What does jargon mean?
Word: Jargon
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Jargon means special words used by a trade or group, which outsiders find hard to understand.
Word origin: From an Old French word, taken into English in the late Middle Ages.
How do you spell jargon?
Syllables: jar - gon
Tricky part: The last vowel is weak, so it could be any vowel to the ear, and students write jargan, jargen or jargin.
Watch out for: jargan, jargen, jargin
Memory tip: Say it to yourself as jar-GON, with the o loud and round, while you write the last part.
Jargon in a sentence
Example 1: The computer manual was so full of jargon that Dad gave up and called my cousin.
Example 2: Try to explain your science project without any jargon.
Example 3: Our teacher turned the jargon of the weather report into plain English.
Fun Fact
Cricket has jargon of its own: terms such as silly point, doosra and googly can leave a new fan completely puzzled.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell Spies
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) jergon
b) crimson
c) lexicon
d) horizon
Show answer
a) jergon. The first vowel is an a, the a of jar.
Word Puzzle
Match each word with its synonym:
1. jargon 2. hearsay 3. slogan a. terminology b. catchphrase c. gossip
a) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b
b) 1-c, 2-a, 3-b
c) 1-b, 2-c, 3-a
d) 1-b, 2-a, 3-c
Show answer
a) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b. Trade words are terminology, hearsay is gossip, and a slogan is a catchphrase.
Back to the Roots
Choose the correct option to fill the blank:
When jargon first came into English from Old French, it meant ___.
a) the twittering of birds
b) the creaking of wheels
c) the beating of drums
d) the ringing of bells
Show answer
a) the twittering of birds. Talk that nobody could follow must have sounded like birds chattering, and the sense of puzzling language grew from there.
Jumble Tumble
What is the meaning of the word that can be formed from the given letters?
gojnra
a) a long narrow strip of land between two seas
b) talk so technical that a newcomer cannot follow it
c) a low wall built along the side of a bridge
d) a small box for keeping coins and jewels
Show answer
b) talk so technical that a newcomer cannot follow it. Unscrambled, you get the kind of talk that shuts a newcomer out.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these sentences is full of jargon?
a) Please turn the machine off and on again.
b) The cat slept on the warm mat all day.
c) Reboot the router and check the DNS settings.
d) We went to the market by bus this morning.
Show answer
c) Reboot the router and check the DNS settings.
2. A good science writer avoids jargon so that ___.
a) only experts will want to buy it
b) ordinary readers can follow the ideas
c) the pages cost less to print
d) the book becomes a good deal longer
Show answer
b) ordinary readers can follow the ideas
