Morphology

and Semantics
ENG 420
“I ship you
with Mark.”
r
“Ship” is short fo
If yo u
relationship.
think two people
er,
should be togeth
you “ship” them. Ship
 “You ar
et
GOAT!. he
”
GOAT is
an
acronym
for
“Greate
st Of All
Time”
GOAT
“She totally
curved me.”
To reject someone
romantically or to
g.
ignore their flirtin

Curve
 “What
’s
tea sis the
?”
“Tea” r
efers to
best kin the
d of
gossip
. Usua
share w lly
ith bes
friends t
and ab
someo o ut
ne they
Tea know.
“She is so
thirsty!”
Desperate for
something or
someone. .

Thirsty
 “Low k
e
think h y, I
e’s
cute.”
“Low K
ey mea
they ar ns
e abou
say so t to
methin
that the g
y don’t
want a
Low Key know.
nyone
to
“Why you so
salty?!”
t
To be bitter abou
something or
someone.

Salty
 “SKUR
T
SKURT
!!”

To tell
someo
to go a ne
way or
leave.

Skurt
“Dayum she
threw you
some
shade!”
To say something
rude about
someone else. Throw Shade
 “That
so
is stra ng
ight
fire!!”
Someth
ing or
someo
ne that
hot or tr is
endy.

Straight
Fire
 As a parent mys
elf, trying to com
own teenager, it municate with m
sometimes feels y
speaking anothe like they are
r language. It’s a
slang words and language full of
phrases you’ve n
Going into this p ever heard of.
roject, I knew I w
lot of questions a ould be asking a
nd doing researc
many of these w h. There are
ords that I do kn
heard it enough ow because I’ve
with my daughte
friends and I’ve fig r talking to her
ured out what so
mean and even me of the words
find myself using
just to make them some of them to
feel that I am com
them and unders patible to
tand them.
 I remember whe
n I was my daug
my own languag hter’s age, I had
e too with my frie
important for tee nds. I think it’s
nagers to have th
language. Every eir own
generation, teen
own teen words. agers had their
What was once 'c
'groovy' may now ool', 'rad' or
be 'sick' or 'lit'. T
sometimes be ha he meaning can
rd to understand
what teenagers w and course that
ant.
 Using a languag
e particular to yo
is part of develop ur tribe and time
ing self-esteem,
sense of identity confidence and a
and belonging. Te
trying to find their enagers are
way in the adult
feel most comfort world and often
able with their pe
own language he ers. Having their
lps them bond w
and build confide ith other teens
nce. I think a lot
they come up with of the words that
come from song
have been taken s or sometimes
from past genera
morphed into so tions and
me new.
 Like the word “sh
ady” was used w
was not to be tru hen someone
sted or someone
There is now a p who was fake.
hrase “throwing
means to talk tra shade”, which
sh to someone w
fool. The word “s ho is acting a
hade” is still use
a negative way. In d and is meant in
conclusion, lang
always changed uages have
through history. P
always to going eople are
invent new word
using and speaki s and new ways
ng it. of
 References:

https://www.urba
ndictionary.com/
https://momydad
y.com/teenage/te
en-slangs-words/
https://debatewis
e.org/debates/30
event-young-peo 82-does-slang-p
ple-from-being-a r
ate-properly/ ble-to-communic

https://netsanity.n
et/teen-slang-pa
rents-guide/