ż Because the Ephraimites could not pronounce the phoneme
/sh/ in shibboleth, that word became the perfect test.z According to Chambers Dictionary of Etymology, in the 1630s,
shibbolethEHJDQWREHXVHGPRUH¿JXUDWLYHO\LQ(QJOLVKLQWKHVHQVH
of a watchword or slogan of a political party or class. By the mid-
1800s, this meaning evolved into an “outmoded slogan still adhered
to”—a sense that the word still carries today. This second sense is
seen in the following context sentence: “The old-guard politicians still
trot out their tired shibboleths, which don’t mean much anymore.”Argot (noun)
A specialized language characteristic of a particular group of people.z Although it is often used to refer to the vocabulary and phrases
of crime and the underworld, argot can be used for the special
vocabulary or language of any particular group, such as members
of the military. In this context sentence, it refers to the language
of business: “She thinks that she’s impressing others by using the
argot of the corporate world, such as leveraging your employees’
VNLOOVHWV and WKLQNLQJRXWVLGHWKHER[.”z According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, argot entered
English in 1860 from French and originally referred to “the jargon
of Paris rogues and thieves.”z Other examples of argot can be found in the world of soccer (e.g.,
NQDFNHUHGRXW for “exhausted” and draw for a “tie”) and hiking
(e.g., NOBOs for “northbound hikers,” SOBOs for “southbound
hikers,” and VODFNSDFNLQJ for “hiking without a pack”).Dialect (noun)
A variety of a language often associated with a certain region or social class.