For example the noun 'boss' has become the verb 'to boss.' 5. The influence of the German language was the first influence to come from an immigrant people, rather than a conquered colonial rival. There are a lot of words in American English that have some aspects of German influence and less words that are clearly of German origin. Such words as these are still widely used in American English delicatessen, hamburger, lager beer, thick milk, Kris Kringle, semester, 'ouch' and Christmas tree Words borrowed from German consist largely of words to do with food and drink, that gives us quite a clear idea of the type of cultural contact between the German immigrants and their English-speaking hosts. There is considerably more to the process of word borrowing than just adding words to the vocabulary.
Words change in meaning, grammatical function and they are formed into new combinations.
Even though the United States of America can no longer be described as a melting pot but rather a 'mosaic' or a 'salad bowl,' the language called American English can very well be described as a melting pot. Languages are clearly melting together, each of them bringing something different, forming a language called American English.