A colloquialism is a form of language that is not formal and differs in various places. Additionally, it is primarily used in daily conversations but not in official texts. The use of colloquialism has also become common in modern society due to immigration and globalization, which have led to people interacting and learning various phrases (Fajardo, 2019). This report will focus on examples of colloquialism, how it hinders effective communication, and how it can be restated to form effective communication.
One of the colloquialisms used by many individuals is “the buzz,” which means go away. The phrase is common among young people, whereby it is used in communities and learning institutions. In a customer service setting, one can paraphrase by saying leave. Another example is “being a chicken,” which is used by both young and older people. Typically, a chicken is known by many people for its fears. Hence, being a chicken shows that one is being afraid and scared.
This saying can be restated in a customer service setting by saying that one is nervous. “Taking a rain check” is also a colloquialism commonly used in various regions. The saying means canceling plans due to various reasons. One can restate this colloquialism in a customer service setting by saying withdraw plans. Thus, these examples of colloquialisms are common in some communities, but they can be difficult for some people to understand their meanings.
Communicating with someone who does not understands various phrases can be difficult. In this case, the message being conveyed can be misunderstood, and the instructions may not be followed due to misinterpretation (Flores & Rinke, 2020). Similarly, interacting with someone who is not fluent in English using colloquialism can lead to confusion. In this case, the audience may mistake or misunderstand the phrases used in the conversation. In essence, colloquialism is a form of language used by individuals in many regions in their daily activities but is not acceptable in formal writing.
References
Fajardo, J. A. S. (2019). Exploring the ‘shashification’of teenage slang. English Today, 35(3), 49-54. Web.
Flores, C., & Rinke, E. (2020). The relevance of language-internal variation in predicting heritage language grammars. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 23(1), 25-26. Web.