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Back slang is not restricted to words spoken phonemically backwards. English frequently makes use of diphthongs, which is an issue for back slang since diphthongs cannot be reversed. The resulting fix slightly alters the traditional back slang. An example is trousers and its diphthong, ou, which is replaced with wo in the back slang version ...
The root word mock traces to the Old French mocquer (later moquer), meaning to scoff at, laugh at, deride, or fool, [3] [4] although the origin of mocquer is itself unknown. [5] Labeling a person or thing as a mockery may also be used to imply that it or they are a poor quality or counterfeit version of some genuine other, such as the case in ...
Back-formation is either the process of creating a new lexeme (less precisely, a new "word") by removing actual or supposed affixes, or a neologism formed by such a process. Back-formations are shortened words created from longer words, thus back-formations may be viewed as a sub-type of clipping .
"Scofflaw" was the winning entry of a nationwide competition to create a new word for "the lawless drinker," with a prize of $200 in gold, sponsored by Delcevare King, a banker and enthusiastic supporter of Prohibition, in 1923. [1] Two separate entrants, Henry Irving Dale and Kate L. Butler, submitted the word, and split the $200 prize equally.
Backchannel communication is present in all cultures and languages, though frequency and use may vary. For example, backchannel responses are not only a key component of oral languages but they are also important in sign languages. [8] Another example is Germans produce smaller backchannel responses and use back channel responses less ...
Other examples of colloquial usage in English include contractions or profanity. [7] "Colloquial" should also be distinguished from "non-standard". [8] The difference between standard and non-standard is not necessarily connected to the difference between formal and colloquial. [9]
French, used in the plural "les keufs", as slang for the police. This word is more derogatory than "les flics", even though it means the same thing. The word is derived from the pronunciation of "flic" as "FLEE-KUH". In verlan slang, words are reversed, thus making the word "kuhflee". In turn, "lee" was dropped from the word, leaving "keuf ...
(The word has become international with the meaning of "making a pioneering journey"; the slang usage more closely resembles the standard Afrikaans meaning.) trekker – lit. "mover". Also refers to a tractor , as it can be used to tow (pull) trailers and/or cars.