Re: English Language
Dude is the most popular word for american kids.
Pronounced
D-ooo-D
It can be used to denote suprise:
Dude!
It can be used as a greeting:
Hey dude.
It can be used be used to signal agreement or a compliment:
Dude you rock!
It can be used to interupt:
Hey dude!
It is a term of casual familiarity, and by varying the way you say it it can have lots of meanings. It is also a habitual term, with some kids using it so frequently they forget that they are saying it, so it appears at the beginning of almost every sentence. A typical teenage discussion:
Dude!
Sup Dude!
Dude, I was just hanging.
Sweet Dude!
Aw dude I got a new xbox.
DUDE! You are the dude!
The word probably originated in the Old American West where cowboys used it to describe a well dressed man, as opposed to a dirty Cowboy. Later, there were "Dude Ranches", which featured riding horses for city folks, so that they could pretend to be cowboys while on vacation. Current usage has nothing to do with this heritage.
See, American is easy!