With the rise of globalization, many people don’t realize what language they’re speaking anymore; traces of foreign slang words and phrases can be heard everyday.

Although America broke off from Britain centuries ago, a part of our slang is still affected by British slang. From the British, America received slang words such as “dead beat,” meaning a bum; “throw in the towel,” meaning to give up; and “having the gift of the gab,” meaning having the ability to speak in a convincing and interesting way.

Slang in America has even more ancient sources, such as Latin. Now dead, the language gave us phrases many use day-to-day: “incognito,” which means disguise, “non sequitur” which means a phrase not following the next, “status quo” meaning the present state of affairs and the ever-famous “carpe diem” meaning to seize the day. In fact, “carpe diem” was a major theme in the American movie Dead Poets Society.

Words from French are used frequently in entertainment. Often people will shout “encore” when a singer ends her performance, or say “c’est la vie”—that’s life—when they’re disappointed. Phrases such as “bon appetite” or “bon voyage” are also commonly used.

Since a wave of German Jews arrived in America during the 1840s and 1850s, Yiddish words have wormed their way into American vernacular. If you’ve ever told some “shmuck” to “scram,” you’ve used Yiddish—although know that literally speaking, you called someone a penis. What “chutzpa;” shameless audacity, that is.

With the many language classes at Gunn, students often throw around foreign phrases to express themselves. Japanese students may say “kawaii” for cute, German students may call something “uber” awesome, and most of us have probably been greeted by the occasional “hola” or “bonjour.”