() is a type of argot in the French language, featuring inversion of syllables in a word, and is common in slang and youth language. It rests on a long French tradition of transposing syllables of individual words to create slang words. The word itself is an example of verlan (making it an autological word). It is derived from inverting the sounds of the syllables in l'envers (, "the inverse", frequently used in the sense of "back-to-front"). Word formation Words in verlan are formed by switching the order in which syllables from the original word are pronounced. For example, becomes . Verlan generally retains the pronunciation of the original syllables. However, French words that end in a (such as ) and words that end in a pronounced consonant (such as ) gain the sound once reversed. In addition, verlan often drops the final vowel sound after the word is inverted, so and become ( – in full form) and ( – in full form), respectively. The study of written verlan is difficult as it is primarily passed down orally, without standardized spelling. While some still argue that the letters should be held over from the original word, in the case of verlan, most experts agree that words should be spelled as to best approximate pronunciation. For example, is preferred to . The French author Auguste Le Breton uses numerous examples of verlan, for instance in . Different rules apply for one-syllable words, and words with multiple syllables may be verlan-ised in more than one way. For example, may yield or . Vocabulary Some verlan words, such as , have become so commonplace that they have been included in the . The purpose of verlan is to create a somewhat secret language that only its speakers can understand. Words becoming mainstream is counterproductive. As a result, such newly common words are re-verlan-ised: reversed a second time . Some verlan words, which are now well incorporated in common French language, have taken on their own significance, or at least certain connotations that have changed their meaning. For example, the word , which can still be used to refer to any woman, also refers to the speaker's girlfriend, when used in the possessive form ( → my girl); while the original word would refer to the speaker's wife when used in the same way ( → my wife). Such words retain a cultural