SOCIAL MEDIA IS CHANGING OUR ENGLISH LANGUAGE

 

The social media is changing the English language and enriching it with new words and phrases. As expected, the children are picking them up far more quickly but if we pay attention, we will not be left out. One of the most notable ways that social media has influenced the English language, is through the appropriation of existing vocabulary. This is called re-appropriation. Words that had existing meanings, have now been given other meanings in an online context. This then spills over into verbal communication. 

Language is an evolving thing. It’s naïve to think that the language of social media isn’t having an effect on the way we use English in day-to-day life. It’s more appropriate to consider just how much of an effect it’s having on the way we communicate. And I am not talking about LOL, OMG, RIP or TTLY. There are some more serious contributions to our  language skills. So let me help you with a few new entrants to my vocabulary. 

 

Sleeping on: not paying enough attention or missing out on something. Previously the term was used to postpone for the next day but now it means missing out, underrate or un-appreciate, e.g. Don't sleep on this new slang word, it's actually quite useful!

Hits differently: something that stands out and makes you feel nostalgic or emotional. They are usually from your childhood memories e.g. My mother's mustard fish just hits differently! Movies like The Sound of Music and Mary Poppins just hit differently. 

Bop: A really good song e.g. you must hear the item song of this movie, it's a bop! Music has over the ages been appreciated by newer words. Every generation has its own word for a good song. In the early 2000s, we called it a banger, which stems from the 1960s word headbanger that describes the head-shaking moves characteristic of rock music. Before that, we called it a jam, which comes from the 1920s jazz jam sessions. In 2021, we didn't stray too far from the jazz age, as the modern descriptor of a good song is a bop, which is a shortening of the 1940s jazz style called bebop. 

Ghost: Suddenly stop communicating with someone on social media, e.g. even though we were schoolmates due to our political differences he ghosted me. 

 

Fam: Inner circle of friends. The word is derived from family but usually incorporates both close friends and family; e.g. the pandemic is not allowing me to hang out with my fam more often.

 

High key and low key: This is a measure of your appreciation, whether it is a lot or just a bit; e.g. I like your tie high key or I like your hairstyle low key

 

Finesse: Persuade or manipulate someone; e.g. she finessed her boyfriend into doing her hospital duty. When you finesse someone into doing something for you, it means that you convince or manipulate them into doing that, even though they initially weren't ready or eager to help you.

Drag or Roast:  Both these words mean to criticize or make fun of someone; e.g. my friends drag me about being sloppy every time I drop food on my clothes while eating. When you drag someone, you criticize or complain about them, often publicly. Another word that is used instead of drag is roast; e.g. he was regularly roasted in school for his poor handwriting. 

 

CEO of: The best of something; e.g. my mother is the CEO of cooking biriyani! My grandfather is the CEO of hugs! Just like the Chief Executive Officer of a company, who is the best at his job, you are the best at your job .........or at least your children think so!

 

Glow up: A mental, physical or emotional transformation for the better; e.g. she has really had a glow up during the difficult lockdown. We've all spent quarantine in our own way. Some people got a new hobby, while others started working out or investing more time in reading or being in touch with others. In a way, we all got a glow up!

 

A whole host of words originating from social media and the wider Internet have become so commonplace that they’ve now slipped into popular usage, and we don’t even realize it. Just a few interesting words that have their origins in technology are blogosphere (the collective word for personal websites called blogs), troll (someone who creates conflict online by starting arguments or upsetting people) and buzzword (a word or phrase that is fashionable at a particular time or in a particular context). Even some acronyms have made the transition into everyday speech as words, ‘lol’ for example.

Another curious phenomenon we’ve seen in recent years is the re-appropriation of existing words and words based on brands to refer primarily to their social media context. Re-appropriation is the cultural process by which a group claims words that were previously used in a certain way and gives them a new meaning. In this way the people who engage with social media are quite literally creating new words and giving new meanings to existing words.

‘Friended’ and ‘unfriended’ are two examples of words that have been given a new meaning due to their usage online. The word ‘friend’ and ‘befriend’ is from Old English originating in the 13th Century, but it has been given an entirely new meaning thanks to Facebook (the process of adding or removing someone from your circle of friends). ‘Like’ and ‘viral’ are other popular examples of words that have had their meaning re-appropriated by social media.

So, courtesy the social media, we are all in the process of learning a newer and friendly version of English and there is no point sleeping on it. Do you remember what ‘sleeping on it’ means? Got you! It means ‘not paying enough attention to it’.