The 2023 editions of Le Petit Robert and Le Petit Larousse have been enriched with new words, most of which come from the language of young people. The opportunity for parents to understand their meaning, and even to use them wisely. Details.
[Mise à jour du 2 novembre à 11h16] The expressions of young people, many parents do not understand them. This is even the goal. Often, they tend to scratch their ears, so unpronounceable or simply abstruse do they seem. Who hasn’t already had the impression of being a dinosaur when hearing their teenager speak? He speaks to you but no, nothing helps: you do not speak the same language or at least not with the same words. Always, youth has had its own language inspired by culture, whether in music or in foreign languages, but now also social networks as for the famous “tmtc” abbreviated in texting, which means “yourself you know”. Recently, dictionaries Little Robert and the Petit Larousse have integrated new words into their pages for their 2023 editions. Terms and expressions partly used by young people and which have been popularized in recent years. So if you are parents, and you want to have a clear and understandable discussion with your child again, we have made a small selection of new words adored by teenagers, just to get up to date! And don’t panic, it’s within everyone’s reach, and who knows in the end you too will be able to talk like a “djeuns”! To do this, follow the guide:
What are the words used by teenagers in 2022?
“Génance”, “poke”, “K-pop”, “go”, “grazer”… These words surely mean something to you, your children have already said them during a discussion without you having them” captured”. These words are among the new terms that are now found in some dictionaries. Most are derived from colloquial language.
- “Annoyance” : feeling of embarrassment, “Mom, it’s too embarrassing there!”
- “Poke”: traditional dish of Hawaiian cuisine, based on raw fish “Dad, I’m having a poke this afternoon with my friends.”
- K-pop: musical genre originating from South Korea
- “Lease” : a deal, a plan and it’s been a long time, “It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other” or “I have a lease to tell you”
- “Go” : girl, girlfriend, “It’s my go!”
- “Grazer” : internet scammer
- “Babtu” : a White or a European, it is a pejorative adjective known through the expression “babtou fragile”
- “Instagramer” : person who creates content (photo, video, story, live, reels etc) on the Instagram social network
- “Chiller” : take a good time to do nothing
- “Visio” : short for videoconference, a video call
- “Upcycling” : give a second life to your clothes or objects by recycling them, “I’m going to upcycle my old jeans with my friends!”
You should also know that there are a whole host of other expressions which are said by the youngest and which are not yet listed in the dictionaries, namely:
- “OSEF”: abbreviation for “who cares”
- “Have flow” : a person is stylish, “This girl has so much flow, it’s crazy!”
- “It’s the” : a person whom one esteems, “It’s blood, it’s like family!”
- “A racli” : a girl
- “A scrappy” : a boy
- “On fleek” : impeccable, at the top
- “Friend zone” : the friendly zone, a person only wants friendship with another and nothing more
- “cheum” : This is not beautiful
- “You didn’t bother me” : not to calculate a person, not to be “sociable”
Integrate new words into the dictionary, such as Little Robert, does not happen overnight. This requires careful work in advance. “Robert’s teams collect new words from various text corpora, mainly from the media, literature and social networks”, explains the publisher on its website. For these words to be selected, they must meet 3 important criteria: their frequency of use, their distribution on several mediums “the press, literature, social networks” and finally their sustainability. “Le Petit Robert retains words that last.” Without it, there is little chance that will appear in future dictionaries.
By entering the dictionary, what future for these words of young people?
All these expressions and words of young people have a vocation of generational recognition, voluntarily divisive. But by thus becoming standardized and officially recognized, young people are dispossessed of their exclusivity, and no longer have any interest in using them! And when a “daron” or a “daronne” even comes to understand them and use them perfectly, it’s even a sign that they have become outdated! Moreover, even the French Academy recognizes that “has-been”, in vogue in the 2000s, has become… “has-been”!