without object)

1. to use slang or abusive language.

verb (used with object)

1. to assail with abusive language.

slang

²

[slang]

verb

Nonstandard.

1. simple past tense of sling.

slang

/ slæŋ /

noun

1. 1. vocabulary, idiom, etc, that is not appropriate to the standard form of a language or to formal contexts, may be restricted as to social status or distribution, and is characteristically more metaphorical and transitory than standard language

   2. ( as modifier )

      a slang word

2. another word for jargon 1

verb

1. to abuse (someone) with vituperative language; insult

slang

1. Expressions that do not belong to standard written English. For example, “flipping out” is slang for “losing one's mind” or “losing one's temper.” Slang expressions are usually inappropriate in formal speech or writing. (See jargon.)

Usage

See informal.

Other Word Forms

• slangily adverb
• slangy adjective
• slanginess noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of slang¹

First recorded in 1750–60; origin uncertain

Word History and Origins

Origin of slang¹

C18: of unknown origin

Example Sentences

“You might consider pulling back on the slang.”

Read more on Literature

"Most Australians would know if you said 'speaks bogan' or 'bogan Australian' that the language would be highly informal with many slang and colloquial words and phrases, including uniquely Australian ones."

Read more on BBC

She also included the Zulu word "azishe" which literally means "let it burn" but in slang can mean "let it start" or "let it proceed".

Read more on BBC

“Please don’t be glazing me here, Zohran,” he said, borrowing some Gen Alpha slang as the candidates, and audience, laughed riotously.

Read more on Salon

Members of Gen Alpha, it added, might be "smirking at the thought of adults once again struggling to make sense of your notoriously slippery slang."

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• argot 
• jargon 
• lingo 
• patois 
• vernacular 

When To Use

Where does slang come from?

Every single person uses slang in one form or another.Defined as "very informal usage in vocabulary and idiom that is characteristically more metaphorical, playful, elliptical, vivid, and ephemeral than ordinary language," slang is sorta like the rebellious teen of our vocab.Appropriately enough, the origin of the word slang is unruly as well. The word is first recorded around 1750–60, and was used early on for the special, secret lingo of the underground, often referred to as thieves' cant.One now obsolete theory connected slang to sling, imagining slang as the kind of language that's tossed or thrown around. Another theory links slang to another sense of slang, meaning a "narrow strip of land," which became associated with the territory that hawkers traveled and their unique speaking style.Slang ain’t alone: it finds lots of company in other English words that seem simple but whose origins are not. Discover more in our slideshow “‘Dog,’ ‘Boy,’ And Other Words That We Don’t Know Where They Came From."