Language is an essential aspect of human life. It is the medium through which people communicate with each other. Language is, however, not static since it keeps evolving each day. In every community today, there is jargon, the informal part of it is referred to as slang. Slang is one of the quickest growing forms of language. If you are a language learner, slang is significant in your journey of learning a new language. Here is how.
1. Slang Offers a Good Opportunity to Learn
An easy way of adopting a language is to put all your attention on it. What this means is that everything you do should directly affect your plan to learn the language. This decision means that every movie, book, and music you do contributes to gaining your new language. Learning a language, however, does not end here; you also need to know various slang phrases.
An example of a word is “chick,” which to the typical man could mean the youngling of a hen or a bird. To most students, mostly in the US, the term means a woman or a girl. Any slight change in the definition due to context ends up confusing a student. Adequate focus on learning slang, however, increases your chances of learning a language. It is so, as it equips you with the contextual meaning of particular words and phrases.
Other learning opportunities associated with slang include important expressions and vocabulary. Slang is informal. Yet, it keeps the vocabulary and idiomatic expressions from the formal language. It is, therefore, a good way to keep up with the vocabulary and idioms related to a language of interest.
2. Slang Keeps You Current
Jargon is deep into the system today. In case you are learning a particular language, it is still not possible to avoid it. Thanks to social media, slang continues to thrive as the language is traded on. Take the United States alone. About 64 percent of students prefer to use slang over the conventional language. Not only is this population using slang to speak but to write as well. Words like twerking and buzzworthy were not formally applicable. Yet, they have made their way to conventional English communication. Understanding slang has become an important way to keep yourself current. Moreover, it allows you to keep up with changes in your language.
3. Slang Easily Connects You with Your Culture
Language and culture are naturally inseparable. Slang tends to interfere with the cultures associated with a language. To enjoy culture in its most original form, you need to be able to view the culture more originally. One way is by understanding the conventional language associated with it. If you know slang, you can easily separate the formals from the informal. Seeing the culture in its plain form can also have a rebound effect on your learning of a language. Besides, the easiest way of learning a language is by understanding its culture.
4. Slang Speeds Up Your Communication
Think of one of the most coveted forms of the English language, British English. It is the queen’s language. Thus, British English tends to stick to the old principles of the English language. These adherences slow down communication and could make conversations boring. Slang, however, changes all that by keeping things short and simple. American English is hugely English, profoundly affected by pop culture and slang. People can today use “wanna” in place of want to and “gonna” for going to. The result is that the American way of speaking is sleeker and more upbeat. Slang, therefore, speeds up your way of speaking and approach to a language.
