Slang words play an important role in language. Without them groups of individuals who bond with each other would not have an special identity or way of separating themselves from others. Slang defines the many cultures and how different word usage can sometimes lead to communication failures when interpreted by someone outside of that distinct culture.
I am going to attempt to take you through the lifetime of the word �wack�. The slang word �wack� first evolved from the word �whack�. The definitions for the following meanings of the word �whack� are from the Oxford English Dictionary. The word �whack� was first used in Old English in 1721. At the time it was defined as �to strike something vigorously�. An example of this would be a parent saying to her child � If you don�t straighten up I�m going to give you a good whack�. Later on in time around 1895 the phrase �out of whack� came in to the English language as meaning; disorder, malfunctioning, or out of order. An example of this would be a boss talking to a co-worker. �Use the other copier machine because this one is out of whack�. Also around this time the �h� was taken out and a �y� was placed at the end to form the word �wacky. The word �wacky� was used to describe a person whose brain didn�t function properly. I would say that the change came about, because it had the same definition meaning as �out of whack�. So this was applied to humans so that it didn�t sound like a machine malfunctioning. They were considered to be wacky compared to a normal person. An example of wacky could be �Bob is a wacky guy, I heard he sleeps with his eye�s open. Later on in the 1800�s the word �wacky� also took on a new definition. This new meaning was used to describe a bad person, because people believed that someone who would do such evil things, their brain must not be functioning properly. An example of this wacky might be someone saying �Stay away from her she�s wacky, I heard she kill�s kittens for fun.� Also coming about during this time period was the Mafia slang definition for the term �whack�. In their culture whacked meant to murder someone who dishonored their lifestyle or interfered with it. One underboss might be overheard telling a capo that he should whack Ken Squilante, because he was a big snitch. He started out small time as a stool pigeon in college, then he later would become a full fledged informer for the FBI.
Which brings us to the modern definition for whack, which is now, spelled wack. It means something that is garbage or that you dislike or disagree with. How I think the modern word �wack� has come about is rather simple; one definition for whack is to be crazy and the definition for crazy could be bad, so figuratively speaking wack could be defined as something that is bad.
The slang word wack is modern, and I would have to say that it came into existence within the last five or six years. It is an extremely popular word in the urban and hip-hop culture.
The hip-hop or urban culture is where a lot of modern slang comes from. It is basically made up of people in their teens or early twenties. They usually listen to rap or hip-hop music. They understand the four pillars of hip-hop. Which are graffiti, emceeing, Djing, and breakdancing. And they usually express themselves in one of these forms. Tagging which is another way of saying graffiti or spray painting is one from of expression. Taggers paint murals to show their creativity. And the hip-hop culture has many slang words for that sole purpose, to show its creativity and to distance itself from other cultures. Emceeing is one who raps. They write rhymes and perform them. Sometimes to make their lyrics rhyme they make up new words, and this is how a lot of hip-hop slang words come about. Djing is one who scratches records to find new sounds that are rhythmic and flow harmoniously with they lyrics. This form also shows the creativity that evolves in hip-hop. Breakdancing is a form of dancing that exists within the urban community. It shows creativity through all of the new dance moves that individuals keep coming up with. That is a brief summary of the hip-hop and urban culture and what it exists of. As you can see it plays a large role in why modern slang has become so popular.
Although within the last two years it has become more mainstream. It is now also a regular slang word in the alternative culture. Although �wack� is becoming very common place among the many cultures in America it is mostly used within the age range of mid teens to early twenties. The word �wack� can only be put in to context where it is used in a negative manner. An example of using the word would be �That cd I bought is wack� or �That�s the wackest night club that I�ve ever been to�. In the example sentences I am expressing that the compact disc I bought sounded bad, and that the nightclub I went to didn�t meet my standards of quality. The only way that I know of using the slang version is as an adjective, because it is a word that is used to describe the way something is.
The word wack has many different synonyms that can take it�s place, among these are the words: bad, garbage, unbalance, or weak. The following definitions are from the Merriam-Webster�s Collegiate Dictionary. The definition for bad is given as failing to reach an acceptable standard. Garbage means discarded or useless material. Unbalanced can mean mentally disordered or deranged. Weak can be used to describe something that is deficient. All of those words and many others would be considered acceptable replacements for the word wack. In contrast there are also a wide variety of antonyms for wack. Among these are the words great, classic and another contemporary slang word phat. The word great is defined as something that is markedly superior in character or quality. A classic is defined as historically memorable. And phat is a new slang word used to describe something that someone likes immensely. By the definitions given for the words above you can see why they greatly contrast the meaning of the word wack.
Now that I have given you an in depth look into the meaning of whack, and how it has evolved over the years to become the new slang word wack, I hope that you are more knowledgeable and have a better understanding of the word wack and how diverse its meaning has become. What started out as meaning to strike vigorously or hard has now become known as a slang word which means weak or bad. So the next time you overhear a conversation and the word wack is used, be careful because it might just be used a little differently then you think.
I think that the new slang word �wack� should be understood and accepted as a standard English word. However, I don�t think it should be used as a normal word. It started in the hip-hop community and that�s where I think it should stay. It is a big part of the modern hip-hop society, and if it would become wide spread all it would do would force a change. What I mean by this is they would just find a newer slang word to replace it. So I hope that �wack� is recognized but not actually accepted. That way the hip-hop community will not have to worry about somebody who knows very little about hip-hop trying to fit in. Slang in hip-hop is how you can tell who�s involved and knowledgeable in the hip-hop community. What I am trying to say is very simple, people should not consider it a misusage if stated in the slang form. However, they don�t need to make it a widely used word in the modern American language thus defeating its purpose as a slang word
Kevin Newcomer