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Speakin' in tongues

A LEXICOGRAPHY OF YOUTH CULTURE

By Terry E-E Chang

A

about that: (adj.) being all for something. "I'm so not about that."

agro: (adj.) Californian, meaning annoyed and aggravated: "Uh, Jenny's going agro on me. You think we oughta call an outreach hotline?"

ai't: (contraction) all right. "I'll see later, ai't?"

ass: (adv.) very "anything," usu. with "ass cool" or "ass crazy."

ass: (adj.) horrible beyond comparison. "Man, that party was ass."

B

barney: (n.) an ugly male. "John Harvard's such a barney."

"bend over, and I'll show you some [--]": (imp.) useful when challenging another's comment. "Wasn't the cusk at Annenberg divine tonight?" "Whatever. Bend over and I'll show you some cusk."

bust a nut: (v.) to work really hard. "Mike's busting a nut over CS 50 and he's turning into an RSI-case."

C

cappucino sipper: (n.) a dreamer, as applied to philosophy or psych concentrators or anyone with a strong affinity for tight black clothing and smoky cafes. "What's that cappucino sipper doing after graduation?"

crackbaby: (n.) (1) an uncool, freakish or weird person. (2) a premed. "Fell that crackbaby to stop spazzing over Orgo."

D

drop knowledge: (v.) to spill facts. "Drop some knowledge about the parties tonight."

F

face: (v.) analogous to "talk to the hand."

flavor: (n.) to have style. "He's got the flavor."

fugly: (adj.) fuck + ugly. "No means no. I don't want to have sex with you, fugly."

G

garden tool: (n.) a whore, from "ho." "The Wellesley garden tools are here."

to get medieval on: (v.) to get brutal and violent, popularized by Pulp Fiction.

ghetto: (adj.) either tattered and poor looking or styling. "That's a ghetto hat."

I

issues: (n.) a cuphemism for psychological problems. "Those psycho singles in Greenough have, uh, issues."

J

jock: (v.) to play someone, or mack "Joe's giving Jane a line. He's so jocking her."

K

kick it: (v.) to hang out, not to be confused with "hit it." "I'm not doing anything tonight. Wanna kick it?"

know one's shit: (v.) to know one's business, to be adept at something.

M

militant: (adj.) to be strongly for something, used by the Harvard swim team

mint: (adj.) of high quality, like "money." "That suit is mint."

mojo: (n.) energy, dynamicism, can be sexual. "Just look at him get his groove on; his mojo is turned on tonight."

money: (adj.) excellent quality, popularized by Swingers. "You're somoney, baby and you don't even know it."

O

old school: (adj.) either classic or outdated.

out of the box (in the box): (adj.) to depart from convention (or to fiting the mold). "Fm magazine takes you out of the box from your regular Crimson experience."

P

pret aller: (adj.) a French phrase meaning "ready to go." "Hold on, wait for me to get my fishnets and stilettos on and I'll be pret aller."

S

sexile: (v.) to boot your roommate out of the bedroom for the night to have sex. "Man, my roommate sexiled me, so I have to sleep on the common room couch."

skank: (n.) a slutty girl, see garden tool.

spoon: (v.) to sexile

T

tight: (adj.) close, of high quality

twenty-four seven: (adj.) nonstop."'

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