An Analysis of Jargon Used by Commentators in the League of Legends Tournament on the LoL Esports YouTube Channel

Abstract

This study investigates the jargon used by commentators during a League of Legends tournament broadcast on the official LoL Esports YouTube channel. It aims to identify the word-formation processes used in the jargon and to explain the meanings of the identified terms within their gameplay context. Employing a qualitative descriptive design, the study analyzes commentators’ utterances from the First Stand Tournament broadcast on March 10, 2025. The data were collected through repeated observation and manual transcription of the commentary. The identified jargon was classified using Yule’s (2010) theory of word formation, while its contextual meanings were interpreted with reference to established League of Legends sources. The analysis identified 31 jargon terms representing six word-formation processes: conversion, compounding, borrowing, clipping, acronym, and derivation. Conversion was the most frequent process, accounting for 12 terms, followed by compounding with seven terms and borrowing with six. Clipping occurred in three terms, acronyms in two, and derivation in one. These findings indicate that esports commentators frequently adapt existing lexical items and specialized expressions to communicate complex gameplay situations efficiently. The study highlights how word formation contributes to the development of specialized vocabulary in esports commentary and reflects the communicative practices of the League of Legends community.