Dictionary of Contemporary Slang

Description

With more than 7,000 definitions, this book provides a definitive guide to the use of slang today. It deals with drugs, sport and contemporary society, as well as favourite slang topics such as sex and bodily functions. In this fully updated fourth edition of the highly acclaimed Dictionary of Contemporary Slang, language and culture expert Tony Thorne explores the ever-changing underworld of the English language, bringing back intriguing examples of eccentricity and irreverence from the linguistic front-line. "Thorne is a kind of slang detective, going down the streets where other lexicographers fear to tread." Daily Telegraph

Formerly the Head of the English Language Centre at King's College, London, and currently Innovation Consultant at King's, Tony Thorne is an authority on language and culture, on which he has written and broadcast widely.

Thorne's Dictionary of Contemporary Slang has the unusual distinction of being both lively and reliable. I'm still looking (and I may be some time now that I've started flicking through the pages), but everything I've looked for is here. Respect. -- Professor Julie Coleman * Professor of English Language at the University of Leicester * A new edition of Tony Thorne's Dictionary of Contemporary Slang is always to be celebrated. The Ali G of slang lexicography keeps it real yet again. This is slang as it is spoken now - and nobody does it better. -- Jonathon Green * author of Green's Dictionary of Slang * From amazeballs to zonked, a compendious, entertaining guide to all the slang you've ever heard, never heard, or hope never to hear. After reading this book I shall never be able to look at an aardvark in quite the same way. -- David Marsh * author of For Who the Bell Tolls: One Man's Quest for Grammatical Perfection * To anyone who ever doubted a dictionary can be a great read, look no further. Even the savviest of slang-users will be snapping up the latest additions, like 'awkward turtle' or 'tonsed up'. As ever, Tony Thorne's record of the language of the streets is as authoritative as it is irresistible. -- Susie Dent * Lexicographer, Countdown * The Dictionary of Contemporary Slang ... reflects the current fears, anxieties, faults, quirks, wit and humour of an entire generation. -- Gary Nunn * The Guardian * With a quick flip of these pages, freshi readers can avoid looking like clunks, and figure out if they should be pleased or insulted if told they're wearing a severe shirt. Scholars may find Thorne's 11-page preliminary discussion of the purpose and function of slang intriguing, and browsers can flip through the pages, stopping when a boldface word or boxed comment catches their eye. The definitions are clear and lively and the word usage itself is often quite humorous. VERDICT:This book will attract readers who want to seem hep rather than hilljack with their nabes and BFFs. Most suitable for college libraries, or public libraries in large urban areas. -- Maggie Knapp * Library Journal * The Dictionary of Contemporary Slang is an indispensable guide to "the people's poetry" and modern life. From logophiles to anyone who has ever had to ask "What does that mean?" there is no better source for all those rude words, insults and catchphrases in use today. * Reference Reviews journal *