Kirzen

Chances are that at some point in your life you have been reading, or listening to a conversation that is technically being carried out in your own native language but you have very little idea what the person is talking or writing about because they are using the slang that they are used to rather than words you understand.

Here’s one for US travelers to the UK – would you have any clue what a person there meant if they told you something was iffy, or that you were daft? And by the same token would a Brit really know what an American meant if they invited them to a kegger? Chances are that in both cases the foreigner would be very confused. That is where a slang dictionary can be a big help!

(For the answers to the puzzlers above check the Commonly Used American Slang and the English Slang Dictionary links here)

It is not just a difference in nationalities that can make understanding slang difficult either. For instance to if someone told you that they had a beef with you would you think that they wanted to take you to McDonald’s for a hamburger or would you understand that what they were really trying to tell you is that they had a problem with you? If you’d checked our Rap Dictionary link you would have understood! Or if your Mom asks you if you can dig what she’s saying she probably hasn’t gone crazy its just that she grew up in the 1960′s when the slang they used back then was rather different to the slang used today.

Taking the time to figure out what some slang words mean can make life a lot easier and save more than a few misunderstandings!
The next time you are puzzled by what someone says try checking our slang dictionary links before you reply.