Of the estimated 10,000 and 20,000 words that make up the average American’s vocabulary, slang constitutes about 10 percent, according to the authors of the Dictionary of American Slang. Although slang words represent a rather small segment of our English language, they are often the liveliest, most innovative and most colorful words we use.
There is something sensual and tactile about many slang words, which borrow heavily from the vocabularies associated with food. Hands are called meat hooks; loved ones are called honey, sweet pie or sugar; someone whose intellect is suspect is a fruitcake, cabbage head or just plain nuts.
"The primary function of slang is to adorn your speech, to be lively, witty and new. Newness is the essence of slang," says David Pharies, professor of linguistics at the University of Florida. One of the main purpose of using slang is to solidify one’s identification with a group. Slang is most prevalent among the young and among such groups as blacks, teenagers, drug users, criminals, carnival workers, hobos and the uneducated. Often, slang is used as a code language to fortify the group and to exclude outsiders. Some criminal slang, called cant, is so highly developed that pickpockets, for example, can carry on a conversation in front of a victim without the person’s realizing that they are discussing which pocket to pick.
Americans, in general, use more slang than other nationalities because of our diversity, emphasis on free speech, immigrant heritage and lack of a formal, national language academy. The mobility of American bas further spread regional expressions that have become general slang.