Slang expressions in German. Think like a local, speak like a local: German slang that a textbook won't teach you

Very often, students spend years trying to master at least an intermediate level of German, only to realize when they meet a native German speaker that they do not understand a third of what is being said to them. Common situation? This happens because in the class you are taught classical or literary German. But bad luck, on German streets you don’t often meet people who speak like characters from Johann Wolfgang Goethe’s novels. That is why we decided to devote this article to the most popular slang expressions in the German language.

LET'S CHECK HOW WELL YOU KNOW GERMAN SLANG

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Frage 1: Das war ja...krass!

Frage 2: Replace the word "nein" with a slang expression.

Frage 3: Translate the word "geil" into Russian.

Frage 4: What greeting is not used in slang?

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SPOKEN GREETINGS IN GERMAN

In addition to standard greetings like Hallo and Guten Morgen, the German language has many more youthful or “street” counterparts.

Gruß. Hello. Often used instead of Hallo.

Hi. These words came to German from English. In German it's easy fashionable option standard "hello".

Hey. Same as Hi. It came from American English.

Was geht / Was geht denn? Often, instead of the usual Wie geht’s (Wie geht es), you can hear the phrase Was geht from the Germans. It’s not hard to guess that this is just a colloquial analogue of the phrase “How are you?”

Was it ab? Youth greeting. Translates roughly as “Che whom.”

S'läuft / Es läuft? Literally translated “Running?” The phrase is formed by analogy with Wie geht es, that is, “How is it going?” This is a common slang greeting among young people.

CONVERSATIONAL FAREWELLS IN GERMAN

When saying goodbye, Germans also often use phrases that do not exist in classical German. Let's look at the main ones:

Tschüssikowski. This informal farewell to a very interesting story. It was formed from the banal word Tschüss, i.e. "Bye". This word gained popularity after the release of the German TV series Die Zwei. For Germans, this word sounds funny because the suffix “owski” gives the word a Russian or Polish connotation.

Tschüssie. This is a diminutive version of the greeting Tschüss. Used between good friends.

Mach's gut / Mach es gut. Often used to say goodbye to a friend. Translated into Russian roughly as “Come on.”

Na. Same as “well” in Russian. The word itself is used when you need to gain some time and collect your thoughts.

Example: Na, wie geht’s dir heute? Well, how are you doing today?

Na can also form stable expressions with other words, for example na gut - okay, na und - well, na ja- well, etc.

Example: Es war... halt.. nicht so gut. It was... sort of... not very good.

Quasi. This is a Latin prefix, which in the process of language evolution began to work in German exactly the same as the word halt. This word is inserted either when they cannot find the right word, or when they want to express uncertainty.

Example: Ich muss... quasi... nach hause. It’s... like... time to go home.

Dingsbums. It doesn't matter how well you speak German. A situation may always arise when you simply cannot remember the word you need. In this case, Russians say something like “there”, “what’s his name” or “this is the same”. The Germans say Dingsbums.

Example: Wie heißt die Dingsbums da nochmal? What's it called?

POPULAR GERMAN SLANG

If you have never communicated with Germans in a real life situation before, you may be shocked by the amount of incomprehensible vocabulary, especially among young people. Often these are slang expressions, the origin of which may be a mystery even to native speakers themselves. If you are planning to travel to Germany in the near future, then you simply cannot do without the following expressions:

Voll+ adjective. The word voll is translated as “completely”. In colloquial speech, when combined with an adjective, the word simply enhances the meaning of the adjective.

Example: Es ist voll kalt da draußen. There's an oak tree on the street.

Krass. This word can be heard as a reaction to some amazing or even shocking story. In Russian there is a very good analogue “tin”.

Example: Das war ja krass gestern! Yesterday was just brutal!

If you combine the words voll and krass, you get another very useful expression voll krass, i.e. "completely rude."

Hä /hö? Another phrase is surprise or bewilderment. Translated as “what” or “what?”

Ne/ nö. Everyone knows the popular German negation nein. In reality, Germans often forget about it and use the informal ne or nö.

Cool. Another borrowing from English. Pronounced in German as "kul". Just like in English, cool means “cool” or “cool.”

Example: Das ist so gar nicht cool. This is not cool at all.

Geil. German version of the word cool. Also translated as "cool".

Example: Die sah voll geil aus. She looked really cool.

New words can also be formed from the word geil. For example. Affengeil. This expression can hardly be translated literally into Russian. Affe means monkey. When this word is added to geil via the connecting consonant n, the result is something like “nishtyak.”

Fett. The literal translation is “fat” or “thick”. In German slang, fett means the same as geil.

Example: Die party war so fett. The party was very cool.

Super/ mega/ ultra. Prefixes to enhance meaning. German youth often use them instead of the word "very".

Example: Wow, das ist super geil!

Alter. Informal address to friends. Can be translated as “old man”.

Example: Läuft es, Alter? How are you, old man?

Abhotten.“Hang out” or “Hang out.” The word is derived from the English adjective hot, i.e. "hot". Obviously, this is exactly how the Germans feel when they are ahead.

Example: Geil. Wir gehen abhotten. Cool. We're going to party.

Kannste. Short for kannst du, i.e. "can".

Example: Kannste ihn fragen? Can you ask him?

Nix. Colloquial version of nicht. An analogue of the Russian “niche”.

You can know the German language perfectly, but sometimes you are confused by some simple phrases or words that native speakers use in everyday life. This is because real speech is very different from what is given in textbooks.

Conversational greetings in German

We are used to greetings in German as usual - GutenMorgen ! GutenTag! GutenAbend! In colloquial German we would say in the north of Germany - Hallo!, in the south of Germany - Servus! Grü ssGott!

Moin! - a shortened form of "Morgen" (morning), but can be used as a greeting at any time of the day.

Was it ab? - means the usual question “Wie geht es?” ("How are you?"). To answer, young people usually use the following phrases: "nicht viel"(nothing) or "alles gut"(Everything is fine).

Esgehtbeimirimmerlos- means “Something always happens to me” or “So much happens.”

The question “How are you?” when greeting, it can be specified with the particle “Na”.

Na, alles klar? - Ja und bei Dir? - All OK? - Yes, what about you?

Na, Du? - Hi, how are you?

Conversational farewells in German

To say goodbye in spoken language, we use Tschü ss(Bye!) or AufWiedersehen(Goodbye!)

Tschüssie (Bye!) - used between good friends.

Mach's gut / Mach es gut often used to say goodbye to a friend. Translated into Russian roughly as “Come on, good luck.”

Ciao (“Ciao” ​​- goodbye) has become firmly established in spoken German

The most popular slang

Cool- borrowing from the English language, just like in English, translated “cool”.

Geil- This is the German version of the English word cool, . Also translated as "cool".

Super / mega / ultra are prefixes to enhance the meaning. German youth often use them instead of the word "sehr" (very). Especially recently, expressions synonymous with the words “very good”, “excellent”, “wonderful”, “magnificent” - “Super” (hoch besser als sehr schön, sehr gut), “Prima”, “Klasse”, “ Toll", "Geil" (sehr gut), "Megageil" (sehr sehr gut), "Cool" (besonders gut), "Irre" (besonders gut).

Krass - can be heard as a reaction to some surprising, unexpected or even shocking story. An analogue of the word “tin” in the youth slang of the Russian language. .

Halt (“kind of” or “as if”) = used in speech without having any meaning in a sentence.

So ein Quatsch(“stupidity, nonsense”). Verb quatschen translated as “to chat”, its synonym in literary language is sprechen"talk, talk."

Nix is ​​a colloquial variant of "nicht".

Dingsbums. Sometimes a situation arises when you cannot remember the necessary word. Then the Germans say Dingsbums, and we will say “how is it”, “this is the same”, “what’s his name”.

Blö d(« stupid, stupid").

Verdammt - expresses dissatisfaction, indignation, translated as “damned, damned.” Used in a sentence as an adverb and adjective.

The most popular slang expressions

Bock haben - expresses a desire to do something. A synonym for this expression in literary language is “Lust haben”.

Die Nase voll haben - literally means “to have a stuffy nose.” However, in fact, the phrase expresses dissatisfaction with the current situation - that you are tired of everything or you are fed up.

Du gehst mir auf den Keks! - translated “You're getting on my nerves! You're making me nervous! The equivalent in literary language would be « Du gehst mir auf die Nerven.”

Hast du ein bisschen Kohle für mich? - « Do you have some dough (money) for me?” Literal translation of the word "die Kohle" means "coal". The equivalent in literary language would be “Hast du ein bisschen Geld für mich?”

Esistmiregal- “I don’t care”, “I don’t care.”

Das Wetter ist heute total beschissen. - “The weather today is absolutely terrible.” The equivalent in literary language would be « DasWetteristsehrschlecht».

Lasst euch es gut schmecken!- "Enjoy your meal!" In literary German - Guten Appetit!

In this article we presented the most popular words and expressions in spoken German. Today slang is used both in politics and art. You don’t have to go far: almost every German film today contains these slang expressions, you will hear them in the stands, in newspapers, on TV.

In the lessons of teachers on the site, you can learn even more colloquial German phrases and feel like you belong in Germany / among the Germans! Book a trial lesson and good luck in achieving your language goal!

The older generation often complains that they absolutely do not understand what language today’s youth speak. Indeed, youth slang often presents a mystery even to native speakers, what to say about foreigners. All these “cool”, “cool”, “amazing” will be a problem for a person who knows only literary Russian.

At school, university, and courses we are taught to understand a foreign language in its traditional form, but when faced with it in a real communication situation, we discover that we understand practically nothing. German, like any other foreign language, is filled with a huge number of slang expressions. “Krass”, “geil” and much more you will hear from all sides, just walking along one of the German streets.

To alleviate possible difficulties when communicating with young people from Germany, some examples of slang expressions will be presented here. Even if you don't intend to use them in your speech, it will be useful to simply become familiar with them.

Since it’s impossible to cover everything, we’ll start by offering you a list of slang verbs.

Linguists note that the political and socio-economic life of countries is reflected in linguistics as if in a mirror, especially over the past two decades. It is the social problems that are the most acute for society that resonate in the youth language with a rich stylistically colored vocabulary.

It is well known that language is a powerful means of regulating people’s activities in various fields. Studying a youth language is becoming increasingly important in the context of expanding international contacts (internships, tours, teaching a number of subjects by German specialists, watching videos, listening to modern songs in German, etc.). Pierre Maurice Richard points out that German students studying French during internships in France encounter difficulties in communication due to a lack of understanding of a number of terms that they did not have the opportunity to become familiar with in class. The author points out that it is necessary to fill this gap, to help teachers be in the thick of things, to acquaint them with the language of the “street”, the press and modern literature.

E. V. Rosen in his article “Adolescent and youth verbal repertoire (based on the material of the modern German language)” writes that a teacher at school and university more than anyone knows that the verbal repertoire of students has an originality, especially noticeable due to many typical words and expressions. This is vocabulary associated with the process of study or professional training, with training and leisure, as well as that special, purely “youth” vocabulary, which is often called “jargon”, “slang”.

Slang (English) slang) – 1) the same as jargon, mainly in English-speaking countries; 2) A variant of colloquial speech (including expressively colored elements of this speech), which does not coincide with the norm of the literary language. According to the definition of Rosenthal D.E., Telenkova M.A., slang is words and expressions used by persons of certain professions or social strata.

We agree with the opinion of Beregovskaya E.M. that youth slang is an interesting linguistic phenomenon, the existence of which is limited not only by certain age limits, as is clear from its nomination itself, but also by social, temporal and spatial limits. It exists among urban student youth - in separate, more or less closed reference groups.

The most important feature of youth speech culture is the widespread use of slang, which often arises as a protest against verbal cliches, the monotony of dull everyday speech, and, in the end, simply the desire for elitism in the text (Karaulov Yu.N.), the desire to say a sharp word, to distinguish oneself, to be original, which is so characteristic of youth at all times.

Using slang in their speech, young people want to express their critical, ironic attitude towards the values ​​of the world of their elders, show their independence, assert themselves, gain popularity among young people, and also try to stand out from the masses, especially in relation to groups of adult native speakers, in a special language, so called fashionable language. It is well known that young people strive for self-expression through their appearance, the way they spend their leisure time, their commitment to graffiti, hip-hop, etc. Slang is also one of the ways of self-expression of young people, as well as a way to hide the meaning of what is spoken by the “strangers” around them, i.e. this is their hidden, encrypted, “secret” language. Youth slang is the password of all members of the reference group. Their verbal repertoire differs from the generally accepted one by the presence of typical words and expressions regularly used by the youth of an educational institution, neighborhood, city, and which have become a kind of “calling card” of youth culture (Gorshunov Yu.V.).

For the purpose of self-affirmation, wanting to look modern, “advanced”, young people begin to use words and expressions of increased emotionality, according to E. V. Rosen, “strong”, “restless” and even shocking words and expressions, evaluative words that differ from the generally accepted speech norms, and which cannot in any way be recognized as decorations of colloquial speech. Elements of diverse vocabulary, foreign words, professionalisms, and vulgarisms are used. The expressions that are synonymous with the words “very good”, “excellent”, “wonderful”, “magnificent” - “Super” (hoch besser als sehr schön, sehr gut), “Prima”, “Klasse” “flourished especially magnificently” , “Toll”, “Schau”, “Geil” (sehr gut), “Megageil” (sehr gut), “Cool” (besonders gut), “Fett” (sehr gut), “Funky” (sehr gut), “Krass” (sehr gut), “Tierisch”, “Teufisch”, “Höllisch” (sehr gut), “Irre” (besonders gut). The use of these words contributes to separatization, self-separation of representatives of this group of society from others and at the same time unites them into some “in” group. In other words, young people strive for non-standard verbal expression (intergroup conformism); on the other hand, they adopt special expressive words and expressions from partners in speech contacts from their age group in order to speak “like everyone else” in the group (intragroup conformism).

A practical analysis of texts from German magazines “Freundin”, “Prinz”, “Young miss”, “Glamour” allows us to highlight the following features of youth slang:

– frequent use of words and their derivatives such as: Super(der Superpunk-Songs, der Superclub, superbösewicht usw.); toll(tolle Ideen, tolle Bildbände, tolle Tipps, tolle Rezepte, ein toller Hut, tollen Accessoires, toll duften usw.);

– use of large quantities “fashionable”, frequent words and expressions in colloquial speech, many of which are neologisms in advertising texts. Advertising creators often resort to youth vocabulary in their texts: “Top Qualität. Brillante Farben - Top Preise.” ( Pelikan);

– prevalence Anglicisms: Look(neuer Look, der Kreativ-Look, die Looks von Marilyn Monroe, der Vintage-Look, der Jet-Set-Look, ein bisschen Charleston-Look, Retro-Look, New-Look, feminine Look, Couture-Look, glamouröse Look usw.); Party(die Luderpark-Party, Partyreihe, Party-Ableger, Partywelt, Partypeople, Technoparty, Outdoor-Party usw.); Star(Star-Model, Star-Fotograf, Star-Visagistin, Star-Architekt, Cabaret-Star, die Aromastars, Pultstar; Star-Frühstück usw.); cool(“Cool!”, coole Ideen, coole Stil-Ikone, coole Jeans usw.). English words have found their way into many languages, sometimes overcoming resistance, as in France. Germany is more receptive to Anglo-American borrowings. Young people consider English more attractive and more prestigious among young people. Anglicisms introduce novelty and define the speech portrait of a young man, but they often make understanding difficult. There is an unjustified Americanization of everyday speech;

– the presence of a rich system of synonyms: tierisch, teufisch, höllisch, cool;

vollmäßig, weltmäßig konkret, korrekt. The following slangisms are also used in the meaning of “super”, “top class, cool, most wonderful”: fett, analog, aldi, fundamental, gültig, symreal, tiffig, ultimativ;

– imagery of linguistic means, manifested in:

• brevity of slangisms: der Dossi– der Langschläfer, der Träumer, der Phantast; der Fuzzi– der Spezialist; der Taffi– der willensstarke Junge;
• repetitions: der Blubber-Blubber– das Gerede, die Rederei; sterb-sterb– sehr müde, erschöpft; das Zapp-Zapp– pressing the remote control buttons, manipulating the television remote control;
• speech rhythmization: der Schickimicki– der Stutzer; schickimicki– modern, modish;
• rhyme: Ende im Gelände– without a clue (it is not known what is happening and what needs to be done); give five– die Hand ausstrecken;
• alliteration: flippen – floppen – flappen– weinen;
• unusual combinations of sounds: hoppeldihopp– in einem Augenblick; der Fickfack– die Ausflucht; das Multikulti– die Multiculturalität; die Tic-Tak-Tussi– das junge Mädchen;
• pun: Lieber neureich als nie reich! Lieber Kiss in der Tasche als Sand im Getriebe;
• names of states, their historical regions, cities: Kleiner Tiger(small territory and large economic power) - Singapore; die Wallachei(the name of the historical sparsely populated area of ​​​​Romania “Wallachia”, which is located between the Southern Carpathians and the Danube) – der Krähwinkel, die öde; Lipsi– Leipzig;
• names of nationalities: Ikeakind(from IKEA - Swedish furniture company) - der Schwede, die Schwedin; Ami– der Amerikaner;
• ironic phrases and expressions: Hotel Mama– das Leben mit den Eltern; Gymnastiker-Anstalt– das Gymnasium; die Folterkammer– der Sportsaal; die Trachtengruppe– die Streifenwegpolizei; der Parkbankphilosopher– der Obdachlose; die zitronigen Töne des Sängers– die ohrenzerreißenden Töne des Sängers;

– the presence of words that are territorially and socially more limited: die Pinte– das Lokal zweifelhaften Rufes (southwest Germany, Switzerland); die Distille– kleinere Gastwirtschaft, in der vorwiegend Branntwein ausgeschenkt wird, das Bierlokal (Berlin) ; abschallen(norddt.) – überrascht sein; Balle flach halten, dammeln(norddt.) – faulenzen, auf der Bärenhaut liegen; das Gedönse– die Eile, das Gedränge (from the Ruhr region spread to a wider region); gackern, geckern– murmeln (Saxony, Thuringia) Was ist Phase?– Was it lost? (used b.ch. in the eastern lands of Germany).

V.D. Devkin in his work “Dialogue. German colloquial speech in comparison with Russian” writes that young people strive for revitalization and extreme expressivization of statements. The youth culture of German-speaking countries, in particular youth slang, arouses genuine interest among students studying the German language. They want to understand and be understood by their peers in Germany. It is necessary to know slang vocabulary, because it is sometimes difficult to translate: blechen– bezahlen; verticken– verkaufen; checked– etwas verstehen; peilen– verstehen (also: schnallen, raffen); labern– sprechen (reden); mamfen– essen; Bock haben– Lust haben; Null Bock (keinen Bock haben) – keine Lust (keine Lust haben); zutexten– unentwegt auf jemanden einreden (meist gegen dessen Willen); jumpen– springen; das Oky-Doky– Alles in Ordnung; das Outfit– Aussehen (Mode); der Knacker– ein alter Mann (reiche Leute); die Mucke– die Musik; solo– allein (ohne Freund / Freundin, Partner / Partnerin).

The youth verbal repertoire includes slangisms that reflect professional needs, as well as general everyday vocabulary. The speech of young people is replete with words related to studies (disciplines studied, student life): Abi– Abitur; Assi– Assistant; Stip– Stipendium; Proff-Professor; Mathe– Mathematik; Tri– Trigonometry; Alge– Algebra; Litte– Literatur; Bio– Biology; Franz– Französisch; Musi– Music; Reli– Religion; Uni– Universität; Studi– Student; Ferne– Fernbedienung; Grammatikluder– Grammatikopfer; ablausen– abschreiben; einochsen– auswendig lernen; abschwirren, abseilen, wegklemmen (sich), wegschalten (sich)– entlaufen, weglaufen; mitmeißeln– schreiben; ein Riesen-Brett– eine komplizierte Situation. The general everyday dictionary consists of:

– words related to the field of work, mental activity: worken, robotern– arbeiten; Hammern– viel arbeiten; reinhämmern– mit Hochdruck arbeiten;

– names of items necessary for educational activities: der Gedankenmanifestator– der Bleistift; die Gehirnprothese– der Taschenrechner;

– names of types of clothing: Klamotten– Kleidung; das Outfit, der Look, die Anmache– Kleidung; Edel-Look– gute, modische Kleidung; der Pulli, Sweater– die Strickjacke; Shirt– kurzärmliges Hemd aus Baumwolle (Unterhemd); Blazer– Sportjacket; Dessous– Frauenunterwäche;

– words related to the field of entertainment, hobbies, leisure time, free time: shoppen– durch Geschäfte bummeln; das Date– ein Treffen, Verabredung; dancing– tanzen; die Bambule– der Tanzabend; die Outdoor-Party– das Picknick, die Kaffeefahrt; die Aufrisszone– territory, favorite place to spend time;

– names of money: die Kohle, die Knete, die Mäuse, der Kies, das Moos (aus der Gaunersprache), die Möpse, die Monnis- money, money, grandma; die Tonne(hundred bill); der Wampum- money, money (from the name of the North American Indian sash with a bunch of valuable shells, which served as their means of payment); das Esperantogeld– der Euro;

– names of vehicles and items used in everyday life: die Bohrkrücke, Blechhaufen, Kinderwagen, Rostlaube, Schrottkarre, der Kasten, der Riesenorgel, flotter Ofen, lahme Schnecke, heiße Mühle– das Auto; der Muckomat– das Radio; der Total-Verblöder– der Fernseher; Boombox, Ghettoblaster– das Tonbandgerätö Buggy– offener Kinderwagen, leicht zu transportieren, meist zusammenklappbar;

– nouns denoting people or evaluating people: Wixer, Arsch, Arschkrampe, Nullchecker, Spacken– Idiot; Maus, Perle, Schnecke, Torte, das Perlhuhn, das Sahnetörtchen, die Biene, die Sonne– sympathisches Mädchen; die Schlampe– Mädchen mit immer neuen Beziehungen, unordentliche Frau; die Zicke– dummes Mädchen;

– nouns denoting parents: Mumie, Erzeuger, Grufties, Alte, Kalkleisten, ötzi- ancestors, olds (from English. old– old, after the name of the Tyrolean area ötztal, where the remains of primitive man were found); Daddy(Vater);

– evaluative concepts: Klasse, Spitze, supergut, toll, oberaffengeil– hervorragend; cool– locker, lässig, gelassen, besonder gut; ätzend– uninteresting; ausgekocht– schlau (Das ist ein ganz schön ausgekochter Typ); ultimatum– bemerkenswert, super (ultimate Party); total–voll, absolut (totale Banane);

– words and phrases expressing greetings and forms of politeness: Hey! (Hi!)- Hello! (Begrüßung); Sorry!- Entschuldigung!

– words and phrases expressing emotions: Wow– Ausruf der Bewunderung; Boey (Boah Eye)– Ausruf (des Erstaunens; der Bewunderung).

An interesting example of overestimation would be changing a neutral name Anführer on Big Boss, Big Mäc, Chef, First Boy, King, Leader, Mufti. The concept of “leader, leader” here is given a touch of exclusivity by borrowed words. In another example we see underestimation: Versager – Agent 008, Doppelnull, Vollnull, Nulli(nger), Schlappi, Schlappsack, Pennfuzzi(norddt).

I would like to note that German youth are characterized by a type of conventional language in which preference is given to the truncated form of words, shortened words in - i: Wess i– Einwohner Westdeutschlands; Oss i– Einwohner der ehemaligen DDR; Azub i– Auszubildender, Lehrling; As i– asoziale Menschen, Asozialer; Ex i– Existenz; Präs i– Präsident; Fann y– weiblicher Fan; Drog i– Drogensüchtiger, Drogenabhänger; Flip i– einer, der ausgeflippt ist; Prom(m) i– Prominenter; Nerv i– einer, der einem auf die Nerven geht; Multicult i– Multiculturalität; Krim i– Criminal novel; ID i– Idiot.

Young people actively use in their speech reductions, reflecting not only the tendency to save language resources, but also the desire not to be understood. More typical for colloquial speech truncation. Both before and now the most used type of truncation, truncation of final syllables, is Apokope. f): Alf– Alfred; Hannelore - Hanne; Alexander - Alex; Maximilian – Max. All types of word truncation are usually called contractures. E. V. Rosen points out that initial contractures have a number of advantages over full names - they are shorter, more convenient for combining with other stems into a single complex of a compound word. Therefore, we find them in significant numbers in the vocabulary of young people: Stip - Stipendium; Proff – Proffessor; Mathe – Mathematik; Tri – Trigonometry; Litte – Literatur; Diss – Dissertation; Soli – Solidarität; Demo – Demonstration; Bund - Bundeswehr; Disko – Diskothek; Info – Information; Poli – Polizei.

Among Apokopeans, the truncation seam usually occurs after the phonemes [o] And [i], if they are present in the source word: Kompli – Kompliment; Schoko – Schokolade; Limo – Lemonade; Disko – Diskothek, Steno – Stenografie; Kroko – Krokodil; Combo – Combination (kleine Besetzung in der Jazzmusik mit 5 oder 6 Instrumenten); Alko – Alkohol; Deko – Decoration; Stino – Stinknormalo; Deo – Deodorant; Klo – Klosett; Profi – Professionelle; Uni – Universität, fundi – fundamental; Multikulti – Multikulturalität. Further, these words are included in the formation of the following names: Schoko-Füllung, Deko-Industrie, Alko-Test usw.

It should be noted that recently, a previously less active type of truncation is the truncation of initial syllables; apheresis (die Aphäresis) is little by little gaining strength. And this is no coincidence. Young people want to speak a language that others do not understand. And since most of the information is at the beginning of the word, apocopes are more understandable, and they resort to apheresis more and more often. For example: der Pott– der Ruhrpott (das Ruhrgebiet); Birne – Glühbirne; kanisch– amerikanisch; s'geht– es geht. The final method of truncation is also found in proper names: Bert– Albert; Achim– Joachim; Guste– Auguste.

Abbreviations of phrases became widespread in the 20th century. Initial abbreviations are divided into alphabetisms and acronyms.

Alphabetisms (letter abbreviations, where each letter is read as in the alphabet) are often found in speech despite difficulties in pronunciation: OK– o’key (fashionable expression of agreement); TV– Television; DVD– (digital versatile disc) digital video disc; DJ– Diskjockey. The last abbreviation is very often found in youth publications: DJ-Tour, DJ-Urgesteinen, DJ-Weltstar, DJ-Kanzel, Techno-DJ, namenhafte DJs usw.; k. K.(kalter Kaffee) – der Unsinn;

Acronyms, initial abbreviations that contain a vowel phoneme, are more typical for the youth lexicon: VIP– (very important person) sehr wichtige Persönlichkeit; ARGE– Arbeitsgemeinschaft (Arbeitsamt, die Verwaltung, die eigentlich eine neue Arbeit besorgen soll); ASAP– (as soon as possible) so schnell wie möglich; MOF– Menschen ohne Freunde.

Another method of word formation is word merger; telescopic formation is a method of word formation in which part of one word merges to form a single word with part of another word or with a whole word. Young people really like words formed in this way, words that cannot be found in any dictionary, but can be recognized by the presence of two original words: Joga + Gymnastik = Joganastik; Aero + Akrobatik = Aerobatik; Krokodil + Elefant = krokofantös.

Of particular interest are words ending in - O, denoting a masculine person, his profession, political affiliation or characteristic: der Normalo– der normale Junge; der Provokalo– der Junge, der auf sich die Aufmerksamkeit ziehen kann; der Carriero– der Karrierist, der Streber; der Kritikalo, der Profi-Kritikalo– der Kritiker; der Konservativo– der Conservative; der Anarcho– der Anarchist; der Radikalo– der Radikale; radikalo– radikal; der Fascho– der Faschist; der Sympathiko– ein sympathischer Junge; der Trivialo– ein trivialer Junge; der Randalo– der Radaumacher; der Fossilio– der Alte; schizo– absonderlich, komisch. New phenomena in word formation, as T. S. Aleksandrova and I. B. Prigoniker point out, include the widespread use of word-forming pseudo-Italian elements in youth slang - O. If in the 80s. with its help, the names of the character were formed, mostly masculine: Normalo, Radikalo, but now not only their number has increased significantly (Trivialo, Kritikalo, Randalo), but also the suffixal element itself - O acquired new properties and functions. Now, with its help, inanimate and abstract nouns (Problemo), adjectives, and adverbs (rapido, rasanto) are formed. The distorted German language, a mixture of German and Italian, began to be called Trappatoni-Deutsch n(named after football coach Trappatoni).

Some slangisms are borrowed from:

- in English: Mopping– Menschen am Arbeitsplatz verachten, schlecht behandeln, erniedrigen, schikanieren; Cartoon– satirische Geschichte als Comicstrip oder Kurzfim; Karsting– Vorsprechen, vorsingen oder vortanzen; City– Altstadt oder Geschäftszentrum; Chow– Darstellung; Laser Chow– Lichtdarstellung; Shopping Center– modernes Einkaufszentrum; Crash– Zusammenstoß (Autounfall); Designer– Entwerfer; Clinch (in Clinch sein) – mit jemandem in Streit sein; Wooky!– Super! Class! Sorry!– Sich entschuldigen, dabei höflich bleiben, auch wenn der Chef (der Kunde, der Supervisor) tobt.

– French: die Courage– Beherztheit, unerschrocken; die Announcement– Zeitungsanzeige; der Chef– Abteilungsleiter oder Betriebsleiter; die Carriere– bedeutende erfolgreiche Laufbahn (Karriere machen: schnelle befördert werden); der Cr?pe– dünnen Eierkuchen; das Bistro– kleine Gaststätte; das Dessert– Nachspeise; das Prestige– das Ansehen; der Clou– Hohepunkt; das Dessous– Frauenunterwäsche; die Clique– Freundeskreis junger Leute;

– Italian language: Paparazzi– Scandalreporter; prestissito, presto, rapido– sehr schnell; subito– sehr schnell; rasanto– jählings; der Tifoso– der Fußballfanatiker; der Antipasto– die Vorspeise; zero problem– alles klar, alles easy, null Problem;

– Spanish: der Macho[-to] – harter Junge / Mann, der stolz auf seine Männlichkeit ist; der Gaucho[-to] – sehr harter Junge / Mann, der stolz auf seine Männlichkeit ist; der Amigo– der Freund; die Tapas– die leichte Vorspeise; die Savanne– die öde, der Krähwinkel;

– Japanese language: der Karoshi[i] – der Infarkt, der Insult.

A new direction has appeared in the youth language - “Kanakisch”. The word “Kanaker” is of Polynesian origin and when translated means “man”. In Germany, from the word “Kanaker” the word “Kanake” was formed with a pejorative connotation, denoting all emigrants. The vocabulary of this direction rapidly expanded and reached 300 words. Here are some examples: weisstu– weißt du; Alder– Alter (im Sinne von Freund, Kumpel); isch schwör– ich schwöre; weisstu wieisch mein– du verstehst, wie ich es meine. This direction is characterized by syntactic features:

– use of the dative case: Alder, dem ist dem Problem weisstu?(Aber das ist das Problem, weißt du?); Dem Ampeln is grün, abern wenn rot is, fahr isch trotzdem drüber, isch schwör, Alder!(Die Ampel ist grün, aber auch wenn rot ist, fahre ich trotzdem, ich schwöre es dir, Alter!);

– use of masculine nouns: Siehssu dem Tuss?(Siehst du die junge Frau dort?);

– disappearance of consonants in verbs and personal pronouns in interrogative sentences: Rassu?(Rauchst du)?; Hastu Problem, was it?(Has due in Problem?)

Youth slang is characterized by the phenomenon of “juggling” with other languages, English and Turkish in particular: Gipsuhär!(Gib das sofort her!); Kuxu nur!(Da guckst du nur!).

Of particular interest are words that have antonymic meanings. So the word “ätzend” ( from English acid) means “disgusting” and “super, top class”; “Witzknubbel” is both “a joker, a wit” and “a person without a sense of humor.” The meaning of a word can be guessed based on the context or situation.

To enhance the emotionality of speech, young people use a set of intensifiers that replace “ gut ”, “sehr gut ”, “besonders gut " These words are: “tierisch”, “teufisch”, “höllisch”, “cool”; “ schlecht ” – “grottenschlecht”; “ groß ” - “bombastisch”, “galaktisch”, “gigantisch”; “ leicht ” – “easy”; “ modern ” – “crazy”, “trendig, trendy”, “kultig”; “ langweilig” – “laschi”, “latschig”, “prall”.

Evaluative words can have both positive (“phatt”, “schau”, “geil”, “kultig”, “korrekt”, “konkret”) and negative values(“assig”, “schizo”, “daneben”). When using prefixes (“mega-”, “meta-”, “giga-”, “ober-”, “voll-”) the evaluative meaning of these adjectives is enhanced (“Es ist super hier. Es ist so geil hier, ja sogar mega geil.” Metahart – sehr hart; metastark – sehr stark). “Super” is still widely used as a prefix: “superlustig” – “sehr lustig”; “die Superbirne” – “der kluge Junge”; “der Superklub”, “Superpunk-Songs”, “superböse”, etc. To enhance the evaluative value, “doppel”, z is used. B. “doppelplus” (super-super, extra) and prefixes “inter-” – intercool (super-cool, super-fashionable); intergeil (extra, super, luxury); “ultra-” – ultrahart (superhard). The adverb “uroft”, typical of youth slang - “very often” with an emotionally intensifying meaning, absent in modern literary language, was in Middle High German and is found in the famous minnesinger Walter von der Vogelweide

Evaluative words and clichés make up a very large and important part of the verbal repertoire of young people in Germany. The range of evaluative epithets is impressive. Adjective "cool"(“locker”, “lässig”, “gelassen”, “besonders gut”) is widely used in all situations and circumstances. But young people also use “cool” in the sense of “ruhig”.

We agree with the opinion of Yu. M. Shemchuk that while the literary language is characterized by some restraint and a sense of proportion, the youth language attracts with creativity and humor. Freshness and originality are an obligatory attribute of youth substitutions, which means that the expressiveness of youth words and expressions is internal to the lexical unit, i.e., it is intrinsic in nature. For example: Zitterknochen, Zitterrüssel– Angsthase; Antenna– Empfindung; Schürzerjäger– Frauenheld; Floss– Hand; Feuer, Giftnudel– Zigarette.

The presence of metaphors and metonymies in youth language is explained by the tendency towards expressiveness and the desire for specific images: die Tomate, der Kürbis, die Melone, die Rübe, die Kappe, die Schüssel– der Kopf;

Often words and expressions have a pronounced disparaging connotation: die Tussie, die Trulla, die Zicke(z. B. “Verschwinde, du blöde Zicke!”) – dummes Mädchen; die Eule, der Besen, die Gans, die Schraube– unsympathisches Mädchen; Asi– unsympathische, schmutzige Menschen; Asi-Scale– ungepflegtes Auto;

The use of a number of expressions reflects a tendency towards exaggeration of emotions: Das ist ein Yuppie!– dynamischer, energischer aufstrebender junger Mensch mit modischer Bekleidung. Das ist ein Hammer! – eine tolle Sache. Das geht ja voll ab hier. – besonders (Bekräftigung). Das ist ein ganz schön ausgekochter Typ. – hinterlistig, schlau. Das ist eine Baby! – gut aussehendes Mädchen.

Young people are sometimes merciless towards their peers. And with the aim of insulting and humiliating him, they use “sarcastic” words: der Brüller– tinned throat; der Daffel– der Idiot; die Kreischnudel– der Mensch mit der quäkenden Stimme. The following come under fire from criticism:

– appearance: hohl– altmodisch; der Kurze, der Nabelküsser– der kleinwüchsige Junge; der Pelzlümmel– der Junge mit den langen Haaren; der Pommespanzer– der volle Junge; der Stopfer, die Tonne– der dicke Junge / Mann; die Rauschkugel– der betrunkene, (berauschte) Junge / Mann; der Skeletti– der magere Junge / Mann; die Brillenschlange– der Junge / Mann, der die Brille trägt; sie hat ein volles Hemd an– das Mädchen, das die große Brust hat; Miss Holland– das Mädchen, das die kleine Brust hat; der Bärenkiller– die Frau, die sich im Schambereich rasiert; die Schrumpelrose– die alte Frau;

- character traits: der Schlaffi– der faule Junge; der Schmachti, der Warmduscher, der Softi, das Weichei– der sanfte Junge / Mann; der Angsthase– der feige Junge; der Eisbeutel– der herzlose Mensch; sie ist ein voller Kaktuskopf– ein höhnisches Mädchen; der Kühlturm(Er ist echt der totale Kühlturm) – die Kaltblütigkeit; der Ladykiller– der junge Mann, der das Herz des Mädchens gewinnt; eine madamige Gans– ein aufgeblasenes Mädchen; die Rotzschleuder– die Heulsuse;

– intellectual abilities: der Denkmeister, der Denkzwerg, der Diddl– der Dummkopf;

– behavior and personal life: das HwG Mädchen– (das Mädchen mit) häufig w echselndem G eschlechtsverkehr; der Süffel, Diplom-Alker– der Trinker;

– professions: der Bulle, (die Bullenschweine, die Gartenzwerge)– der Polizist; die Trachtengruppe– “mummers” (traffic police patrol in full uniform); der Lappenwirt(derived from die Lappen– pieces of paper, banknotes) – der Bankier; der Giftmischer– der Arzt, der Apotheker; der Kopfgärtner, der Figaro, der Bartkratzer, Mattenschneider– der Friseur; der Reimprofessor– der Dichter, der Schriftsteller, der Autor; der Filmhein– der Filmschaffende; der Bonze, der Modezar– der Schneider; der Plattenpräsident– Diskjockey; der Presseheini– der Journalist; der Mobby– der Lehrer.

It is slang that gives the language its special uniqueness. A language “born” among young people, over time, takes its place at different levels of the common language, and claims to take its rightful place there. We, like O. V. Oleinik, believe that slang coloring is felt until the word is new and has not begun to be used by everyone. As soon as it becomes generally known and widely used, the attitude towards it changes and it begins to be considered neutral ( der Senior– der Rentner) .

Modern films, videos, radio and television programs, comics, advertising, and various printed materials contribute to the dissemination of youth vocabulary. In an effort to become closer to the youth audience, many journalists resort to using youth slang.

A shocking number of expressively charged words and expressions perceived by adults are later used by them in everyday communication. Some slang words and expressions sometimes supplant the general language version, and also often coexist with it.

In communicating with peers, native speakers, as well as when reading fiction, journalistic and scientific literature, listening to authentic songs, watching original videos, students encounter new obscure and difficult to translate words. And the primary task of the teacher is to remove difficulties in understanding them.

If E.V. Rosen considers slangisms to be not very witty linguistic quirks - evidence of the cultural immaturity of a teenager, and E.G. Borisova proposes to fight any manifestations of jargon in the speech of young people, then we, together with E.M. Beregovskaya, believe that as long as youth slang is used by young people, when they communicate with each other in a relaxed, informal atmosphere, no “pollution” of the language occurs. The same applies to the language of fiction: when slangisms are included as elements of a character’s speech mask, this does not cause any protest if done with tact and aesthetically motivated.

In conclusion, I would like to note that the study of the slang of German youth is becoming increasingly relevant in the context of expanding international contacts, it helps students better imagine the features and originality of the national picture of the world, and understand the nationally specific features of the mentality of German youth. Understanding and knowledge of slang introduces students to the natural language environment, contributes to the development of their communicative competence, and represents a unique opportunity to include students in an active dialogue between cultures. Ignorance of slang leads, when carrying out an act of intercultural communication, to all sorts of oddities and speech errors, communication “failures”, the prevention of which must be given special attention.

LITERATURE

1. Alexandrova T. S., Prigoniker I. B. New words in the 21st century. German-Russian dictionary: approx. 3000 words and expressions / T. S. Aleksandrova, I. B. Prigoniker. – M., 2007.
2. Beregovskaya E. M. Youth slang: formation and functioning / E. M. Beregovskaya // Issues.
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4. Borisova E. G. About some features of modern youth jargon // Russian. language at school – 1981.
5. Bykova O. I. Ethnocultural repertoire of German pragmatonyms / O. I. Bykova // Vestnik of VSU, Series “Linguistics and Intercultural Communication”. – No. 2005.
6. Devkin V.D. Dialogue. German colloquial speech in comparison with Russian / V. D. Devkin. – M., 1981.
7. Domashnev A.I. Works on German linguistics and sociolinguistics / A.I. Domashnev. – St. Petersburg, 2005.
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10. Oleinik O. V. German slangisms in the light of neological theory. Abstract of thesis. k.f. n. – Samara, 2007.
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