jargon

¹ American  

[jahr-guhn, -gon] / ˈdʒɑr gən, -gɒn /

noun

1. the language, especially the vocabulary, peculiar to a particular trade, profession, or group.

   medical jargon.

2. unintelligible or meaningless talk or writing; gibberish.

   Synonyms:

   twaddle, gabble, babble

3. any talk or writing that one does not understand.

4. pidgin.

5. language that is characterized by uncommon or pretentious vocabulary and convoluted syntax and is often vague in meaning.

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verb (used without object)

1. to speak in or write jargon; jargonize.

jargon ² American  

[jahr-gon] / ˈdʒɑr gɒn /

Also jargoon

noun

1. a colorless to smoky gem variety of zircon.

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jargon ¹ British  

/ ˈdʒɑːɡən /

noun

1. specialized language concerned with a particular subject, culture, or profession

2. language characterized by pretentious syntax, vocabulary, or meaning

3. gibberish

4. another word for pidgin

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verb

1. (intr) to use or speak in jargon

jargon ² British  

/ dʒɑːˈɡuːn, ˈdʒɑːɡɒn /

noun

1. rare mineralogy a golden yellow, smoky, or colourless variety of zircon

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jargon Cultural  

1. A special language belonging exclusively to a group, often a profession. Engineers, lawyers, doctors, tax analysts, and the like all use jargon to exchange complex information efficiently. Jargon is often unintelligible to those outside the group that uses it. For example, here is a passage from a computer manual with the jargon italicized: “The RZ887-x current loop interface allows the computer to use a centronics blocked duplex protocol.” (See slang.)

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Related Words

See language.

Other Word Forms

• jargoneer noun
• jargonist noun
• jargonistic adjective
• jargony adjective

Etymology

Origin of jargon¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English jargoun, from Middle French; Old French jargon, gargun, derivative of an unrecorded expressive base garg- designating the throat and its functions, as in gargle, gargoyle

Origin of jargon²

First recorded in 1760–70; from French, from Italian giargone, of uncertain origin; perhaps ultimately from Persian zargūn “gold-colored” ( cf. zircon ( def. )), equivalent to zar “gold” ( see also arsenic ( def. ), gold ( def. ), yellow ( def. )) + gūn “color”; alternatively, perhaps akin to Old French jacincte, also jacunces, jargonce jacinth ( def. )

Explanation

Jargon usually means the specialized language used by people in the same work or profession. Internet advertising jargon includes the terms "click throughs" and "page views." This noun can also refer to language that uses long sentences and hard words. If you say that someone's speech or writing is full of jargon, this means you don't approve of it and think it should be simplified. In Middle English, this word referred to chattering, so its origin is probably imitative: it echoes the sound of chatter or meaningless words.

Example Sentences

It helps to learn the jargon and different concepts alongside them, which keeps the conversation open.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 17, 2026

Mr. Bernard offers colorful descriptions of various classic pinball machines—such as Monaco, Gorgar and Harlem Globetrotters—and explains some of the jargon surrounding them: outlanes, drop targets, nudges and tilts.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 15, 2026

Flow is hospital jargon for the timely movement of patients from the emergency department to other parts of the hospital for treatment.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

He repeated the tests many times, altering the phrases to include words drawn from categories such as bodily references, film noir-style atmosphere and technical jargon.

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

In the jargon of space exploration, the Mars 3 mission was preprogrammed, not adaptive.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

Related Words

• argot
• idiom
• lingo
• parlance
• patois
• slang
• vernacular
• vocabulary