This issue was published on May 14, 1998

To many people, teenagers are a population within the population, a separate species that is impossible to relate to and should be isolated from the rest of the world until their 20th birthdays, when they will magically shed their pimples and eyebrow rings and merge back into the adult population.

A primary reason for this great chasm between teens and adults lies in the sociolect that teenagers use to communicate. This unique language intimidates adults, just as advanced vocabulary intimidates younger people.

A favorite word used in the teenage vocabulary is “like.” For example: “Like, yesterday, when he, like, called me, he was like, ‘Hey, what’s up?’” Now, to a so-called educated adult, this may seem like ignorant slang that is incomprehensible. However, it is a vital part of the teenage existence.

The teen years are a period of self-consciousness and uncertainty. Therefore, the insertion of a word such as “like” allows one to assert opinions without the fearful obligation of stating them directly, which would leave one open to criticism and mockery from peers.

Peers are an important part of teenage existence. They can be helpful and supportive, but they can also be spiteful and cruel. In order to avoid attention of the latter type, teens adopt words and terms that are considered “cool” in their group of friends. For example, many teens say “Yo,” which is slang for hey, or hi. Others say “whatever,” which is used to express a lack of interest or something that is too stupid to deal with.

Another aspect of the teenage language is the speed with which they converse. Oftentimes, it is genuinely difficult, or even impossible for adults to understand a teenage conversation. Maybe that is one of thereasons for the rapid speech.

Teenagers, like all groups of people, have a distinct sociolect that distinguishes them from their adult counterparts. Adults forget that they are not superior to teens for the singular reason that they use larger words.

Unfortunately, the language barrier between age groups is a big factor in the division of generations. If everyone could learn to accept and understand different language styles, we would be one step closer to bridging the great gap between teens and adults.