Home › Glossary › Letter J

Jargon

Concept
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Specialized vocabulary used by a particular profession or group.

Detailed Definition
Jargon in poetry denotes specialized, technical, or obscure vocabulary drawn from professions, subcultures, or disciplines (law, science, gaming), used either to authenticate voice, critique institutional language, or create alienating/illuminating effects; while often pejorative, poetic jargon—like Mina Loy’s medical terms or Claudia Rankine’s bureaucratic diction—can expose hidden ideologies or expand lyric subjectivity through lexical hybridity.
Example
Example in poetry:
Sylvia Plath’s “Daddy” uses psychiatric jargon: “I may be a bit of a Jew”; T.S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land” includes anthropological jargon: “Those are pearls that were his eyes”; Contemporary poet Claudia Rankine’s “Citizen” uses sociological jargon like “microaggression”; Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself” incorporates medical and anatomical jargon; M. NourbeSe Philip’s “Zong!” uses legal jargon from slave-ship court transcripts; Ocean Vuong’s “Time Is a Mother” blends queer theory and refugee terminology as poetic jargon.
Additional Notes
Jargon in poetry refers to technical or specialized vocabulary; poets may use it to add realism, exclude outsiders, or generate humor.
Also Known As
Specialized language Technical vocabulary Insider speech Professional argot
Skip to main content