The five things millennials will never say

A language specialist from King's College London explains the influence of millennial language

Millennials are changing the way we talk (Getty Images)

Possibly one of the most colloquial of generations, millennials are changing the way we use language.

From slang such as “fleek” to acronyms such as “TBH” or “SMH”, the growth of social media has certainly impacted on millennial language.

At a glance, it would seem that generation millennial are particularly liberal with their use of language. However, are there any language sets that young people try and avoid?

For Tony Thorne, a language and innovation consultant at King's College London, most linguists "don’t pay much attention to nonstandard, highly colloquial forms of language, so don’t research what millennials are saying”.

But from what he has learned during his time studying language, he can reveal the five kinds of speech young people tend to avoid:

1. Jargon – When it comes to complex jargon, millennials may fall silent, says Thorne. “They understand buzzwords and jargon but treat them with irony and mockery.”

2. Subtlety – “Millennials' have an awful tendency to gush or use excessive hyperbole, such as ‘totes devs’, ‘I’m dying’ and ‘I can’t even’.”

3. Long-form language – “As far as their language goes, they have had a great effect in blurring the distinction between written and spoken forms of communication. They have been ready to abbreviate, initialise and radically reduce traditional linguistic patterns under the influence of messaging and social media.”

4. Narrow-mindedness – “They have unfettered access to information and also the means to explore and express the widest range of views. But they also sometimes display an unquestioning consumerist instinct, ruthless competitiveness – which can be seen in the shaming culture which often features on social media - and hyper individualism which can often border on narcissism.”

5. PR or ‘office chat’ - “Millennials are unlikely to take part in excruciating office talk. Clichés such as ‘think outside the box’ or ‘go for the low-hanging fruit’ and similar buzzwords are unlikely to feature in their vocabulary. ”Possibly one of the most colloquial of generations, millennials are changing the way we use language.