Wotcher, first post!

More often than not, people use slang in everyday language.

Slang is the use of informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's dialect or language, according to the online definition. There are countless debates on whether or not slang is beneficial communication-wise. Most of the time it is a way for people, especially adolescents, to connect on a certain level. Some adults look their noses down on it, but it's quite clearly the way they get along, the way that they signal they belong in a group, the way that they fit in. Most slang tends to originate in subcultures within a society, by way of the mouth. Technological slang boomed in the late 20th century. Most people are familiar with text slang, such as replacing the word "you" with "u" or dotting their messages with artificial laughter ("LOL"= laughing out loud).

As I was re-reading the Harry Potter series for the eleventh time, I came across a few unfamiliar phrases and subsequently felt the need to put my trusty friend Google to the test. One term, such as "git", really means an idiot. There are also a few scenes where Harry gets a new broomstick and his best friend Ron says "Can I have a go on it?” which basically means to "have a try". (At least in US terms.) Here is a list of some other words that I found moderately interesting:

• Geroff - Colloquial form of "Get off", which in turn means "leave me alone" or "let go."
• Knickerbockers - Short pants. 
• Cuppa - A cup of tea.
• Wotcher - A greeting, shortened form of "what cheer!" Also spelled "Wotcha".

 

Slang is something that will always exist in language. These colorful metaphors add liveliness and variety to everyday speech. If everyone spoke like stiff textbooks, it would make feigning interest as people speak that much harder. Slang is something that allows more comfortable, albeit informal conversation. And of course, it's always fun when you're ahead of the game and know what things like "YOLO" meant before everyone else did. I enjoy British lit like Harry Potter in the way that it exposes us Americans to different phrases and acronyms and all that rot. Reading books from other countries can help expand our minds to different cultures and their slang terms. Yo.