In the formative years of a child, he sees that the elderly, particularly his parents and teachers, are his greatest models, especially when it comes to grammatical learning. As he grows, he becomes more and more curious, which interacts, and develops his possessed potential. He makes use of dialogues with others, and they each foster a sense of communication that enhances all evident grammatical skills. And, when a child grows, the importance of family becomes less significant. He also emphasized that peer groups are important to teenagers, because they have the same age and interests. (Giordano, p. 90, para 1). Meanwhile, some say that the teenage years are the most dangerous years of the person's development. This is the period when we undergo many changes in our mind and body. This clarifies why youths are very active, alert, and imaginative yet also impatient and rebellious. At this stage, peer groups affect what a teenager wants which changes the person's actions, decisions and attitudes. In our generation today, peers have their own way of life, own vocabulary and dictionary that only teenagers can understand. One of those vocabularies they have is word expressions. The Free Dictionary defines expression as "something that expresses or communicates." It is another way of communicating and interacting with others, one of which is the non verbal forms of communication like symbols, gestures and alike. In a teenager's understanding, word expressions are different form the algebraic expressions or the idiomatic expressions we know; instead, those are words associated with vulgar words that have different kinds of meanings. To be specific, nowadays, La Salle students have their own expressions that only those students who belong in the same university can understand. Last week, I queried 50 La Salle students about their view regarding on the popular expressions inside the campus. Based on the survey I conducted, there are 18 expressions, but the jargons "OMG", "BV", and "Chill" are well-known in the university. Indeed, each expression has its own meanings. In particular, the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the word "chill" as a "sensation of cold accompanied with shivering." The term "chill" has different meanings depending on the way it is used. For some, it means coldness. But in La Sallian's way of life, the expression "chill" tells others to relax and not to worry.
Creations in this world, mainly the living and non living things, have their origins. They are not formed by magic spells that will make them appear right away. For instance, how come humans are living on earth? Of course, they do have origins and that is God, who is our creator and Father. Same with babies, they do not just exist immediately, but they are created inside the mother's womb. Similar with the words we use in our day-to-day communication, they also have origins, or in a deeper sense, etymologies. Based on the internet, the term "etymology" comes from the Greek word etumos which means actual or genuine. Thus, the meaning of etymology is the study of the origins of words. However, not only humans, babies and words have origins, but also expressions. The Online Etymology Dictionary (2010) emphasized that "the expression "chill" comes from the O.E. or Old English word ciele or cele which means "cold, coolness, chill and frost" while in P. Gmc. or Proto-Germanic base, it is derived from the word kal which means to be "cold." Both the origin of the word is used to explain a formal and noun form of chill that according to The Free Dictionary, it is a "sensation of coldness and moderately cold or chilly". On the other hand, the verb form of chill is created at the time of 14c, which means "hang out" and "relax". This verb form is commonly used by La Sallian students in expressing their feelings, and that makes the definition informal and slang. Furthermore, both definitions of chill are accepted, but only the noun form is popular globally and considered as a formal definition. To prove, some authors use the formal word "chill" in books. Take the Hush Hush book by Becca Fitzpatrick for example. One of the lines used which highlighted the word chill was, "The hair at the nape of my neck stood on the ends, and the temperature in the room seemed to chill." (p. 14). Still, the author used the formal definition of chill that means freezing. Nevertheless, the expression is not just about the formal use of it, but also about the informal or slang that is well-known inside the De La Salle University. Based on the slang dictionary found in the internet, the informal chill has various uses like adjective, verb and noun. (The Online Slang Dicitonary, 2010). The noun form of chill is very famous to everybody because it means coolness that one feels, while in adjective form, the word chill means great and awesome often use as a compliment whereas, in the verb form, the etymology of the word is still followed. But in today's viewpoint particularly in people's expressions, it does not only refer to a moment of unwinding or a period of hanging out, but it also pertains to the imbuement of tranquillity, sustainment of a fine health status and the reduction of the involvement in dangerous activities (The Online Slang Dictionary, 2010).
From the song, "Everything happens for a reason" by Tracy Byrd (2004), the line points out that "nothing happens by chance or by means of luck." This song indicates that life is unpredictable. Only God knows what will happen to us and He is the only one who decides in our lives. In addition, happenings or events on our lives are compared to a cause and effect relationship which means that one causes the other to happen. The cause indicates the first one, while the effect is on the other one. (Listening to Cause-Effect Relationships, p. 240, para. 1). So, once you do something, there is a corresponding consequence to it, either the good one or the bad one. For instance, a person who is sick did not cover his mouth and nose while sneezing; there is a tendency that the person beside him might receive the bacteria. In effect, the person near him will be sick and will have colds. In like manner, expressions are very popular in our environment. When you hear it, there is a tendency that you copy and say it. It can have an effect to a person whether personal or societal. In personal aspect, once you got used to it, you can say it more often. As a result, it changes your attitude as well as the view of other people to you. But in some circumstances, if you do not know any expressions, hence, your friend will think that you are a kill joy person. On the other hand, the societal aspect is somehow similar with the personal aspect but it involves different kinds of individuals and groups. As what Swindler (2010) stressed, "Society is a largest form of human group. It consists of people who share common heritage and culture." (p. 57, para. 4). This means that whatever color of complexion you have, whether you're big or small, tall or short, as long as you are living in your country, you are considered as a part of the society that share mutual concern and beliefs. For example, the term "Jejemon", a word used to describe the people who have their own language, is popular in our country. It is famous and most talked about right now. Hence, the effect of this is the view of other people about them; others would just ignore it, or some will laugh at it. Without a doubt, the example stated above is alike with the effect of slang expressions in the society. There is a chance that one will counterfeit and say it.
The sudden change in our environment and the fast growing number of technology inventions emphasized that the world is changing and developing. The tick tock of the clock tells us that the time is changing quickly. As time passes by, inventions, discoveries, and humans, progress and transform. Similarly with the language we use; it also develops and changes through time. The most popular variety of our language today is the slang expressions that are defined as unusual use of words in a language, often created or imported from other words and language (Hip Hop, n.d., para 1). There are so many slang expressions, but I prefer to compare and contrast the words chill and cool. If you hear the words chill and cool, you would probably say that it is just the same, maybe because both words tackle about the feeling in a low temperature. But in today's generation, if you hear those words, they are different. The two have various meanings that is related in an informal definition and used as slang. Chill in slang means magnificent, acceptable, and favourable. Another meaning of chill is to go out to other places. Others use chill in sentences like, "I'm okay. I'm chill" and "I want to chill at that place" ("The Online Slang Dictionary", 2010). On the contrary, cool in slang is sometimes spelled as "kewl" that means superb, brilliant, satisfactory, calm, and trendy. It is also used to emphasize money and debts. We use the term cool in sentences like, "He's so cool" and "Am I cool?" (The Online Slang Dictionary, 2010). Certainly, the expression chill together with cool is used in informal conversations. The two seems similar, but the meanings are diverse.
Indeed, the expression "chill" varies its meaning on the way it is used. Others say it is about the coldness with shivering. But in La Sallian's view, the expression "chill" tells others to relax and not to worry, which is used as slang and in informal conversations. In addition, slang expressions are part of the Filipinos and La Sallian's culture. The students in De La Salle University follow what are popular, and one of those things is the slang expressions. Anyone can use it but be sure that it is in the right time and right place.
