"Argot" is academic, semi-common, and slightly negative in tone. Compared to synonyms like "jargon," "lingo," and "parlance," it gives your statement a bit of a hip, roguish French flavor, and it helps you emphasize the secrecy or exclusivity of some group's specialized use of language. And compared to ruder, more dismissive synonyms like "gibberish," "gobbledygook," and "mumbo-jumbo," "argot" is a bit more respectful.

You might talk about people who communicate in the argot of art, social media, showbusiness, politics, higher education, Harry Potter mania, or, you know, anything that's complex enough to generate its own hefty pamphlet of special terms.

That noun, "argot," is much more common than the adjective, "argotic." But the adjective is delightful, and more sophisticated than "slangy" and "jargony." You might talk about argotic terms, comments, conversations, messages, confusion, or secrecy.

And like I mentioned, there are two pronunciations, both considered correct in English. You can use either. You could pick "AR go" if you appreciate the word's similarity to "ballet," "Margot," and "escargot." Or, you could pick "AR gut" if you appreciate the process of anglicizing foreign words: making them sound like they really belong to English. If you're undecided, let me nudge you toward "AR go." There may be some evidence suggesting it's the more common and more accepted pronunciation in English these days.

"Meet Claudette. In the argot of the [acrobatic] biz, Claudette was my 'board muffin,' the assistant who helps the flyer find his way safely off the perch, as well as prepping trapezes and securing the lines." 
   — Duncan Wall, Salon, 16 March 2013

"The principal medium of assimilation in America now is television, which is universal among the young. No one doesn't plug in and master its basic argot—with one possible exception: the children of the very privileged, who get tucked away in Groton for four years, to develop some silly argot of their own."
   — Stephen Metcalf, Slate, 18 November 2004

has this page helped you understand "argot"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this word, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "argot" without saying "cant" or "lingo."

try it out:

Fill in the blanks: "To use the argot of (some place, some field of study, or some group of people), (someone or something) is '_____.'"

Example 1: "To use the argot of retail, that $5 rotisserie chicken at Costco is a 'loss leader,' a product sold at a loss that leads you into the store to buy other stuff."

Example 2: "I was, to use HR argot lifted from a recent meeting at my school’s career center, an 'extremely motivated candidate' who was 'highly suitable for the positions' I sought."
   — Scott Rodd, Salon, 28 April 2014

If you like, use this space to write. (To save your work, copy and paste it into an email or a document.)

before you review, play:

Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.

Our game for this month is Palindromes in Poems: Yay!

Check out the snippet of a poem, and supply the missing palindrome: the word spelled the same backward and forward, like "yay," "sees," or "racecar." Highlight the hints if you need them, and see the answer by scrolling all the way down. Enjoy!

Try this one today:

"...how many men have copied dew   
For buttons, how many women have covered themselves
With dew, dew dresses, stones and chains of dew, heads   
Of the floweriest flowers _____ with the dewiest dew."   
   — Wallace Stevens, "The Man on the Dump," 1923

To reveal the hints below, highlight the hidden white text.

Hint 1: The number of letters in this palindrome is... five.
Hint 2: The letter that this palindrome starts and ends with is... "D."

review this word:

1. Opposites of ARGOTIC include

A. SAFE, SECURE, and UNDAMAGED.
B. PURE, CLEAN, and UNADULTERATED.
C. PLAIN, CLEAR, and UNSPECIALIZED.

2. In the argot of DIY bloggers, _____.

A. "hacks" are cheap, tidy solutions
B. a little chalk paint can beautify anything
C. if it's out by the trash, it's up for grabs

Answers to the review questions: 1. A 2. A Answer to the game question: "...how many men have copied dew    For buttons, how many women have covered themselves With dew, dew dresses, stones and chains of dew, heads    Of the floweriest flowers dewed with the dewiest dew."       — Wallace Stevens, "The Man on the Dump," 1923

a final word:

I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From my blog: On vocabulary...       36 ways to study words.       Why we forget words, & how to remember them.       How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. On writing...       How to improve any sentence.       How to motivate our kids to write.       How to stop procrastinating and start writing.       How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count. From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.