Лексикология английского языка

b. Write out the informal words and word-groups which occur in the above passage and explain why you think the author uses so many of them.

III. Read the following jokes. Write out the informal words and word-groups and say whether they are colloquial, slang or dialect.

1. A Yankee passenger in an English train was be­guiling his fellow passengers with tall stories¹ and re­
marked: "We can start with a twenty-story apartment house this month, and have if finished by next."

This was too much for the burly Yorkshireman, who sat next to him. "Man, that's nowt", he said. "I've seen 'em in Yorkshire when I've been going to work just lay­ing the foundation stone and when I've been coming home at neet they've been putting the folk out for back rent."

2. A driver and his family had gathered bluebells,
primrose roots, budding twigs and so on from a country
lane. Just before they piled into the car to move off Father approached a farmer who was standing nearby and asked: “Can we take this road to Sheffield?” The farmer eyed the car and its contests sourly, then: “Aye, you mun as well, you’ve taken nigh everything else around here.”