Definition of "slang" []

• A kind of language occurring chiefly in casual and playful speech, made up typically of short-lived coinages and figures of speech that are deliberately used in place of standard terms for added raciness, humor, irreverence, or other effect. (noun)
• Language peculiar to a group; argot or jargon: thieves' slang. (noun)
• To use slang. (verb-intransitive)
• To use angry and abusive language: persuaded the parties to quit slanging and come to the bargaining table. (verb-intransitive)
• To attack with abusive language; vituperate. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "One of the aspects of coolness they note in slang is a playfulness, a sense of fun with the language."
• "A journalist writes to ask about tween-speak, which he defines as slang spoken by people between the age of 8 and 12."
• "The dreary _ennui_ of the heart, _ennui_ that revolts at truth, that is nauseated by earnestness, expresses itself in what we call slang, and slang is the sign of mental disease."