English Language Examples

Euphemism 1

• Dozens injured as car hits pedestrians at Liverpool FC's victory parade, ABC News article, published May 2025

• “Serious condition” is a noun phrase 

• Operates as a euphemism, employing detached, clinical language to mitigate the emotional intensity of a life-threatening situation 

• This lexical choice reflects the journalistic intention of maintaining objectivity and decorum, softening the gravity of the incident for a general audience while upholding natural and professional tenor distinct to institutional; news discourse

Euphemism 2

• Sun's article regarding the US stock market and the US tariffs during April 2025. 

• The euphemistic noun phrase ‘rocky markets’ downplays the current downturn and unpredictability of the US stock market as a result of US tariffs, likely to avoid panic in investors, who could pull money out of the market. 

• Which ensures the credibility of Harold Sun when reporting on negative news in political settings, especially regarding the volatile stock market.

Jargon 1

• Yarra Valley Grammar school expulsion due to female classmates ranked

• Used by the principal of Yarra Valley Grammar, Mark Merry - May 2024 when describing the boys enrolment

• The adjective "untenable" is a formal institutional term often used in education, law, or corporate contexts.  

• It’s not commonly used in everyday conversation and may not be immediately clear to all readers.  

• It softens the direct action of expulsion, making the decision sound more administrative or unavoidable, rather than punitive

• Expulsion usually has negative connotation 

• This is a great example of how institutional or bureaucratic jargon can obscure or neutralise the emotional weight of disciplinary action

Jargon 2

Nitazenes are a class of synthetic (2‐benyzl‐benzimidazole [...]) opioid receptor agonists that can be several hundred times the potency of morphine

• Report on the response to the presence nitrazenes (toxic) in Australia

• Use of medical jargon, such as ‘opiod receptor agonists’, brings a greater degree of clarity through the use of more precise and proper terminology with explicit meaning, increasing the cohesion within the report for the intended medical expert audience.

Nominalisation 1

• Peter Dutton's use of the nominalisation "arrangements" to change the verb "arrange" into a noun, featured in an ABC article following up on the potential work from home policy, “as much as the policy just applied to the public service, the Coalition wasn't sophisticated enough to message it in a nuanced way that would reassure people in the private sector that their arrangements wouldn't also be at risk.” 

• This achieves the obfuscatory purpose of the use of nominalisations in political settings by making it more formal and abstract. 

• This shifts the focus from individual actions, like making specific decisions, to the broader idea of workplace arrangements. 

• Deflecting attention from specific actions and potentially softening public backlash over the Coalition's work-from-home stance, maintaining the parties credibility

Nominalisation 2

"the weaponisation of misinformation and disinformation"  

(Australian reporter Hannah Ellis-Petersen) - Social media spreading misinformation about India-Pakistan War - May 2025

• Here, the verb "weaponise" has been turned into the noun "weaponisation", which is a process commonly used in formal or academic writing to abstract actions into concepts.

• Exemplifies how nominalisation is strategically employed to convey authority and abstraction. 

• The author transforms the verb “weaponise” into the noun “weaponisation,” thereby shifting focus from the agent performing the action to the concept itself. This grammatical process serves to present the spread of false information not as the result of specific individuals or governments, but as part of a larger, systematic phenomenon. 

• By abstracting the action, the writer positions disinformation as a tangible tool of hybrid warfare, akin to traditional military weapons. 

• The effect is to lend the idea a sense of legitimacy, gravity, and inevitability, aligning with the analytical tone of the article and reinforcing the framing of digital misinformation as a global security threat. 

• This aligns with the article’s broader aim of exposing the dangers of modern information warfare, where truth is obfuscated and public perception manipulated through carefully orchestrated narratives

Linguist Quotes - Euphemisms

Kate Burridge	Euphemism	“They shield us against what’s embarrassing, what’s feared, what’s disliked, what’s unwelcome and sometimes, they’re used to upgrade and inflate.”
Kate Burridge	Euphemism	“Under the cover of words we can tiptoe around any sensitive topic.”

Australian English 1

• New Aussie colloquialisms added includes “goon” (cheap pouch wine), “slab” (24-pack of beer), 7 News Published 26th June 2025 codification in the Oxford dictionary

Analysis:

• Highlights the role of colloquial language in constructing in-group solidarity within Australian society

• Such lexemes draw heavily on cultural practices – drinking cheap cask wine or sharing a case of beer – that resonate with many Australians, particularly among younger demographics and working-class communities

• By using these terms, speakers signal shared cultural knowledge and values, reinforcing a sense of national identity and mateship

• The widespread recognition of this slang also demonstrates how markers of in-group belonging can shift into the mainstream, with codification serving as a form of linguistic legitimisation

• Importantly, while this can strengthen solidarity within Australian English, it may also function as a form of exclusion for those unfamiliar with the slang, such as migrants or international visitors, thereby reinforcing boundaries between in-groups and out-groups

• This example demonstrates how the codification of slang in dictionaries not only reflects but also shapes evolving attitudes towards Australian identity.

• Covert prestige amongst fellow Australians 

Australian English 2

• Political commentary during the 2025 federal election: Idiomatic expression and noun phrase “corflute stoushs” (conflicts over corrugated plastic campaign signs) The Guardian 30th April 2025

Analysis:

• The use of colourful idioms such as “corflute stoushs” during the 2025 federal election campaign, reported in The Guardian (30 April 2025), demonstrates how political commentary in Australia often employs colloquial and creative expressions to engage audiences

• The phrase blends the political domain (“corflute”, referring to corrugated plastic campaign signs) with the strongly Australian colloquialism “stoush” (fight or conflict)

• This linguistic innovation exemplifies how political discourse can be grounded in cultural idioms that resonate with an Australian audience, fostering a sense of shared identity and national humour

• Such idioms help construct an in-group solidarity between journalists and their readership, appealing to the cultural expectation that Australian English values wit, irreverence and informality

• At the same time, however, this idiomatic expression may exclude those unfamiliar with Australian slang, such as overseas observers, reinforcing the boundaries of the Australian speech community

• This example demonstrates how political language reflects and reinforces uniquely Australian ways of seeing the world, while also shaping public perceptions of identity and solidarity in the national context.

• These terms serve as societal indexicals—vernacular that is locally resonant and politically charged. They underscore everyday cultural artifacts of Aussie politics and tap into group identity through shared, colloquial lexicon.

• Australian colloquialisms can be used to build in-group membership within particular groups and social contexts, alongside reflecting an individual's identity.

Aboriginal English 1

• Source & Context: In December 2024, ABC News reported on a Taree TAFE Koori Writing Program featuring Indigenous authors. One author described the storytelling process, saying: 

“I feel that it’s really deadly and it’s so amazing we can pass our stories down through generations …” 

Analysis: 

• Illustrates how Indigenous communities employ language to construct and affirm cultural identity. While in Standard Australian English “deadly” typically connotes danger or harm, in Aboriginal English the term has been semantically shifted to mean “excellent” or “awesome”

• This semantic broadening not only demonstrates the creativity and resilience of Aboriginal English, but also functions as a powerful marker of in-group solidarity, allowing speakers to signal belonging and pride in Indigenous identity

• Moreover, such usage challenges mainstream attitudes towards language by affirming that Aboriginal English is a legitimate and culturally rich variety of Australian English, rather than “incorrect English”

• At the same time, this in-group usage may exclude those outside Indigenous communities, demonstrating the dual function of language as a tool for both inclusion and exclusion

• The prominence of “deadly” in contemporary Indigenous storytelling underscores the broader role of language in strengthening cultural continuity and empowerment.

Aboriginal English 2

• “Mob”  Source & Context: BTN TikTok title “Happy NAIDOC Week you Mob” 2025 July

Analysis: 

• Aboriginal English, mob is a term used to refer to a community, family group, or collective identity. Its use in mainstream media like BTN reflects growing recognition and respect for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander varieties of English.

• Unlike its Standard Australian English meaning (a disorderly crowd), here mob carries positive connotations of kinship, belonging, and solidarity, reinforcing cultural identity.

• This contributes to in-group solidarity, as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can see their linguistic identity represented and validated in a public, national platform.

• For broader Australian audiences, exposure to mob in this inclusive sense promotes language awareness and reconciliation, encouraging respect for Indigenous identity and varieties of Australian English.

Idiolect 1

Nick Kyrgios (Tennis Player, Media Personality)

Idiolectal Features: Expletive and colloquial outbursts of the noun “bro”, “man” and the interrogative phrase “are you serious?” 

• His idiolect reflects his youthful, rebellious identity, marking him as distinct in the world of professional sport 

• His linguistic repertoire often polarises audiences, making him memorable to the public and sometimes perceived ….., portraying how idiolects can shape one’s persona 

Percieved…

• For younger fans or those who value authenticity, expletives can be seen as a marker of honesty, passion, and emotional intensity.

• Expletives are often associated with loss of control, aggression, or a lack of professionalism in high-prestige sporting contexts.

Source: Australian open January 2025 ABC news during Australian Open

Idiolect 2

Anthony Albanese (Prime Minister of Australia)

Idiolectal Features: Idiomatic expressions of “fair go” and his political slogan “no one left behind”

• Albanese’s idiolect blends political register (formal rhetoric) with colloquial markers, indicating his Australian identity 

• His speech choices signal both authority and authenticity, showing how his language choices reflect both personal style and strategic identity construction in the political field, where voter appeal is critical. 

Source: Analysis of Albanese’s 2022 and 2025 speeches in The Guardian and ABC commentary.

UNIT 4 Linguist Quotes

Kate Burridge 

• “The way we use language uncovers our background and our aspirations” 

• “Language is perhaps the most widely encountered symbol of ethnic identity”

• “Covert slang works to erect barriers between them and the outside.”

David Crystal

• “Over the last 50 years or so, we have seen an increasing cultural diversification across the country. Accents are a reflection of society, and as society changes, so accents change”