Slang dictionary

A slang dictionary is a reference book containing an alphabetical list of slang, vernacular vocabulary not generally acceptable in formal usage, usually including information given for each word, including meaning, pronunciation, and etymology. It can provide definitions on a range of slang from more mundane terms (like "rain check" or "bob and weave") to obscure sexual practices. Such works also can include words and phrases arising from different dialects and argots, which may or may not have passed into more common usage. They can also track the changing meaning of the terms over time and space, as they migrate and mutate. This makes them of interest to a variety of people, from oral historians, to etymologists, to the casual browser.

Famous slang dictionaries

17th and 18th centuries

Slang dictionaries have been around hundreds of years. The Canting Academy, or Devil's Cabinet Opened was a 17th-century slang dictionary, written in 1673 by Richard Head, that looked to define Thieves' cant. Other early slang dictionaries include A New Dictionary of the Terms Ancient and Modern of the Canting Crew, first published circa 1698, and Francis Grose's A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, first published in 1785.

Modern times

In recent years, dictionaries with a more academic focus have tried to bring together etymological studies in an attempt to provide definitive guides to slang while avoiding problems arising from folk etymology and false etymology. The study of slang is now taken seriously by academics, especially lexicographers like the late Eric Partridge, devoting their energies to the field and publishing on it, including producing slang dictionaries.

Examples

Examples include:

• Chambers Slang Dictionary (by Jonathon Green, Chambers Harrap Publishers, ISBN 9780550104397), previously Cassell Dictionary of Slang (Cassell Reference, 1998; last edition 2006, ISBN 9780304366361)
• Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English (by Eric Partridge and Paul Beale, Routledge, 2002, ISBN 0415291895)
• The Oxford Dictionary of Modern Slang (by John Ayto and John Simpson, Oxford University Press, 2005, ISBN 0198610521)

Vulgar slang

There have also been more tongue-in-cheek efforts which tend to focus on the more vulgar slang terms:

• Roger's Profanisaurus Rex: The Ultimate Swearing Dictionary (third edition, Viz, 2005, ISBN 0752228129)

The Urban Dictionary relies on user contributions, which can introduce both humour and inaccuracies. It has also been published in book form:

• Urban Dictionary: Fularious Street Slang Defined (by Aaron Peckham, Andrews McMeel, 2006, ISBN 0740751433)

• The Shesaurus: Hip Hop Women's Dictionary (by Keshia Kola, Penmar Press Publishing, 2005, ISBN 0615221588)

See also

• Jargon
• Slang
• Thieves' cant

External links

• British Library Texts in Context: 1785 – Grose's Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue
• A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue at Project Gutenberg
• fromoldbooks.org version of the Vulgar Tongue with one page per entry, links to examples and to another canting (thieving) dictionary
• A 1737 dictionary of canting slang produced by Nathan Bailey
• Three Centuries of Canting Songs and Slang Rhyme, edited by John Farmer (1896)
• British Library article on The Canting Academy

This article about a reference book is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Dictionaries by type Cant languages Slang Linguistics books Reference book stubs Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР? Louisiana Highway 15 URBA mass transport system Look at other dictionaries: slang dictionary — dictionary containing words and expressions from colloquial language …   English contemporary dictionary Slang (linguistique) — Slang est la dénomination de l argot de la langue anglaise. En raison de la diffusion de celle ci à travers l ensemble de l Empire britannique, le slang s’est répandu dans l ensemble des pays anglo saxons et connaît désormais des variantes… …   Wikipédia en Français Slang — (spr. Släng), in England 1) die Diebssprache; 2) alle Wörter u. Redensarten, welche ohne grammatische u. etymologische Berechtigung theils aus gewissen Gesellschafts u. Berufsklassen in die Sprache gekommen, theils von den tonangebenden Kreisen… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon Slang — For other uses, see Slang (disambiguation). Slang is the use of informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker s language or dialect but are considered more acceptable when used socially. Slang is often to be found …   Wikipedia dictionary — Synonyms and related words: biographical dictionary, cant, chemical dictionary, desk dictionary, dialect dictionary, dictionary of quotations, electronics dictionary, etymological dictionary, foreign language dictionary, gazetteer, general… …   Moby Thesaurus slang — 1. The term slang is first recorded in the 1750s, but it was not used by Dr Johnson in his Dictionary of 1755 nor entered in it as a headword (he used the term low word, with implications of disapproval). Nonetheless, the notion of highly… …   Modern English usage Slang — (spr. ßläng), von Slangenberg, einem holländischen General, der seine Soldaten in den absonderlichsten Ausdrücken zu schelten pflegte, ist in England Name für die aus dem Gewerbs , Sport , Studenten , Straßenleben etc. sich bildenden vulgären… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon dictionary — /dik sheuh ner ee/, n., pl. dictionaries. 1. a book containing a selection of the words of a language, usually arranged alphabetically, giving information about their meanings, pronunciations, etymologies, inflected forms, etc., expressed in… …   Universalium Dictionary — For other uses, see Dictionary (disambiguation). For Wikimedia s dictionary project visit Wiktionary, or see the Wiktionary article. A multi volume Latin dictionary by Egidio Forcellini. A dic …   Wikipedia Dictionary of American English — A Dictionary of American English on Historical Principles (DAE) is a dictionary of terms appearing in English in the United States that was published in four volumes from 1938 to 1944 by the University of Chicago Press.[1][2][3] Intended to pick… …   Wikipedia 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”