Slang Dictionaries for Foreign Language Learning

  Catalan Slang
The Alternative Catalan Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.

 

 

  Chinese Slang
Wikipedia: Mandarin Slang - In some ways, Mandarin Chinese slang terms and insults resemble their English counterparts. While many insults and expletives involve someone's mother, one may also insult someone by insulting their ancestors. Other Mandarin insults accuse people of not being human. Another difference is that Mandarin words for excrement or feces are much less commonly used in slang and insults, and there are few counterparts to Christian or Islamic blasphemy (most Chinese do not believe in gods nowadays). Finally, some terms can be written in different ways, because the Chinese language has so many homonyms, and also because Internet users sometimes use alternate characters to avoid censorship. Sometimes this means naive speakers use expressions that are much coarser than they realize.

 

 

  Dutch Slang
The Alternative Dutch Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.

 

 

  English Slang

  General English Slang
The Alternative English Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.
Essential World English Slang - "If you want to want your English to sound "cool" and "with it", or if you want to understand the street English spoken around the world, then this list is for you! On this page you will find what might be considered the most essential slang. Therefore we recommend any advanced learner of English try and learn at least some of these words."
Internet Slang Dictionary & Translator - Translates internet slang and acronyms for the uninformed.
The Septic's Companion: A Dictionary of British Slang - "An A-to-Zed dictionary of British Slang words and phrases, written by a Scotsman living in America. You may know it better by the title it had for the previous ten years, The English-to-American Dictionary. The dictionary is all free; the book contains yet more riveting British stuff."

 

 

  American Slang
AmeriSpeak - User-generated compilation of the words and sayings of one's ancestors, grouped into categories.
Bay Area Hip Hop Dictionary - Hip hop dialect from San Francisco.
BuzzWhack - Dictionary of business buzzwords and slang.
Commonly-Used American Slang - Short listing of American slang expressions.
Historical Dictionary of American Slang - Contains over 2200 slang words with the centuries in which they were first printed.
The Online Slang Dictionary - Though Webster publishes a slang dictionary, it could potentially take years for a new word or phrase to enter its pages. Now, with the power of the Internet, it can be in a dictionary in a matter of hours; this page depends entirely on your contributions. This is designed to be a global dictionary: English slang from other countries is more than welcome.
The Rap Dictionary - The Rap Dictionary is the oldest and ultimate resource for looking up hip-hop slang.
SlangSite.com - A dictionary of slang, webspeak, made up words, and colloquialisms.
Twists, Slugs and Roscoes: A Glossary of Hardboiled Slang - Dictionary of 1940's slang of the streets, especially as used in detective fiction and film-noir.
Urban Dictionary - Urban Dictionary is a slang dictionary with your definitions. Define your world.
Vox Dictionary of American Slang - This is a dictionary of contemporary slang compiled in Oakland, California since 1994. Most of this slang is used by the Hip-Hop generation all over the world.

 

 

  Australian and New Zealand Slang
Australian Explorer: Australian Slang - Australian slang grouped by category (Animals, Behaviour, Events, Objects, People, Phrases, Places).
Dictionary of Australian Slang - A short listing of Australian slang words.
Koalanet Australian Slang Dictionary - Indexed glossary of Australian slang.
NZ English to US English Dictionary - "The following is an incomplete list of expression and words commonly used in New Zealand followed by the U.S. equivalent definition. Many of these words, phrases and expressions are of British or Australian origin."
Wikipedia: Australian English vocabulary - Article about the development of Australian slang.

 

 

  United Kingdom Slang
The Best of British: The American's guide to speaking British - The seven sections on the left contain over 1000 words and expressions that differ in their usage between the US and the UK.
A Cockney Rhyming Slang Dictionary - Listed from English to slang, with explanations of the slang, and searchable (via Google).
Cockney Rhyming Slang from London and the United Kingdom - With slang to normal English, and normal English to slang indexing, and a number of top ten indexes.
Dictionary of English Slang and Colloquialisms used in the United Kingdom - A monster online dictionary of the rich colourful language we call slang... all from a British perspective, with new slang added every month. If you are unable to immediately find the term you are looking for, try the slang search. A short essay giving an outline of the parameters of this dictionary and brief information on slang can be accessed on the introduction page.
Durham & Tyneside Dialect Wordlists - Extensive listing of vocabulary in the area at different times, drawn from public dictionaries and glossaries and published texts.
The English to American Dictionary - "As a Scot who's spent some time in the USA working and on holiday, I have discovered a bewildering array of words which are in common use on our side of the pond and invariably mean nothing at all or something exceedingly rude on the other. I once noted down about fifteen of them and that afternoon formulated them into this dictionary. Since then the dictionary has thrived (well, fed) on contributions from readers and one day may be a half-decent reference."
Estuary English - Estuary English is a name given to the form(s) of English widely spoken in and around London and, more generally, in the southeast of England - along the river Thames and its estuary. On this website is brought together as many documents as possible that relate to Estuary English, as a convenient resource for the many interested enquirers.
Glesga Glossary - Local Scottish English slang from Glasglow.
Talk Tidy - the Online Home of Wenglish - Dictionary of Wales English dialect.
The Updated GonMad Cumbrian Dictionary - Dictionary for the Cumbrian dialect.
User-Compiled List of North-East Dialect - This list is compiled from information sent in by visitors to the www.pitmatic.co.uk website. It covers therefore both the most popular words in use, and some local rarities. Extra terms, fuller definitions and comments are all welcome.
The Yorkshire Dialect Dictionary - Dictionary of the Yorkshire dialect.

 

 

  Estonian Slang
Esimene Eesti Slangi Sonaraamat - In Estonian only. "The "First Estonian Slang Dictionary" is based on a slang vocabulary collected in Tallinn high schools in the spring of 1989. As the collection procedure was based on 152 thematic questionnaires, the dictionary's first and main half is thematic. The dictionary's second half, or register, presents all slang words in alphabetic order, with cross references by number to the relevant themes...In summary, "The First Estonian Slang Dictionary" contains around 7500 entries, presented to also provide the user with information about the popularity and frequency of use of each slang word. "

 

 

  French Slang
The Alternative French Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.
CoolSlang: French Slang with English Translation - User-generated slang dictionary in many languages.
Le Jargon Francais - Monolingual French dictionary of slang, from linux-france.org.
Language Realm: French Dictionary of Proverbs (Kotowaza) - Listing of colloquial French proverbs and phrase.
Language Realm French Slang Dictionary - This dictionary is a comprehensive and in-depth look at all the slang, vulgarisms, curses, and insults, plus a lot more, available in French. Searchable by French terms; most useful for looking up slang words and vernacular that eludes understanding.
Wikibooks: French/Appendices/Slang - From Wikibooks, the open-content textbooks collection.

 

 

  German Slang
The Alternative German Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.
The Alternative Swiss German Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.
Das Bundeswehr-Lexikon - Slang and vernacular as spoken in the German Federal Armed Forces.
CoolSlang: German Slang with English Translation - User-generated slang dictionary in many languages.
Cyberslang.de - Cyberslang.de is a dictionary for the Internet language. Here you can find the usual terms and abbreviations, like those on web pages, newsgroup, Chats or SMS messages, conveniently searchable.
Language Realm: German Dictionary of Proverbs (Kotowaza) - Listing of colloquial German proverbs and phrase.

 

 

  Greek Slang
Slang.gr Dictionary of Greek Slang - - Indexed dictionary of Greek slang, in Greek.

 

 

  Italian Slang
The Alternative Italian Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.
BBC Cool Italian - Want to show some street cred? Here is our essential guide to young Italian people's slang by Giovanna Vaccaro, presenter of our beginners' online course Italian Steps. Swear words tend to be more generally accepted in Italy than many other countries - we've divided up the expressions so you know what to say and what not to say.

 

 

  Hebrew Slang
Hebrew Slang and Foreign Loan Words - Short scholarly article (from 1969) about Hebrew slang and foreign influences on it.

 

 

  Hungarian Slang
The Alternative Hungarian Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.

 

 

  Japanese Slang
Casual Patterns and Slang - The section of slang and casual language in Tae Kim's Japanese Grammar Guide.
Coolslang: Japanese Slang with English Translation - User-generated slang dictionary in many languages.
The Japanese Slang Jiko - Indexed glossary of Japanese slang.
Language Realm: Japanese Dictionary of Proverbs (Kotowaza) - Listing of colloquial Japanese proverbs and phrase.
Language Realm: Japanese Slang Dictionary - This dictionary is a comprehensive and in-depth look at all the slang, vulgarisms, curses, and insults, plus idioms and expressions and a lot more, available in Japanese. Every effort has been made to keep it current and relevant, though of course older slang also remains in here for those who enjoy films, television, and books from years past. You can search the slang dictionary using Kanji or Kana. If your search fails, try a broader term or unabbreviated form what you are looking for.

 

 

 

 

  Polish Slang
The Alternative Polish Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.
Online Polish Slang Dictionary - Over 4,000 terms defined in Polish and English; created and edited by Maciej Widawski, with the assistance of Zbigniew Ruszczyk.

 

 

  Portuguese
The Alternative Portuguese Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.
Dictionary of Portuguese Slang - Online dictionary of Portuguese slang, original title Dicionário aberto de calão e expressões idiomáticas. Interface in Portuguese.

 

 

  Russian Slang
The Alternative Russian Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.
English-Russian Dictionary of Military Jargon and Slang - Translates from English to Russian and vice-versa, enter military colloquialisms, acronyms, or slang, and get the English or Russian gloss on it.
English-Russian Dictionary of Slang - This dictionary is a searchable lexicon, but is not browsable - enter your English words and words and phrases in Russian Cyrillic are given.
Russian Foul Language Explanatory Dictionary - This is a searchable lexicon in Russian only (no English words or equivalents are allowed).
Russian Slang - Russian Slang from the Russian Bride Guide.
Russian Slang and Colloquialisms - Russian, like most of the world's cosmopolitan languages, is a language full of slang and colloquialisms. Here is a list of some common slang words and colloquialisms in Russian, along with their English equivalents (in American slang, if possible). Derogatory words are marked with a 'D,' and rude/offensive words or phrases are marked with an 'X.' v
Russian Slang Dictionary - The following words and expressions are rude, naughty and generally not something you would say in front of you mother (this is a Russian slang dictionary, after all). Some are mere colloquialisms but also fail to appear in standard dictionaries, the latest addition concerns modern Russian Internet slang.
Wikipedia: A Nadsat Concordance from "A Clockwork Orange" - This is a list of the Nadsat words and other fictional terms found in the book by Anthony Burgess, A Clockwork Orange, along with their meanings in English and their lexical origins. The Nadsat slang word is shown with its closest English meaning or meanings. Its Russian origin is shown in Cyrillic, with an approximate transliteration, if pronounced (much) differently to the Nadsat. The translation of the Russian word is also shown if it differs from the English meaning. Words of uncertain origin are marked with a '?', and words which are modified English slang (not of foreign origin) are marked with a '-'.

 

 

  Spanish Slang
The Alternative Mexican Spanish Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.
The Alternative Spanish Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.
BBC Cool Spanish - This is just a skim across the surface of the great wealth of Spanish slang. Although some may apply in Latin America, the expressions featured are mostly from Spain. Swear words tend to be more generally accepted in Spain than many other countries - we've divided up the expressions so you know what to say and what not to say.
La Chuleta Venezolana - Venezuelan slang in a number of dictionaries, grouped by category.
Diccionario Argentino-Espanol - HTML glossary of Argentinian Spanish.
Diccionario del Espanol usual en Mexico - Online HTML glossary of Spanish terms as they are used in Mexico, compiled by Luis Fernando Lara.
Diccionario des Modismos - Searchable and browsable dictionary of Chilean Spanish idioms and words.
Diccionario de Regionalismos de la Lengua Española - Online HTML dictionary of regional Spanish dialects, with word entries in Spanish and their meanings in different countries and regions.
Guia-Guanye-Godo - Words and expressions of the Canary Islands; in Spanish.
Jergas de Habla Hispana - An extensive online dictionary of the Spanish slang of Spain and Latin America. Terms can be sorted by country of use, with words common through the Spanish-speaking world cross-referenced; also included are comparative examples of sentences, using the slang typical of each Hispanic country.
Language Realm: Spanish Dictionary of Proverbs (Kotowaza) - Listing of colloquial Spanish proverbs and phrase.
Language Realm: Spanish Slang Dictionary - This dictionary is a comprehensive and in-depth look at all the slang, vulgarisms, curses, and insults, plus idioms, expressions, and a lot more, available in Spanish. Every effort has been made to keep it current and relevant, though of course older slang also remains in here for those who enjoy films, television, and books from years past. If you enjoy Latin American films, television, or whatever, you'll find many of the words and phrases used in here. If you don't, please let us know so we can add it. As always with slang, be careful using what you hear; it may not work quite the way you expect.
Lexicos Regionales de la Lengua Espanola: - Online compendium of regional lexicons of the Spanish language - just click on the map and select the country or region of interest, and a lexicon of regional terms is given for that area.
Mr. Gabe's Spanish Slang Dictionary - 755 entries.
Sitio de Le Vieux Coq - Latin-American regional words and phrases.
Wikibooks: Spanish/Slang - From Wikibooks, the open-content textbooks collection. Spanish slang is more localized than English slang and sometimes people from one Spanish-speaking country get confused talking to people from other Spanish-speaking countries; the content is listed by country.

 

 

  Swedish
The Alternative Swedish Dictionary - Slang, profanities, insults and vulgarisms from all the world. The Alternative dictionaries are a collection of various forms of "bad language" from many languages. At the moment, there are 2743 entries in 162 dictionaries. This is a collaborative project with contributions from a lot of people. The pages are developed and edited by Hans-Christian Holm.