Reddit mentions: The best slang books

Ah man, as an American, this is actually a really tough question. I feel like you can "get away" with quite a bit here. Even "breaking etiquette" is going to cause weird looks or irritation at most.

A quick Google search brought up this article from TripAdvisor. I think the section on "topics to avoid" is pretty good. A great way to make someone uncomfortable very quickly is to start talking about politics, religion, or how much money they make. The article makes some other good points, too, but some of it seems overly detailed. For example, yes, we do generally switch our fork from hand to hand when cutting food vs eating, but if you were to keep your fork always in your left hand, no one is going to be offended or weirded out.

I tried to look for something on Amazon and found this book. The reviews look good, most 3- 4- star reviews are because the language level would be tough for new ESL students. Looking through the sample, I'm not sure how relevant it would be to everyday etiquette though; looks like it's based on idioms.

I think your best bet is to create your own material based on information you can find from different sources. (And, hey, if you have questions, feel free to PM me.) I think your student's best bet will be to remember that he's not going to get into huge trouble breaking some kind of "etiquette." At least where I've lived (Hawaii, Oregon, and California), people are pretty understanding that tourists aren't going to get it 100% correct all the time. (Actually, especially in Hawaii, since the entire state lives on its tourist industry.)

Here are some other assorted sources that seem to have accurate information:

• Wikipedia page
  
• eDiplomat - This one is very much geared towards a business trip, so some of it is a little formal. For example, titles like "Mr. and Ms." aren't used in casual social situations and a light handshake isn't going to put anyone off. Overall, good general tips though.
  
• How the world views Americans - This was actually an article written for Americans about how the world views us. However, I still think there's some good insight here because it highlights the differences in American culture. For example, I didn't realize our "polite smiles" were so unusual. Apparently we smile a lot!
  
• Another article - Some repeat material, but all fairly relevant.
  
  So, yes. Hope that helps a bit!
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Of course I'm biased because this is what I love to do for a living (teach about language), but I also find myself learning about language in my free time.

Here are my "Greatest Hits" of language people, programs, blogs, and readings, in no particular order (despite the fact that I've numbered them):

1. Geoff Nunberg's segment on NPR's Fresh Air. Link to the Geoff Nunberg archive on NPR
   
   
2. The "On Language" column in The New York Times Magazine. I like the current columnist, Ben Zimmer, but I'm partial to William Safire. Here's a link to Safire's "How to Read a Column"
   
   
3. There are a number of good language blogs. It's probably "cheating" to put them all in one item, but here goes:
   
   

• Johnson, the language blog at The Economist
  
  
• Language Log
  
  
• Languagehat
  
  

4. Books:
   
   

• Bill Bryson: The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way and Made in America: An Informal History of the English Language in the United States
  
  
• Expletive Deleted by Ruth Wajnryb
  
  

5. Random stuff: I like George Carlin's many humorous takes on language and Margaret Atwood's fiction and Dr. Seuss's many made-up and lovely sounding words.
   
   And I subscribe to /r/logophilia, which often has many amusing words, like pulchritudinous, an ugly word that means something beautiful.
   
   EDIT: And it's great to get a book on usage. I like Garner's Modern American Usage, but here's a list from Diana Hacker at Bedford of other good usage guides

I tried learning French for a couple years. It's all gone out of my head now, but I have some important tips for you:

• Learn Italian. It's way easier, if you already speak English. They're similar languages.
  
  
• Study every day. Language is not like riding a bicycle. It can be forgotten.
  
  
• Learn the structure of the language, and the grammatical rules. Don't worry if you don't grasp it all in one go. This is not your most important task.
  
  
• Focus on vocabularly before trying to put sentences together, and getting to writing, or speaking. Learning the vocabularly is the easiest part of learning a language, and will allow you to infer the meaning of a sentence without knowing everything. Again, don't get too stuck on grammar. Vocabulary is crucial.
  
  
• In building your vocabularly, try to have a goal. 3,000 common, everyday words will be enough to get you going. It seems like a lot, but it is only 8.21 words a day that you have to remember. You can learn that within half an hour, or an hour.
  
  
• Speak everything you read, and speak the language as much as possible. It will stick in your brain more, and will allow you to progress faster. With French, I made the mistake of focusing on books, and silently learning the vocabularly. I can read some French, but can barely understand it when people speak. It's too fast for me. So, use your ears and mouth when learning.
  
  
• For study materials, check out Pimsleur, and Berlitz programs. They are usually of high quality.
  
  
• Make learning fun. Watch TV, and listen to music, and play video games in Italian. Repeat aloud what you hear, and read.
  
  
• When it comes to studying via audio don't drift off. You can't learn by just hearing the language. You have to concentrate, and know the meaning of the words. I used to listen to French radio, and just let it play in the background, but really, besides getting me used to the language, it didn't do much educational-wise.
  
  
• Speak to Italians, or people that already know Italian. Tell them that you're learning. Don't worry if you screw up. They will correct you.
  
  
• Write down, and track your progress. Just jot down what you did to learn.
  
  
  
  

Hey there! Happy early anniversary! I know more about Germany (lived there twice), than I do about relationships, so here are some fun cheap German-y ideas:

• A fun book to get things started ;)
  
  
• The best candy in the entire world
  
  
• Traditional Lebkuchen
  
  
• I think this pick would be perfect
  
  And now I'm homesick for Deutschland! Hope you enjoy some of the ideas!

Some web recommended by Expats:

• http://www.lang-8.com/
  
• http://livemocha.com/
  
• http://bahasakita.com/
  
  Some books I get on the web:
  http://bayfiles.net/file/PnJj/VE2iTm/RogerNight.rar
  
  Recommendation from my friend. This books also come with 2 audio CD, so you can learn pronunciation:
  > http://filepost.com/files/5mf4d472/T.Y.Co.Ind.part1.rar
  > http://filepost.com/files/c64dm6mm/T.Y.Co.Ind.part2.rar
  > http://filepost.com/files/1bb5d64e/T.Y.Co.Ind.part3.rar
  > http://filepost.com/files/7747dffa/T.Y.Co.Ind.part4.rar
  > http://filepost.com/files/c3dmcm77/T.Y.Co.Ind.part5.rar
  
  Also to learn slang. We use slang on our daily life. Formal language only used inside educational in formal occasion, governmental occasion, and office area in formal occasion. So yeah, I highly recommend this book. If you don't want to buy it, I've provided one in the rar files. In my book the following words didn't exist in our conversation:
  
• Curigation
  
• Gacoan (Only used by native Jakarta or old people)
  
• Gradakan (Only used by native Jakarta or old people)
  
• Kejora (old slang, now we use IjoLumut, stands for "Ikatan jomblo Lucu dan Imut." English: association of cute and funny singles. We also have Jojoba, stands for "jomblo-jomblo bahagia." English: happy singles
  
• Sephia (this is 90's slang)
  
  If there's anything I could help, just ask okay?

Sweet contest!

I love all things Japanese, because Japanese people have this mindset of always giving back. Every little thing or favor is appreciated and not taken for granted. In return they always give back to those around them. I wish that kind of culture can exist in the American culture sometimes!


Japanese Slanguage!

I really want this because I'm going to Japan for 1-2 years for the JET Programme and I feel like slang will totally come in handy at some point!

For a Spanish phrasebook, you need look no further: http://www.amazon.com/Red-Hot-Book-Spanish-Slang-Expressions/dp/0071433015/ref=wl_it_dp_o_npd?ie=UTF8&coliid=I57ED43B7NV0L&colid=105CLFIOVVX2Z

However, these sorts of things will likely prove to be of little use to you. Your best guidebook will come from speaking to Spaniards on the street. I don't know where you're studying, but if it's in Madrid, you can go to bars like Cafe Madrid (near Opera) where they have weekly Language Exchanges. These are perfect for meeting foreigners, learning slang, and practicing your Spanish.

No idea about the audio books, I don't really do that sort of thing. If you're looking for books to read, you could try "Goma de borrar" by Josep Montalat. It's a very recent Spanish novel, so it probably has a Spanish audiobook.

Also, I would try my hand at Spanish television shows. Gran Reserva was one of my favorites. You can watch full episodes here: http://www.rtve.es/alacarta/videos/gran-reserva/

Start with Capitulo 1, Temporada 1.

Buena suerte!

Your best option is to start with a textbook like Uriel Weinreich's College Yiddish and a dictionary . Also another good dictionary . and then move on to simple books which you can find here . Eventually you'll get to some speakers, local groups, or Yugntruf or find some local Chasidim. There are a lot of people speaking Yiddish, you just gotta know where to look!

EDIT: there's also good places online to hear Yiddish being spoken, like the Yiddish Forward Youtube channel (they have a nice series of someone literally sitting in a chair and reading Sholom Aleykhem stories to the camera if you dig in the uploads) or the myriad recordings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe speaking in his distinctive Litvish dialect.

I have an intermediate level of Spanish, and while I am nowhere near fluent, Ive begun associating naturally. While not in class (which I take once a week), I watch youtube channels in Spanish: mostly makeup and travel, but these are topics that interest me so it's perfect. I dont understand everything, but I'm getting there.

Another thing I recommend, is getting a Spanish dictionary. Not a Spanish-English, but Spanish-Spanish, with word descriptions in ... well, Spanish. This is the one I have, and I love it. Being able to look up unfamiliar words and understand their meaning with simpler words that describe them, help form a connection in my mind.

(repost bc the spam filter didnt like the shortened URL)

These are some books I own and would recommend.


Breaking Out of Beginner's Spanish: https://www.amazon.com/Breaking-Beginners-Spanish-Joseph-Keenan/dp/0292761937/


Multicultural Spanish Dictionary: How Everyday Spanish Differs from Country to Country https://www.amazon.com/Multicultural-Spanish-Dictionary-Everyday-Differs/dp/0884003175


Expand Your Spanish: A Lighthearted Look at a Serious Subject https://www.amazon.com/Expand-Your-Spanish-Lighthearted-Serious/dp/8489954313


Spanish Lingo for the Savvy Gringo: A Do-It-Yourself Guide to the Language, Culture and Slang https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0932653596


¿Por qué? 101 Questions about Spanish https://www.amazon.com/¿Por-qué-Questions-about-Spanish/dp/1474227910

Spanish: Inside Conversations: Talking Like a Native Speaker: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0976451832

Mouthing Off in Mexico: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0976451824

Spanish One-Liners: Witty Replies & Comebacks: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0976451859

Spanish Name-Calling and Labeling People: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0976451840/

Speaking Spanish Like a Native https://www.amazon.com/Speaking-Spanish-Like-Native-Brad/dp/0976451808


Speaking Spanish Like a Native: The Sequel https://www.amazon.com/Speaking-Spanish-Like-Native-Sequel/dp/0976451816

The Red-Hot Book of Spanish Slang: 5,000 Expressions to Spice Up Your Spanish https://www.amazon.com/Red-Hot-Book-Spanish-Slang-Expressions/dp/0071433015

3,000 Spanish Words and Phrases They Won't Teach You in School https://www.amazon.com/Spanish-Words-Phrases-Teach-School/dp/1510725369

Diccionario de Jergas de Habla Hispana https://www.amazon.com/Diccionario-Jergas-Habla-Hispana-Spanish/dp/1419632205

Bilingual Dictionary of Mexican Spanish https://www.amazon.com/Bilingual-Dictionary-Mexican-Spanish/dp/1886835055

Util y Muy Ameno Vocabulario Para Entender a Los Mexicanos https://www.amazon.com/Vocabulario-Enternder-Mexicanos-Manjarrez-2011-02-01/dp/B019TLUHOO

Varieties of Spanish in the United States https://www.amazon.com/Varieties-Spanish-Georgetown-Studies-Linguistics/dp/1589012135




Dictionary of Chilean Slang: Your Key to Chilean Language and Culture https://www.amazon.com/Dictionary-Chilean-Slang-Language-Culture/dp/1452081158

DICCIONARIO DEL HABLA DE LOS ARGENTINOS https://www.amazon.com/DICCIONARIO-DEL-HABLA-LOS-ARGENTINOS/dp/9500430282

Aiguna Palabra Dominicana (Dominican Slang): https://www.amazon.com/Aiguna-Palabra-Dominicana-Tercera-edicion/dp/1544815379

Spanish Slang Ecuador (442 pages) https://www.amazon.com/Spanish-Slang-Ecuador-Nicholas-Crowder-ebook/dp/B00VM2KL6I

El Español de los Estados Unidos https://www.amazon.com/Español-los-Estados-Unidos-Spanish/dp/1107451175

The Ultimate Spanish Phrase Finder (960 pages): https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Spanish-Phrase-Finder/dp/0071433031

Big Red Book of 12,000 Spanish Idioms: https://www.amazon.com/Big-Red-Book-Spanish-Idioms/dp/0071433023

NTC's Dictionary of Latin American Spanish https://www.amazon.com/NTCs-Dictionary-Latin-American-Spanish/dp/0844279641

Textbook of Colloquial Spanish https://www.amazon.com/Textbook-Colloquial-Spanish-Stell/dp/8471433060

The Big Red Book of Spanish Vocabulary: 30,000 Words Including Cognates, Roots, and Suffixes https://www.amazon.com/Big-Red-Book-Spanish-Vocabulary/dp/0071447253

Diccionario panhispanico de dudas https://www.amazon.com/Diccionario-panhispanico-Academia-Española-Spanish/dp/8430617507

Vox Diccionario de uso del espanol de America y Espana (2000 pages): https://www.amazon.com/Diccionario-espanol-America-Espana-Dictionary/dp/0071426442

Diccionario de americanismos (2,400 pages - Amazon page count listing is wrong): https://www.amazon.com/Diccionario-americanismos-Spanish-Academia-Espanola/dp/8430617515

Diccionario del habla actual de Venezuela: Venezolanismos https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/9802440973

Diccionario De Americanismos: (ABC of Latin American Spanish) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/8471434423

3,000 locuciones verbales y combinaciones frecuentes https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1589017307

Spanish Vocabulary: An Etymological Approach (650 pages): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0292716680

Liven Up Your Latin American Spanish: Idioms & Expressions You Need to Know https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0981775454

Oh, shit...

Spanish slang is another crazy thing entirely. Huge regional differences in usage are true of slang basically everywhere, though, it's not unique to Spanish by any means.

I'm a huge language nerd, and I actually am so fascinated by the geography of slang usage among Spanish speakers that I bought myself a copy of the Dictionary of Spanish Slang & Colloquial Expressions. Really, really interesting if, like me, you're the sort of person who would read a dictionary for fun.

Yea my French is still very basic. I need to set more time to learn. If you want to learn a few more important statements like j'aime gros Seins, check this book out http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1569756589

Honestly when in Quebec City I always like the simple tu es tres jolie when striking up a conversation with a female.

If anyone's interested, Ship to Shore is a great bathroom book covering the nautical origins of many popular words and phrases.

Italian Slanguage: A Fun Visual Guide to Italian Terms and Phrases (English and Italian Edition) https://www.amazon.com/dp/1423624912/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_NCccBb35GW2JH my brother and I had the Spanish one, it was fun to see how many ways you can try to memorize things :)

I'd like to introduce you to your new favorite series of books. Its not the best at helping with pronunciations, but if you can remember the basics from high school you're all good to go ;)

Los consejos de InVultusSolis son muy útiles. Les voy a añadir un poquito más. Tomo este semestre una clase universitaria llamada "los problemas del análisis gramatical español", en la que estudiamos las diferencias entre las construcciones sintácticas españoles e inglesas.

Usamos el libro Bilingual Grammar of English-Spanish Syntax, por Sam Hill y William Bradford. Me ha ayudado mucho de evitar los problemas de traducción. No es perfecto (y es un poquito caro), pero creo que el libro es indispensable para mejorar y perfeccionar su español. Examina con gran detalle las estructuras gramáticas de los dos idiomas.

También, le recomiendo que compre un diccionario español para buscar palabras. Es una etapa hacia la liberación total del inglés. Por supuesto, use un diccionario bilingüe cuando sea necesaria, pero es ideal de tener los dos. Recomiendo el Diccionario Larousse del Español Moderno.

En el Internet, la Real Academia Española ofrece su diccionario oficial gratis. )Creo que ofrece "apps" por iPhone y Android, también).

¡Buen suerte!

EDIT: acentos ("English", not "groins"!)

It features in Wikipedia's list of ethnic slurs and the reference leads to this as 'dark gable'.

edit: Here is the Fresh Prince saying it. It looks like a play on Clark Gable.

http://www.amazon.com/Dirty-Chinese-Everyday-Slang-ebook/dp/B003ODHOA4

This book helped me a lot with learning lots of vulgarities, the Chinasmack glossary someone else posted was pretty helpful for stuff that's used more online.

It's called "Dirty French". My girlfriend actually got me this book as a gift one year, lol.

My favorite HS teacher (French teacher) loaned me that book once.

It was a hilarious read.

(For anyone looking, here it is.)

Bonsoir ! Tu dois acheter ce livre pour apprendre des bonnes phrases sales: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1569756589?pc_redir=1406923083&robot_redir=1

C'est vraiment super ! Je l'appartiens.

Hi! Check out this book dedicated to German swearing. For 9€, you'll get a great kick from it:

Dirty German: Everyday Slang from "What's Up?" to "F%# Off!": Everyday Slang from What's Up? to Fck Off!

As for colloquial phrases/slang, I have the book Dirty German.

Just a warning that, as could be expected, some words and phrases are regional. My bf is from MV and lived in Berlin for five years, and there are some words and phrases that he says he has never heard in use before. The writer is also not a native speaker, and my bf has laughed at some of his example sentences. But overall, there's a lot of slang to be gleaned from the book in a lot of different categories (friends, the body, sex, partying, etc.).

This a good book that taught me a lot of naughty French terminology.

What language are you looking for? Leo has some modern and up-to-date expression in German.

There's also books like this that I've seen in bookstores for German and other languages.

Dirty Chinese

You want this. Chapter 5. There is even an e-book version if you need it RIGHT NOW.

http://www.amazon.com/Dirty-German-Everyday-Slang-Whats/dp/1569756732/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1303788809&sr=8-1

I think I also need this book tehehe

And the English have a book explaining how to swear in German. And French, Spanish, Italian and Russian. And probably more.

Maybe pick up this book.

Why wait for OP?

Currently in France. Brought this book with me. For anyone wondering what it is, it's a book called Dirty French

• Ça va? / Tu vas bien?
  
• Je viens du -insertbirthplacehere- et je suis monté comme un âne
  
• Mais je ne l’ai baisée qu’une fois!
  
• T’es sûr que tu as dix-huit ans?
  
  Et le dernier, mais non le moindre
  
  
• Quand tout va mal, éjac’ faciale
  
  source:
  http://www.amazon.com/Dirty-French-Everyday-Slang-Whats/dp/1569756589