The Debate: To Include Slang or Not

The dictionary and slang have had a complicated relationship for a long time. Since the inception of the dictionary there has been a debate about what kinds of words should be included. In the podcast Adam Ruins Everything, Anne Curzan discusses how the original dictionary only printed the “hard” words. It was printed with the purpose of providing explanations only to the very difficult words as it was assumed all the readers knew the definitions of the “easy” words.  (Hard and easy being put in quotations because what is hard and what is easy is relative to each person)

The addition of slang has been a long standing debate since the first dictionary. The two sides of the debate have been:

•the conservation side that views the dictionary as a place to preserve the standard English we use in the classroom and in speeches. This side is against the addition of slang to the dictionary as it is not a part of the language the dictionary is preserving

•the representation side which views the dictionary as a book that represents the spoken language at the time of publication. This side wants slang and the new words that are developed to be added to the dictionary as they feel the dictionary is a supposed to represent the language spoken for the period it is published in.

So how do dictionaries feel? What side of this debate do they take? Merriam-Webster did a series of articles on their take on the addition of slang to their dictionary. According to their articles, Merriam Webster’s stance on the dictionary is this: “We follow language and delight in tracking its changes”. The Merriam Webster Dictionary takes the stance of the representation side. They use the criteria that was described in the “Adding a Word to the Dictionary” portion of this site for all words including slang. Regardless of what the word is, if it meets the criteria outlined, the Merriam Webster Dictionary works to add it to their dictionary. They also take time to make the point that whether or not a term is slang or not is relative depending on the time period. According to their article titled “‘Has your Mother Sold her Mangle’ Slang and the Dictionary”, words like grouchy, fake and babble were all once considered slang. Only after they were added to the dictionary did these words slowly become acceptable and apart of standard English. This is to point out that as users of the English language, we should try not to be so strict about what goes in the dictionary and what doesn’t, because many of the words we use now may end up following grouchy and transition from slang to standard English.

There many people agree with Merriam Webster. In Christine Arumainayagam’s article titles “Should Slang be Adopted into Newer Versions of Dictionary”, she points out that language has been constantly evolving since the beginning with new words continuously being added to both the language and the dictionary. She closes her article saying “If language didn’t evolve, we’d all still be grunting and pointing”. As humans, we will continue to innovate and grow our level of communication by creating and adding new words. These words will aid in our writing, description of new technologies, and ease of communication. Therefore, people like this author feel slang should be added into the dictionary no question.

The important thing to remember when discussing this topic is to view the dictionary as a map. The map is only as good as it’s last update. If the dictionary was preserved from it’s original inception, it would not be very helpful to us now. It would probably many words which we have never heard of and it certainly would not be an accurate representation of the language we speak now. That is why many dictionaries choose to include slang and constantly update their collection of words; they want to be as accurate as possible for our ease of use.

How has technology changed Slang’s representation in the Dictionary:

Technology has played a huge part in the uptick in slang for two main reasons:

• Social media has provided a platform for people of all walks of life to write down their informal thoughts. This has allowed for the exchange and promotion of slang, making it widespread.

•Social media has also allowed for lexicographers and editors of dictionaries to finally have access to informal speech and writing. Prior to technology, lexicographers would have to actively research in pubs and hotels for this type of informal speech. If they wanted slang to be properly represented in their dictionaries, they would need to go to taverns (“‘Has your Mother Sold her Mangle’ Slang and the Dictionary”).

The internet in general has greatly helped in the research of new words, but it is social media that has specifically aided in the finding and defining of slang in dictionaries.

Further questions for discussion:

•Who has the authority to label words slang or not?

•Why do you think Merriam-Webster published their stance on whether or not to add slang words to the dictionary?

•  Do you know of any dictionaries that have a differing opinion on slang than Merriam Webster? If so why?