Let’s talk about slang language for a minute. First, there are several words out there, that drive me crazy. But I have to let my kids say them because they don’t mean what they used to.
Last week my husband went nuclear when Sandor, our eight year old said, “freak the freak out”. Well, right now on the Disney Channel (I think) Victorious does a song called “Freak the Freak Out”. It’s super popular and catchy but what my husband heard was our son slinging the F Bomb around like Tony Soprano.
Sux, I’m the one that really hats that one because it makes me think we are talking about a specific kind of sex act. I’m old and have to accept that’s not what it means anymore. These days it just means something is bad. Example:”I’ve got a ton of homework and it sucks”. Now I still don’t understand the spelling, should it be sux or sucks? Beats me.
And then there’s the term “ballin”. When I was a kid “balling” meant sex, now it means obviously a basket ball player, somebody who’s cool or has a lot going on or it means wealth and affluence. Example, a guy drives by in a Hummer,”that guy’s ballin”. Good news, when you say that now it doesn’t mean he’s having sex in the back seat.
And then there are so many words you shouldn’t try to use if you are over 30. Because I have a lot of children I’m told what to say and what’s inappropriate or just stupid all the time. The problem with using an out of date slang term is it makes you sound ancient.
Words most of us need to stay away from include “fly”, do not call money “cheese”, do not try to call girls “shorties” unless you are a 14 year old African American boy. The term “hot mess” is now out of date and if you are over 30 try to stay away from new terms for pot. Don’t call it “greens”, just stick with pot, or if you want to sound Starsky and Hutch you can try to get away with “dope”.
And finally, the two words bringing most adults down and making them sound so lame and tragically outdated, “Bling” and “Pimpin”. There’s no room in your vocabulary for these 2003 phrases so cut it out.
Good luck trying to navigate the world of slang. It’s treacherous out there . I suggest you stick with words you actually understand, like “cool”.