Nominations for Words of the Year 2019 and Words of the Decade 2010-2019 have been posted. The final vote will be held at 5 p.m. CST, Friday, January 3rd, at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside, St. Charles Ballroom.
Words of the Year (2019) and Words of the Decade (2010-2019)
NOMINATIONS to be voted on by the American Dialect Society, Jan. 3, 2020, New Orleans, LA
POLITICAL WORD OF THE YEAR
- #IMPOTUS: derogatory reference to Trump (IMPeached President Of The United States)
- quid pro quo: exchange of favors (central to Trump/Ukraine impeachment scandal)
- squad: nickname for four new House Democrats (Reps. Ocasio-Cortez, Omar, Pressley, Tlaib)
- Trumpschmerz: suffering induced by constant updates about the Trump administration
MOST USEFUL/MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED
- ok boomer: retort to someone older expressing out-of-touch or condescending views
- plant-based: made from plants, for food products marketed as meat alternatives
- stan: to be devoted or enthusiastic about
- zoomer: member of Generation Z
SLANG/INFORMAL WORD OF THE YEAR
- and I oop-: catchphrase of VSCO girls, expressing shock, surprise, or embarrassment (originally from a video by drag queen Jasmine Masters)
- hot girl summer: a call to live one’s best life (after Houston rapper Megan Thee Stallion)
- zaddy: gender-neutral variation of “daddy” for an attractive older person with money
MOST CREATIVE
- (X)-curious: interested in something (as in “bi-curious”)
- gerrymeandering: drawing convoluted congressional district lines for political gain
- nobody: : phrasal template mocking someone providing an unsolicited opinion
- sksksk: keysmash exclamation, expressing laughter, awkwardness, or amazement
EUPHEMISM OF THE YEAR
- freedom gas / molecules of U.S. freedom: natural gas (used by Energy Dept. officials)
- Heckboy: Hellboy (used on the marquee of a Tennessee movie theater)
- people of means: rich people (used by Starbucks executive Howard Schultz)
- self-partnered: single (used by Emma Watson)
DIGITAL WORD OF THE YEAR
- 📠: facts (pun on “fax machine” emoji)
- im🍑: emoji representation of “impeach”
- VSCO girl: young woman who posts trendy pictures of herself on the VSCO photo app
WORD OF THE YEAR (2019)
- ok boomer: retort to someone older expressing out-of-touch or condescending views
- cancel: withdraw support from someone or something that is considered problematic or unacceptable
- (my) pronouns: introduction for sharing one’s set of personal pronouns (“pronouns: she/her”)
- Karen: stereotype of a complaining, self-important white woman, typically a member of Generation X (also “Generation Karen”)
WORD OF THE DECADE (2010-2019)
- #BlackLivesMatter: expression of protest over police violence against African Americans
- climate: used in phrases related to the impact of climate change, including “climate crisis,” “climate emergency,” and “climate strike”
- emoji: small icon in electronic communication, used to convey information or emotional attitude, or as a playful substitution for words
- meme: a shared cultural item in the form of a phrase, image, or video circulated online, often with humorous, creative alterations
- #MeToo: expression of solidarity for women surviving sexual assault or harassment (coined by Tarana Burke)
- opioid crisis: epidemic of opioid-related drug overdoses across the U.S.
- selfie: a photograph that one takes of oneself, typically with a digital camera and shared on social media
- they: gender-neutral singular pronoun for a known person, particularly as a nonbinary identifier (“they,” “them,” themself”)
- woke: socially aware, especially about issues of racial and social justice (also used negatively to mock ostensibly enlightened attitudes)