pidgin
Other forms: pidgins
A pidgin is a simplified language that is usually formed from elements of two different languages — allowing basic communication between groups of people who don't share a common tongue.
If you're visiting Mexico but you don't speak Spanish, you may use a kind of pidgin to talk to locals — a combination of Spanish and English. Or the locals may speak a pidgin version of English to communicate with you. Most pidgins include various elements of different languages in addition to the primary source of vocabulary — but they're all made up. The word pidgin is thought to derive from a Chinese pronunciation of the word business as "bigeon" and eventually "pidgin."
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an artificial language used for trade between speakers of different languagestypes:Chinook Jargon, Oregon Jargona pidgin incorporating Chinook and French and English words; formerly used as a lingua franca in northwestern North Americatype of:artificial languagea language that is deliberately created for a specific purpose
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Vocabulary lists containing pidgin
The origins of slang are unknown, but it was first used to describe the specialized words used by members of a specific group or trade. Learn this list of terms related to the informal language that groups use casually among themselves.
Review these human geography terms and learn all about the human forces that shape and are shaped by the natural world.You'll explore immigration and emigration, colonialism, development and urbanization, demography, globalization, and much more. Expand the boundaries of your vocabulary with this list!
Review these human geography terms and learn all about the human forces that shape and are shaped by the natural world.You'll explore immigration and emigration, colonialism, development and urbanization, demography, globalization, and much more. Expand the boundaries of your vocabulary with this list!