In a definition essay, I would welcome a student essay about a made- 
up word that was only used within the student's family.  The  
objective is to get students to use real words to coherently explain  
what it means to be human.  Making up words is a human endeavor.   
However, it would be problematic if a student used slang words in a  
non-definition essay in which his audience will not know the words'  
meanings--or who might find those words inappropriate.

As far as wordhood goes, if meaning is conveyed from one person to  
another, it is a word.

Susan


On Sep 27, 2008, at 1:39 PM, Carol Morrison wrote:

> Thanks, Tabetha. I was thinking the same thing...what would  
> ostensibly be a boring or mundane activity for a writing class  
> (looking up words and then writing a paragraph about them, or at  
> least I thought this might be boring for students), turned into  
> something more meaningful when they chose words that had inrinsic  
> value to them for some reason. I also thought that such an  
> activity, which is typically intended to help students learn new  
> words and how to use them, turned into an opportunity for me to  
> learn something about "new" words! I'm still interested in the  
> "word"/"non-word" classification though, and how true  
> "wordhood" (not really a word?) is established.
> Carol
>
> --- On Sat, 9/27/08, Tabetha Bernstein-Danis <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> From: Tabetha Bernstein-Danis <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Re: Words vs. "Non-Words"?
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Date: Saturday, September 27, 2008, 1:56 PM
>
> My personal opinion is that, knowing that English is a living  
> language and that new words are entering into the language at all  
> times, the term "jawn" would be a valid word to discuss. If he were  
> my student, I would accept it on the condition that he could  
> provide the extended explanation and cite examples effectively in  
> the same manner as the students who choose words from the OED do. I  
> think you could actually use this example as a springboard for a  
> lively discussion of dialect and the ways in which a living  
> language is continually in the process of growing. By the way, I  
> might steal your activity for the Teaching Language, Grammar, and  
> Usage class that I teach pre-service teachers in the summer.
>
> Tabetha Bernstein-Danis
> Ph.D. Student/ Teaching Fellow
> English Education
> University of Pittsburgh
> Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
> From: Carol Morrison <[log in to unmask]>
> Date: Sat, 27 Sep 2008 08:48:31 -0700
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Words vs. "Non-Words"?
> Hello Grammarians,
>
> I have a question regarding what constitutes a word. Two sections  
> of remedial writers at one college where I teach were asked to  
> write a "Definition paragraph," by taking a word, such as  
> "addiction" and then writing a paragraph about it. The paragraph  
> would not merely include a dictionary definition of the word, but  
> personal experience and evidence (real-world examples) to  
> illustrate and define the word. One of my students chose the word  
> "jawn." Although "jawn" does not appear in standard dictionaries,  
> it is in the urban dictionary:
>
> jawn	
> a word used by Philly cats to describe anything and everything.
> NY cats interject with the word "joint" but it doesn't convey the  
> same feelings.
> you see that car? that jawn was hot.
> you was at Keisha's jawn last night?
> when them planes flew into that jawn, it exploded!!
> you heard that new jawn by B.Seigs & Freeway?
> nah, i was at the jawn when she came by.
>
> At first I was hesitant to let the student write on this word,  
> maintaining that "jawn" was not really a word, but then decided it  
> was okay. If certain words are not located in the dictionary, or  
> any standard dictionary, are they still considered words? I was  
> surprised that "bootylicious" is in the dictionary, but not "jawn"  
> as one of my students pointed out.
>
> Thanks! (As always)
> Carol
>
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