What is slang and why it is difficult to translate

Surzhyk (pidgin), slang, and neologisms constitute another category that causes trouble for translators, alongside humor and idioms. Selecting words and phrases in another language to fully convey the original meaning of slang words or jargon presents a serious challenge. Sometimes translators keep running through different options in their mind for hours, browse dictionaries, and consult their colleagues, but still fail to find a solution. Such issues are most likely to arise during literary translation.

What should you do in such cases? How should you translate Ukrainian slang into other languages? We’ll discuss these and other matters in this article.

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Slang: examples and meanings

Slang is an informal language used within a certain social or professional group. It usually includes new or modified words and phrases, or just new meanings for words that are different from the standard and generally accepted ones. Interestingly, linguists have not yet come to a single definition of this term, and every specialist interprets it in their own way.

Slang words fall into different categories: teen, youth, student, computer, SMS slang, rap, rock, industry or professional (medical, legal etc.), ethnic and others. But all of them are characterized with transience, dependence on language, instability, uncertainty, informality, and opposition to official style.

Examples of slang: drip, bussin, lowkey, slay.

Slang is more common in spoken language than in writing and is an informal way of communication limited to a certain context. Thus, slang is sort of an identification code that strengthens mutual understanding among the group members and improves their sense of community and similarity.

What is slay and how you can understand youth slang

The young are the most prominent and active among all slang users. There are several reasons for this:

• Young people are the quickest to react to any social changes.
• They are most prone to expressing their identity and differences through language.
• Young people adapt to new terms and trends faster, and this includes slang that arises from the web, music, movies, social media and other cultural contexts.
• The young actively talk on the Internet and exchange text messages.
• Feeling that they belong to a certain group or community is very important for teens and young adults under the age of 25, and slang is often the thing that unites them.
• Using slang words can infuse one’s speech with emotion and expression, which is inherent to youth culture.

Linguists divide youth slang into three groups:

1. Metaphoric slang words: for instance, “trip” – a drug-induced experience, “dog” – a despicable man.
2. Words and phrases with an affectionate diminutive meaning: menty b – mental breakdown, bestie – best friend.
3. Different parts of speech (often verbs and adjectives) emphasizing the meaning, giving it exorbitance and intensity: chill, extra, yeet.

Ukrainian slang is most often enriched with words from other languages, borrowings from criminal jargon, neologisms, and metaphores.

Examples of teen slang:

• Vibe is an atmosphere or feeling.
• Cringe is a synonym of secondhand embarrassment, when a person feels uneasy because of their own actions or the actions of others.
• Slay – good job.
• Flex – bragging about something.
• Zoomer – a member of Gen Z, born between 1997 and 2012.
• Stan – to be a obsessed about a celebrity, be a fan.
• High-key – something very obvious.
• Boomers – the older generation.
• To cook – to be up to something, to be preparing something.

Slang and jargon – is there a difference?

There is no consensus on this issue; some linguists say they are synonyms, others distinguish them by meaning. The latter believe that jargon encompasses specific terminology used within a certain professional group or social category. Jargon might include technical terms, abbreviations or special phrases understandable only for the members of the group. Examples of jargon:

• Medical: crasher – a person who passes out in the ER, usually not a patient;
• Computer: backdoor – access of a computer system with encrypted data that bypasses the system’s security system.
• Soccer: hat-trick – when a players scores three goals in a single game.
• Car: trim – the specification of any given model.
• Criminal: hood – a member of a criminal gang.
• Military: jeep – a soldier just out of basic training

When asked what slang is, the second group of linguists replies that it is informal language used in a certain social group or within a certain youth category. Unlike jargon, it can change based on cultural context and location.

So jargon is used in a professional or industry group, and slang identifies a social group.

Four methods of translating slang

Translating and interpreting slang words can present a challenge in several cases:

• The translator knows the meaning of the word or phrase in the source language, but they do not know the matching term in the target language.
• The translator doesn’t know the meaning of the slang word, so they are trying to guess it and find an appropriate translation.

Such situations are rather common, because native speakers use slang widely, appreciating it for its expressiveness and conciseness. So, in order to decrease the risk of mistakes, the translators from our translation company use the following rule: you need to convey the meaning of the whole sentence rather than a word or phrase.

There are four main methods of translating Ukrainian slang:

1. Direct translation

Used in situations when the meaning of the slang word is clear, and a translation is easily found in the target language.

2. Selecting an equivalent

Some phrases cannot be translated directly, but require finding an equivalent, that is a slang word in the target language with a similar meaning. For example, one could use the English equivalent “to dig” (I dig your new car) for the phrase “ловити кайф”.

3. Translation with an explanation

Giving an explanation or providing some context in the form of a description or comment might be needed for correct understanding of complex or unique slang phrases.

4. Source term without translation

Some slang words are so difficult to translate or explain that the translator decides to leave them in the source language, adding a note with the explanation.

As use can see, translation of Ukrainian slang is a challenging task, and only experienced professionals are up to it. So do not waste your time and money on random freelancers or vendors with a questionable reputation. Contact MK:translations from the get-go. We work with professional translators and specialized editors, so we guarantee accuracy and intelligibility of your texts.

Read also: Why literary translation cannot be a literal copy of the original