Our unique college life vocabulary

By Katie Powers

As college students, we have mastered our written rhetoric, shoveling out our deepest, most poignant pieces of intellect onto six pages double spaced all in one night. Scholastically, college produces written eloquence as we strive to become verbosely profound on paper. Yet, when we speak, it's a whole different story.

Enter the world of a generation that communicates through the colloquially cryptic, where "partying" and "going out" imply drinking and potentially "getting wasted."

Indeed, as masters of our own vernacular, it would be hard for an outsider to understand the choppy slang in which we converse. For example, while partying, you may turn into a "shitshow," which, in case you were wondering, implies a completely excessive state of intoxication. After or during the shitshow, if you're lucky, you may "get some."

However, this presents a problem. "Obvi," no one wants to end up "sexiled." I mean, who wants to sleep where your roommate and his or her "boo" are "boning down?"

There are these and so many more. Chilling. Getting dumb. For real. For sure. What what. Represent! True that. Hecks yeah. Peace. Peace out. Holler. Holla!

There is a phrase for every occasion. You dominated that midterm. Holla! Got "those digits?" Holler! Call me later? Holler at me. "Holler" is like a dorm communal room: you can study in it, cook in it or hook up in it. It fits in every context.

These stock phrases may have lessened the importance of the art of oratory, replacing potentially intelligent conversation with blurry phrases from popular culture.

It's debatable whether our not our vernacular is rooted in laziness. Many of the popular phrases rely on abbreviations, like "obvi" instead of obviously and "tots" instead of totally. Instead of having to think about what we're saying, we can just insert these cool-sounding phrases in place of true explanation or even a few extra syllables.

But then again, I think we sound cooler in a funny way. And even if sometimes I sound a little valley girl-esque, it's usually on purpose.

Our hip language, though it may have replaced traditional academic speech, represents its own creativity, and doesn't degrade our total intelligence. Sure, it's trite the way we say "random" and "awkward" at every other instance, but we are living among those who can understand what we mean.

Just as the transition to vernacular in like, way ancient history, made it easier for the people, so have our common colloquials eased relationships with one another, representing a union within our generation.

Besides, who needs Oxford English Dictionary when you have urbandictionary.com. Now that deserves a holla.