Various figures of speech participate in slang formation

1. Various figures of speech participate in slang formation.

For example: upperstorey-head (metaphor)

skirt-girl (metonymy)

killing-astonishing (hyperbole)

 some-excellent or bad (understatement)

 clear as mud (irony)

Slang items usually arise by the same means in which new words enter the general vocabulary.

2. The slang word can appear thanks to the recycling of the words and parts of words, which are already in the language.

Expressions may take form as metaphors, similes, and other figures of speech (dead as a doornail).Some slang formation follow the rules of Standard English. F.e., slang behaves regularly in the forming of denominal adjectives by –y suffixation (e.g. cbordy- moody, cbord-a bad mood, gobby-mouthy, slang gob-mouth) and deverbal adjectives by – able suffixation (shaggable- slang to shag –to fornicate). It uses the suffix –ette to denote female sex as in punkette (a female punk). It uses the verbal prefix de- to convey a sense of removal or deprivation to the base as in de-bag –to remove trousers. [21]

Words may acquire new meanings (cool, cat). A narrow meaning may become generalized (fink, originally a strikebreaker, later a betrayer or disappointer) or vice-versa (heap, a run-down car). Most affixation tend to belong to extragrammatical morphology, though they exhibit a certain regularity and stability.

Slang has some productive suffixes which are either novel (eg. -o/oo, -eroo, -ers) or used differently from Standard English. The slang suffix –o means either ``a stupid unintelligent person``(dumbo, thicko) or a person with a particular habbit or characteristic (eg. Saddo, sicko). This suffix seems to be productive in the making of forms of address (kiddo, yobbo)

A cumulation of the suffix – er with –o/oo produces –eroo in slang as in smackeroo, meaning the same as smacker but with a more light – hearted slant.

Another profilic slang cumulation is –ers as in some pair nouns (cobblers, conkers, knackers), plural nouns (choppers-teeth, trousers) and uncountable nouns (ackers-money, uppers- amphetamine). The slang suffix –ers often occurs after abbreviation as in bathers (bathing costumes), brekkers (breakfast), taters (potatoes).

The suffix –s lost its inflectional meaning in slang and conveys new meaning to the base: afters- dessert, flicks- cinema, messages- groceries.

The use of – ed is also noteworthy in slang. It is added to noun to obtain adjectives: boxed, brained, hammered, ratted. –er in slang gives unpredictable sense as in belter- excellent thing or event, bottler-person who easily gives up.

3. Compounding makes one word from two. Initial and final combination have intensifying function: butt naked- fully naked, butt ugly- completely ugly; earache- a talkative person, faceache – a miserable looking person, airhead-someone out of touch with reality, homeboy-a person from the same hometown

Infixes are unknown in standard English being a peculiarity of slang. Bloody, fucking are used to provide information about speaker`s attitude (as in abso-bloody-lutely, or in fan-fuckin`-tastic).

Conversion is anomalous in slang in case of adjective-noun as in high- pleasantly intoxicated state, massive- a group of people.[22]

4. In slang, frequently used words are likely to be abbreviated. For example: OTL-out to lunch-out of touch with reality. VJ-video jock-an announcer for televised music videos

Words may be clipped, or abbreviated (mike, microphone), and acronyms may gain currency (VIP, awol, snafu).

5. A currently productive process is the addition of a particle like OUT, OFF or ON to a noun, adjective or verb, to form a phrasal verb.

For example: blimp out-to overeat

blow off-to ignore

hit on-to make sexual overtures to

6. Unlike the general vocabulary of the language, English slang has not borrowed heavily from foreign languages, although it does borrow from dialects, especially from such ethnic or special interest groups which make an impact on the dominant culture .

7. Sometimes new words are just invented. shenanigans-tricks, pranks

So we can see that slang depart from what is generally regarded as grammatical or predictable and is likely to pioneer original word-formation processes which pave the way for further morphological process.

III.  PRACTICAL PART

1.  Translate the sentences from Fnglish. [23]

a) Sarah: hey why is Jimmy in the background of our prom picture?

Ryan: irk, he must have photobombed it at the last second.

b) I couldn't get a word in edgewise. She kept talking to me about her shoes, purse, and how her best friend just got dumped. I am a word receptacle.

c) Every morning Sherwin swings by our area to say hi and pulls a management by driveby.

d) Tiger: "I have to run to Zales to get a Kobe Special."

Friend: "What's that?"

Tiger: "A house on a finger."

e) "Dan won't answer your calls. He's in airplane mode."

f) "Sarah went into airplane mode for three days after Charlie dumped her."

g) Man, when I get back to work I'll have to start going to the gym again- I've put on some serious holiday pounds