Vocabulary in today's youth

[Pohlkat]

As I am but a lowly high-school senior, I don't have a worldly position to view these kind of things, and my opinion stems from just the people in my high school, but I find that common talk has lost its flair and personality because everyone talks as if they're texting someone.

Though the usage of the word "like" has dropped to a more reasonable level, I still can't get over how many blank looks I get from people I'm talking with though I'm using words that I would have thought are commonplace.

I met three girls my age who didn't know what the meaning of insomnia was. I truly hope this is an isolated event.

Maybe my school is just under average, or I just hear what I want to hear, but this is my opinion, has anyone else noticed this?

 

[The Iron Ninja]

I think you'll find that such illiteracy is shockingly average in schools, I was in College(what you would call high school) about three years ago now and some of the dumbasses I met there still haunt me to this day. Luckily If you're looking for intelligent and informative conversations you could do alot worse than the escapist. I think I've seen "lol" only about four times since I joined (that one doesn't count), which is pretty amazing compared to some of the moronic cesspools they call forums on other sites.
But you were talking about schools, so...
One thing that stuck with me was this guy who had no idea that Russia was no longer a communist state, to be fair I suspect he might have been stoned off his tits.

 

[Lvl 64 Klutz]

I don't have a very good vocabulary, but at least I make an effort. It is quite sad how little people read and therefore how sad and pathetic people's vocabulary truly is. What's worse is when people misuse big words they think they understand because they found it in the thesaurus. Trust me, it's no better in college, maybe worse because you wonder how some people even got into college.

 

[Pohlkat]

I don't have a very good vocabulary, but at least I make an effort. It is quite sad how little people read and therefore how sad and pathetic people's vocabulary truly is. What's worse is when people misuse big words they think they understand because they found it in the thesaurus. Trust me, it's no better in college, maybe worse because you wonder how some people even got into college.

Whats sad is that what you just said contains word I don't hear often like "effort" or "pathetic" and "truly".

I think I get my vocabulary from the medieval fantasy novels, so a lot of old English is in there.

 

[Gitsnik]

I think I get my vocabulary from the medieval fantasy novels, so a lot of old English is in there.

I am a walking rendition of Tolkein and Jordan books.

That said I'm working in an office with ~80 people and I'd be surprised if any of them understood half of what I say before I dumb it down.

 

[Mr. Purple]

I have excellent vocab. :]

 

[Alex_P]

I think I get my vocabulary from the medieval fantasy novels, so a lot of old English is in there.

Most of them are stuffed with ill-fitting metaphors and purple prose. Not really a rhetorical style anyone should emulate, in my opinion.

-- Alex

 

[fluffylandmine]

I have the same problem you all seem to have. Wow, who knew?

So my response to the sheep is always going to insulting because that helps my vocabulary if not, then it somewhat helps to make them at least try to put some effort into what they say in order to not reveal the truth that they could be replicated by cardboard cutout and still be less interesting.

 

[Pohlkat]

I think I get my vocabulary from the medieval fantasy novels, so a lot of old English is in there.

Most of them are stuffed with ill-fitting metaphors and purple prose. Not really a rhetorical style anyone should emulate, in my opinion.

-- Alex

well i just use them to get new words to use, its not like I'm spurting every inane thing I say, I read sci-fi and other genres too

 

[Limos]

I have pretty good vocabulary, I don't tend to use large words when I talk though. Mostly when I write things. For my entire Junior year my English teacher thought I was copy pasting my papers from somewhere else. I don't write at all like I talk.

When I talk I use like a lot. Also I tend to use um and uh. What's more I tend to ramble without identifiable sentence structure. And swear profusely of course.

EDIT: The only time I can remeber getting blank looks was when I used the word exuberance.

 

[Evilbunny]

What's worse is when people misuse big words they think they understand because they found it in the thesaurus.

I must admit I do that. I like to fornicate words into sentences, even if I don't know what they mean.

 

[The Rogue Wolf]

I like to fornicate words into sentences, even if I don't know what they mean.

I shouldn't have laughed at this, but I did.

 

[NonMagicPoet]

"Where you at?" is a phrase I hear form even my mom. It just annoys me for some reason.

Also, I hate hearing 'mad' in place of 'very'.

 

[Evilbunny]

"Where you at?" is a phrase I hear form even my mom. It just annoys me for some reason.

Also, I hate hearing 'mad' in place of 'very'.

In California they use hella in place of very. It infuriates me to no end.

 

[Lvl 64 Klutz]

"Where you at?" is a phrase I hear form even my mom. It just annoys me for some reason.

Also, I hate hearing 'mad' in place of 'very'.

In California they use hella in place of very. It infuriates me to no end.

They use "wicked" here in New England, I picked up the habit about six months after moving here, though since then I've annoyed myself so much that I'm starting to finally break said habit.

 

[fluffylandmine]

"Where you at?" is a phrase I hear form even my mom. It just annoys me for some reason.

Also, I hate hearing 'mad' in place of 'very'.

In California they use hella in place of very. It infuriates me to no end.

They use "wicked" here in New England, I picked up the habit about six months after moving here, though since then I've annoyed myself so much that I'm starting to finally break said habit.

in the midwest people are so selfcentered they don't even take the time to do that kind of thing. (note it is the very useless midwest that's selfcentered)

 

[Mirika_the_warrior]

I am often stunned by the limited vocabulary of high school students by own age, In which words such as f**K, like, grillz, and epic comprise the majority of their limited lexicon; while mine on the other hand is oft filled with the words to elaborately convey every meaning as well a fine assortment of profanity (often in numerous languages.

 

[the protaginist]

"Where you at?" is a phrase I hear form even my mom. It just annoys me for some reason.

Also, I hate hearing 'mad' in place of 'very'.

In California they use hella in place of very. It infuriates me to no end.

They use "wicked" here in New England, I picked up the habit about six months after moving here, though since then I've annoyed myself so much that I'm starting to finally break said habit.

it's funny,i was just in new england visiting a cousin,and he said wicked at least 72 times in 5 hours.

in pennsylvainia people still tend to speak with accuracy,except for most of my classmates.and there are two things that piss me off to no end in this world.
1.people who talk in 1337 speak in real life
2.people who drive THESE things.
http://www.feableweiner.com/jeff/smallest_car.jpg

 

[Mirika_the_warrior]

"Where you at?" is a phrase I hear form even my mom. It just annoys me for some reason.

Also, I hate hearing 'mad' in place of 'very'.

In California they use hella in place of very. It infuriates me to no end.

They use "wicked" here in New England, I picked up the habit about six months after moving here, though since then I've annoyed myself so much that I'm starting to finally break said habit.

it's funny,i was just in new england visiting a cousin,and he said wicked at least 72 times in 5 hours.

in pennsylvainia people still tend to speak with accuracy,except for most of my classmates.and there are two things that piss me off to no end in this world.
1.people who talk in 1337 speak in real life
2.people who drive THESE things.
http://www.feableweiner.com/jeff/smallest_car.jpg

Agreed

 

[Shivari]

I'm a sopomore in high school and nothing infuriates me more than someone attacking me for having a larger vocabulary than them. I don't fucking care that you didn't know what "salubrious" meant, but I told you when you asked. Don't go saying "Who uses that word anyway?" I do, you annoying prick.