Informal or colloquial stratum of the vocabulary

This stratum is used in casual speech and in personal intercourse. The form of speech is mainly oral. THere are several groups but each group has its peculiarities. NEvertheless there are features typical for all:

1) Informal words are used in everyday discourse, gestures and facial expressions assisst the understanding

2. An abandoned use of polysemantic words which can convey no way of diff meanings

3. A frequent use of conversat formulas, ready made patterns and cliche

4. The frequent use of composite words

5. The freq use of abbreviations

6. The use of swear words and oath

7. The use of great number of stylistic devices

8. We can find such curious combinations as: saidback - задержка, a hasbeen - существование, a havenot

9. The use of the so-called intensifiers which in part to the emotive coloring of the informal vocabulary (ex: terribly nice)

The principle stylistic func of the voc is the use in dialogues, represented speech, private correspondence. One of the piculiarities of modern literature is the obliteration of distinctions between narration and dialogue that is between the plan of the author and the plan of the personage. Informal vocabulary may be divided into several parts:

- literary or standard colloquial

- familiar colloquial

- slang

- vulgarisms

Literary (standard colloquial)

A mild form possesses all the features of the voc. Literary colloq words are less detached of the styl neutral words from the other parts of the inf voc. A great number of liter colloq words is usually used in mature age. Young generation prevails in speech, their voc is slangish and even vulgar.

Colloquialisms include:

- colloquial words proper (synonims of neutral words)

Ex: chap - fellow, drifter - a person without a steady job

- phonetic variants of neutral words

Ex: feller - neutrally fellow, gaffer - grand father

Special place is taken by phonetic constructions of auxiliary and modal verbs.

- diminutive of neutral words and proper words

Ex: daddy, piggy, Polly

- colloq meanings of poly-semantic words

Their primary meaning put them in the neutral sphere while their figurative meanings belong to the colloquial sphere.

Ex: spoon - the tool / the man of low mentality (figurative)

- most interjections

Ex: well, ah

But this doesn't concern the "oh" which is a universal signal of emotions.

Care should be taken to avoid confusing colloq speech with illiterate speech of uneducated people. Forms like "we was" "I goes" are outside the standard language.

Familiar colloquial

This group is more emotional and much more free than literary colloq. All the distinctive features of the informal style are accentuated here. In addition to them we can mention:

1. the words with post position Ex: to do up - clean, to do into - to translate

2. An abandoned use of nones-words which are used by the author to suit one occasion only. They are rearly included in the voc. Ex: There was a balconyfull of gentlemen.

It refers to the desire of modern writers to reflect a modern life to show the true make up of the their characters.

Slang

Is the part of the voc consisting of commonly understood and widely used words and expressions of humorous char-r. Many words and expressions which we now class as slang originally appeared in narrow professional groups. But since they have gained wide currency they must be considered as belonging to slang at large. It's especially strong with the younger generation. It often the colloq word and later, perhaps, even an ordinary neutral word.

Ex: Skyscraper, cab, phone, pub

There are at least 30 or 40 slangish words to expressive such everyday notions as food or money. Ex: chuck, grub, hash/ jack, tin, oof, slippery stuff, green

They exist the following ways acc to which slangish words are built:

- change of meaning Ex: to take cottage house - marry before graduation

- composition Ex: black-coat - priest

- conversion Ex: to jaw - to speak, to kid - to fool smb

- through the use of imagery Ex: skirt - girl, killing - astonish

The stylistic function of slang in fiction are the following:

1. slang is an emotive accentuation of the utterance

2. Slang is used for speech char-tion and char-r drawing

Jargon

Is the name for words and phrases used in a profession, game etc. Jargon may be created by diff social groups and classes or by individual persons. The difference between special words and jargon: while slang has an expressive is easily understood, jargon consists mainly of words and phrases connected with profession or trade.

Galperin: jargon = professionalisms.

Jargon words are used in a work of fiction and since they are understandable only for a given group of ppl, they are usually explained in the text. Jargon is used to char-se the person by his manner of speaking. Every professional group has its own jargon. We distinguish student's jargon, musician's jargon etc. MAny jargon words come to be used outside the professional sphere.

Ex: picture show - battle, big gun - important person, grease - money, loaf - head

Cant

It's the secret lang of the under world (thieves, robbers etc.) The striving for secrecy was perhaps the only primary reason why it appeared. The present day function is to serve as a sign of recognition. He who talks cant gives prove of being a professional criminal and can be trusted by other criminals. Cant words are for the most part ordinary english words with transferred meaning.

The origin of the words "cant" is uncertain. It seems connected with the word "contare" (=to sing). And probably implied at first the pleading tones of beggars.

The words of neutral style are used un special meaning in cant.

Ex: mill - prison darkie -lantern jack - money

Besides the neutral words cant includes a number of words characteristic of this style only.

Shiw - knife

Yegg - criminal

Prad - horse

In a work of fiction dealing with the life of under world a special glossary is added in order to provide the reader with commentaries of the words. In imaginative writing cant serves to convey the atmosphere of a social group.