These are all of the words-of-the-year winners from the American Dialect Society, from the year the vote was first held, 1990, to today. The vote takes place at our annual conference each January. Look for conference information on this site.

2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019; Word of the Decade | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009; Word of the Decade | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | Words of the Millennium, Century, and Decade | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990

If there are numbers after a word and its definition, they represent the final vote tallies at the annual meeting. If there are two numbers separated by a forward slash, then there was a runoff vote and each number represents a different vote.

Our criteria for words of the year are that the words be:

— demonstrably new or newly popular in the year in question
— widely and/or prominently used in the year in question
— indicative or reflective of the popular discourse
— not a peeve or a complaint about overuse or misuse

2023 WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ enshittification: worsening of a digital platform through reduction in quality of service 68/92/158
babygirl: older male fictional character or celebrity seen as emotionally damaged, helpless, or vulnerable 10
ceasefire: rallying cry for those seeking a stoppage of hostilities in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict 29
context: word invoked by presidents of Harvard, MIT, and Penn to questions at a House hearing about prohibiting speech on campus 45/63
(derogatory): parenthetical comment humorously appended after a word that might not be expected to be derogatory 43/73/121
girlie: lighthearted and affectionate term of address for young women (also used in a broader more gender-inclusive way) 20
Kenaissance: renaissance in the wake of the Barbie movie’s depiction of Ken (also Kenergy, Kenough) 14
let (someone) cook: allow a person to do something that they are good at without interference 14
stochastic parrot: large language model that can generate plausible synthetic text without having any understanding 37/52

MOST USEFUL/MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

☛ (derogatory): parenthetical comment humorously appended after a word that might not be expected to be derogatory 116
cunty: having an audaciously exceptional appearance or displaying fierce femininity (from LGBTQ ballroom culture) 26
enshittification: worsening of a digital platform through reduction in quality of service 37
era: a personal period defined by a noteworthy style or behavior (esp. in in my X era) 30
girl/boy X: way of doing something associated with a gender, as in girl dinner, girl math, boy math 55
mother: (adj.) admirable (as a term of endearment); (v.) to perform something admirably (from LGBTQ ballroom culture) 16

POLITICAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ 🍉 (watermelon emoji): symbol of Palestinian solidarity used on social media 103/143
context: word invoked by presidents of Harvard, MIT, and Penn to questions at a House hearing about prohibiting speech on campus 61
hot labor summer/hot union summer: summer of 2023, when a number of unions went on strike 106/133
I/P: shorthand for the Israeli/Palestinian conflict 1

DIGITAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ enshittification: worsening of a digital platform through reduction in quality of service 111
chat: collective term of address for those participating in a streamer’s chat 59
gamers: second-person plural term of address, as on a gaming livestream 11
ice cream so good: response by TikTok streamer Pinkydoll to receiving an ice cream emoji 11
millennial pause: pause by a millennial at the beginning of a recorded video, as opposed to the Gen Z shake (shaky video at the start of recording) 45
skibidi: nonsense word popularized by the YouTube animated series Skibidi Toilet 46

INFORMAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ let (someone) cook: allow a person to do something that they are good at without interference 90/142
babygirl: older male fictional character or celebrity seen as emotionally damaged, helpless, or vulnerable 39
(derogatory): parenthetical comment humorously appended after a word that might not be expected to be derogatory 75 /127
gyat, gyatt: exclamation expressing surprise, excitement, or admiration (esp. on seeing someone with a large butt) 12
rizz: charm or attractiveness, now used as a combining form or blend component (rizzler, pre-rizz-toric) 60

ACRONYM/INITIALISM OF THE YEAR (ad-hoc category)

☛ FAFO (fuck around and find out): warning that foolish actions will result in unwanted consequences 177
AITA (am I the asshole?): question asked to an online audience (as on Reddit) to determine if the person is at fault in a situation 47
IYKYK (if you know, you know): indication that something is a reference understood by a select group 14
LFG (let’s fucking go): exhortation to action 26
MOOP (matter out of place): waste material left behind at an event (esp. Burning Man)  12

AI-RELATED WORD THE YEAR (ad-hoc category)

☛ stochastic parrot: large language model that can generate plausible synthetic text without having any understanding 106/147
ChatGPT: name for OpenAI’s chatbot, now becoming generic for generative AI systems 111/130
hallucination: AI-generated response containing false information presented as factual 10
LLM (large language model): machine-learning model trained on a vast text corpus 6
prompt engineer: expert in developing text prompts for generative AI models 40

MOST CREATIVE WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ Kenaissance: renaissance in the wake of the Barbie movie’s depiction of Ken (also Kenergy, Kenough) 100/161
assholocene: the current era of human history, defined by the ubiquity of assholes 42
delulu: delusion, as in delulu is the solulu (delusion is the solution) 72/109
tush push: quarterback sneak for short yardage perfected by the Philadelphia Eagles (also called the brotherly shove) 64

EUPHEMISM OF THE YEAR

☛ structurally restrictive housing: solitary confinement (rebranded by the New York City Department of Correction) 101
artificial intelligence: computerized simulation of human intelligence that is not actually intelligent 60
effective altruism: movement ostensibly to benefit humanity, used as an excuse for spending other people’s money 57
free bird: alternative to “empty-nester” promoted by Gwyneth Paltrow 17
stenographer: journalist seen as uncritically reporting statements made by officials and others in power 22

2022 WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ -ussy: suffix from “pussy” (as in “bussy” = “boy pussy,” now humorously attached to many words); also -ussification: the process of creating new blended words with the -ussy suffix 108
Dark Brandon: sinister, powerful alter ego of Joe Biden (play on “Let’s Go Brandon”) 19
quiet quitting: doing no more than the minimum required for a job 32
rizz: effortless attractiveness or style (short for “charisma”) 11
Slava Ukraini: “Glory to Ukraine!” (said in solidarity with Ukrainian resistance) 25
special military operation: Russian designation for invasion of Ukraine 23

MOST USEFUL/MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

☛ quiet quitting: doing no more than the minimum required for a job 90/115
climate criminal: celebrity who flies excessively via private jet 12
longtermism: ethical position that prioritizes improving the long-term future 5
nepo baby: celebrity who is the child of a celebrity 27
rizz: effortless attractiveness or style (short for “charisma”) 84/92

POLITICAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ Dark Brandon: sinister, powerful alter ego of Joe Biden (play on “Let’s Go Brandon”) 110
Dobbs: Supreme Court decision reversing abortion rights (as in “post-Dobbs”) 38
pink trickle/splash: result of Republican “red wave” in midterms not materializing 19
Slava Ukraini: “Glory to Ukraine!” (said in solidarity with Ukrainian resistance) 18
Woman, Life, Freedom: rallying cry for women’s rights in Iran and elsewhere 24

DIGITAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ -dle: suffix for Wordle-like games (Heardle,  Absurdle, Foodle, Worldle, Redactle, etc.) 84/118
BFFR: initialism for “be fucking for real” 14
chief twit: self-designation of Elon Musk after acquiring Twitter 4
chronically online: spending so much time online that it warps one’s sense of reality 30
crypto rug pull: scam in which a fraudulent development team pumps a cryptocurrency token before disappearing with the funds, leaving investors with a valueless asset 8
touch grass: go outside (antidote to spending too much time online) 64/87
-verse: online world, as in Metaverse (Facebook’s VR platform) or Fediverse (federated servers on Mastodon) 8

INFORMAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ it’s giving (X): description of something exuding a particular vibe or energy (from drag culture) 94/126
dickriding: currying favor or sucking up to someone 22
(the) ick: feeling of disgust about one’s date 8
menty b: mental breakdown 29
rizz: effortless attractiveness or style (short for “charisma”) 67/84

MOST CREATIVE WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ -ussy: suffix from “pussy” (as in “bussy” = “boy pussy,” now humorously attached to many words) 163
blorbo (from my shows): beloved fictional character from television or other media 9
-dle: suffix for Wordle-like games (Heardle,  Absurdle, Foodle, Worldle, Redactle, etc.) 24
moid/foid: derogatory terms for men and women in incel culture 0
short king: positive or affectionate term for a man of modest stature 18 

EUPHEMISM OF THE YEAR

☛ special military operation: Russian designation for invasion of Ukraine 50/121
camping: access to abortion, as used in informal networks circumventing state anti-abortion laws 37
diverse-owned: of a business, owned by members of historically underrepresented groups 7
leg booty: algospeak substitution for LGBT 52/86
pronouns: trans/nonbinary gender identities, as used in transphobic rhetoric to mock pronoun choice 31
résumé embellishment: lying about one’s accomplishments 32

SNOWCLONE/PHRASAL TEMPLATE OF THE YEAR

☛ not X: ironic framing device expressing an attitude of mock horror or incredulity 82/125
if I text you X, it means Y: explaining how to interpret an emoji or series of emojis 9
#IStandWithX: expression of solidarity 26
it’s the X for me: singling out a notable or funny aspect of something, or finding fault with someone 26
she’s/he’s a 10, but X: pointing out a negative or quirky quality of someone 28
X hits different: describing an experience that is affecting in a meaningful way 41/79

EMOJI OF THE YEAR

☛ 💀 [skull]: expressing figurative death (from laughter, frustration, etc.) 72/108
🫠 [melting face]: expressing embarrassment or dread 67/90
🫡 [saluting face]: sign of respect or solidarity 9
🫥 [dotted line face]: feeling of invisibility 8
🚩 [red flag]: signaling danger or problems 2
⬜🟨🟩 [colored boxes]: for Wordle results 45

2021 WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ insurrection: violent attempt to take control of the government, applied to the Capitol attack of Jan. 6, 2021 – 188 (36%) / 169 (53%)
antiwork: position supporting the refusal to work, pushing back against labor exploitation  18 (6%)
Big Lie: propagandistic distortion of truth, as in Donald Trump’s false claim that the 2020 election was “stolen” 19 (6%)
Great Resignation: pandemic-era phenomenon in which workers are leaving their jobs in large numbers. 59 (18%)
long Covid: lingering symptoms and health problems experienced by people after they have recovered from Covid – 5 (2%)
Omicron: name assigned by the World Health Organization for a highly contagious “variant of concern” of the coronavirus 4 (1%)
variant: new form of a virus, such as coronavirus, resulting from mutations 33 (10%)
vax/vaxx: shortened form of vaccine, vaccination, or vaccinate, often used as combining form (as in anti-vaxxer, Hot Vax Summer, double/triple-vaxxed, vaxxed and relaxed) – 71 (22%) / 152 (47%)

MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED 

☛ antiwork: position supporting the refusal to work, pushing back against labor exploitation 109 (34%) / 165 (52%)
endemic: describing a disease that is always present in a community or population, as some predict will be the case for Covid-19 62 (19%)
Great Resignation: pandemic-era phenomenon in which workers are leaving their jobs in large numbers 89 (28%) / 153 (48%)
mid: of average or poor quality, or simply decent, in the amorphous slang of Generation Z – 15 (5%)
NFT: abbreviation for non-fungible token, a digital asset using blockchain technology to make a unique token, with its own identification that cannot be replicated 11 (3%)
sigma male: term used in the masculinist “manosphere” for a male who is more introverted than an “alpha male” but is still considered successful 5 (2%)
shrinkflation: reduction of the size or quantity of a product while the price remains the same or even rises 28 (9%)

MOST USEFUL

☛ hard pants: pants that lack an elastic waistband or stretchy fabric, unlike the “soft pants” favored by those working from home during the pandemic 124 (39%) / 178 (55%)
bussin’: extremely good, such as food that is indescribably tasty 31 (10%)
tone indicator: code such as “/srs” or “/lol” that indicates the tone (serious, ironic, humorous) of online discourse 78 (24%)
vibe: mood or emotion, such as the positive feelings evoked by a piece of music; to exult in one’s good feelings. 89 (28%) / 144 (45%)

POLITICAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ insurrection: violent attempt to take control of the government, applied to the Capitol attack of Jan. 6, 2021 67 (33%) / 124 (59%)
Big Lie: propagandistic distortion of truth, as in Donald Trump’s false claim that the 2020 election was “stolen” 70 (34%) / 87 (41%)
CRT/critical race theory: framework for analyzing how racism is embedded in law and policies, exploited as a scare tactic by politicians favoring “anti-CRT” legislation 27 (13%)
mandate: official or authoritative command, as in politically contentious “mask mandates” and “vaccine mandates” 41 (20%)

DIGITAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ #FreeBritney: hashtag for those supporting the release of Britney Spears from the conservatorship set up by her father 13 years ago 125 (39%) / 215 (68%)
bones day/no bones day: prediction of whether a day will be good or bad (based on Jonathan Graziano’s TikTok videos of his dog Noodle getting up in the morning) 58 (18%)
girlboss: a confident, capable woman pursuing business ambitions; also used in a derogatory fashion for a woman cynically combining feminism with careerism 26 (8%)
horny jail: imagined place a person is sent to as punishment for being excessively sexual on social media 22 (7%)
parasocial: describing a relationship that a person imagines with someone whom they do not actually know, such as a celebrity on an online platform 61 (19%) / 102 (32%)
the ___ urge to: ironic framing device to describe stereotypical tendencies and traits, as in “the feminine urge to…” 29 (9%)

PANDEMIC-RELATED WORD OF THE YEAR (special category)

☛ boosted: having received a booster shot, as for Covid-19 (also boostered/boosterized) 108 (32%) / 192 (58%)
breakthrough: describing an infection, as from coronavirus, after a person has been vaccinated 16 (5%)
Delta/Omicron: Greek-letter names assigned by the World Health Organization for coronavirus “variants of concern” 10 (3%)
flurona: sickness from a combination of the influenza virus and the coronavirus 4 (1%)
long Covid: lingering symptoms and health problems experienced by people after they have recovered from Covid – 23 (7%)
variant: new form of a virus, such as coronavirus, resulting from mutations 102 (30%) / 139 (42%)
vax/vaxx: shortened form of vaccine, vaccination, or vaccinate, often used as combining form (as in anti-vaxxer, Hot Vax Summer, double/triple-vaxxed, vaxxed and relaxed) 78 (23%)

FINANCIAL/ECONOMIC WORD OF THE YEAR (special category)

☛ supply chain: interconnected global system of supplying goods and services to consumers, put in jeopardy by the pandemic 133 (39%) / 194 (57%)
Great Resignation: pandemic-era phenomenon in which workers are leaving their jobs in large numbers 98 (29%) / 148 (43%)
NFT: abbreviation for non-fungible token, a digital asset using blockchain technology to make a unique token, with its own identification that cannot be replicated 50 (15%)
SPAC: abbreviation for special purpose acquisition company, an investment vehicle that allows a company to go public without going through the traditional IPO process 1 (0%)
stimmy: shortened form of stimulus, used in reference to government stimulus checks 26 (8%)
stonk: deliberate misspelling of stock, used by online day traders for their investments, esp. for “meme stocks” like Gamestop (aka Gamestonk) 32 (9%)

INFORMAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ yassify: to apply image filters to a person’s photo to transform it into a cartoonishly beautiful image; more generally, to make beautiful or glamorous 164 (52%)
cheugy: term used by members of Generation Z to poke fun at the off-trend lifestyles and fashions of millennials 111 (35%)
down bad: used to describe intense (typically sexual) desperation 16 (5%)
flop era: time in which a person, such as a pop star, enters an unsuccessful period 24 (8%)

MOST CREATIVE WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ Fauci ouchie: rhyming phrase for a Covid-19 vaccine, in honor of Dr. Anthony Fauci 89 (28%) / 154 (51%)
chin diaper: face mask worn below the chin instead of properly covering the nose and mouth 98 (31%) / 148 (49%)
copium: the rationalizations, justifications, and denial one uses to deal with a severe letdown or personal failure (a blend of cope and opium) 85 (27%)
-core: productive suffix for aesthetic trends, such as gorpcore (functional outdoorsy gear), emancicore (non-restrictive clothing emphasizing freedom), and goblincore (chaotic aesthetic inspired by goblin folklore) 45 (14%)

EUPHEMISM OF THE YEAR

☛ unalive: term used as a substitute for “suicide” or “kill” to avoid social media filters 152 (47%) / 198 (62%)
election integrity: euphemism used for voter suppression 81 (25%) / 122 (38%)
glizzy: slang term for a hot dog (also used to describe fellatio, as in glizzy gobbling) 18 (6%)
Let’s Go Brandon: playful euphemism for “Fuck Joe Biden,” based on a sports reporter mishearing a chant while interviewing stock-car racer Brandon Brown 50 (15%)
TFG: abbreviation for “the former guy,” an expression used by President Biden to refer to his predecessor Trump without saying his name 23 (7%)

2020 WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ Covid: shorthand for Covid-19, the name given to the disease caused by infection from novel coronavirus; also used more broadly to refer to the pandemic and its impacts 79 (26%) / 167 (54%)
2020: used to sum up chaotic and despondent feelings inspired by the year’s events 92 (30%) / 143 (47%)
antiracism: the practice of actively working to prevent or combat racism 5(2%)
Before Times: the time before the beginning of the pandemic (followed by Now Times or After Times) 7 (2%)
BIPOC: acronym for Black, Indigenous and People of Color or Black and Indigenous People of Color 0 (0%)
doomscrolling: obsessively scanning social media and websites for bad news 55 (18%)
pandemic: epidemic over a wide area affecting a large proportion of the population 4 (1%)
social distancing: keeping away from others as much as possible to prevent the spread of coronavirus 40 (13%)
unprecedented: never having happened, existed, or experienced before 30 (10%)

MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED          

☛ antiracism: the practice of actively working to prevent or combat racism 136 (44%) / 219 (72%)
BIPOC: acronym for Black, Indigenous and People of Color or Black and Indigenous People of Color 27 (9%)
contactless: requiring no physical contact, to avoid transmitting disease 52 (17%) / 87 (29%)
curbside: adjacent to a curb, as for pickup of goods without entering a store or restaurant 23 (7%)
gigafire: a wildfire that burns at least a million acres of land 31 (10%)
Zoomer: term for Generation Z, originally modeled on boomer, now highlighting their use of Zoom for remote learning and other activities 40 (13%)

MOST USEFUL

☛ Before Times: the time before the beginning of the pandemic (followed by Now Times or After Times) 114 (36%) / 189 (61%)
Blursday: humorous indication of difficulty in determining what day of the week it is 79 (25%) / 120 (39%)
bubble/pod: terms for the group with which one remains in quarantine 71 (23%)
PPE: abbreviation for personal protective equipment 16 (5%)
superspreader: a patient or event responsible for spreading infection to many people 22 (11%)

POLITICAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ abolish/defund: verbs used (at times hyperbolically) to call for drastic restructuring or reforming of law enforcement in the aftermath of the George Floyd police killing 235 (74%)
dissent collar: jabot collar worn by Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg when issuing dissenting opinions, and worn by others in her honor after her death 34 (11%)
freedumb: reckless or thoughtless invocation of “freedom,” for instance in refusing to wear a mask 19 (6%)
petromasculinity: form of masculinity on display during pro-Trump highway rallies 3 (1%)
red mirage/blue shift: appearance from early returns in the 2020 presidential election that voting was skewing toward Republicans before more Democratic-leaning votes were counted 27 (9%)

DIGITAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ doomscrolling: obsessively scanning social media and websites for bad news 255 (81%)
#BlackInTheIvory: hashtag used to amplify the voices of Black scholars and their experiences of systemic racism within academia 19 (6%)
fancam: video clip made by a fan of a musical act, especially a K-Pop band, which can be used to derail an online conversation or as a form of subversive political protest; also a verb 20 (6%)
sus: clipping of “suspicious” often used in the game Among Us to label a player suspected of being an impostor 13 (4%)
TikToked: to be made the target of a campaign mobilizing TikTok users, as for political purposes 9 (3%)

ZOOM-RELATED WORD OF THE YEAR (special 2020 category)

☛ you’re muted: refrain on Zoom to remind someone to unmute when speaking 215 (65%)
oysgezoomt: fatigued or bored by Zoom (formed in Yiddish) 31 (9%)
Zoombombing: disruptive intrusion on a Zoom session by online trolls 24 (7%)
Zoom fatigue: exhaustion experienced by being over-exposed to Zoom 60 (18%)
zumping: [Zoom + dumping] breaking up with someone via Zoom 1 (0%)

PANDEMIC-RELATED WORD OF THE YEAR (special 2020 category)

☛ social distancing: keeping away from others as much as possible to prevent the spread of coronavirus 192 (58%)
contact tracing: the process of identifying who may have come into contact with a person carrying an infectious disease like coronavirus 1 (0%)
coronials: the coronavirus generation, for the predicted baby boom in the wake of the pandemic 10 (3%)
Covid: shorthand for Covid-19, the name given to the disease caused by infection from novel coronavirus; also used more broadly to refer to the pandemic and its impacts 109 (33%)
flattening the curve: the effort to slow the spread of coronavirus by taking community isolation measures 20 (6%)
moronavirus: disparaging term for foolish behavior or ideas related to the coronavirus pandemic 0 (0%)

SLANG/INFORMAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ the rona: playful term for “coronavirus” (also: Rona, Miss Rona, Aunt Rona) 107 (35%) / 186 (60%)
covidiot: a person who foolishly ignores COVID-19 protocols 39 (13%)
girls, gays, and theys: inclusive form of address encompassing female-identifying, LGBTQ, and nonbinary identities 44 (15%)
poggers: term used to denote excitement, derived from a Twitch emote showing someone with a surprised expression 34 (11%)
WAP: acronym for “wet-ass pussy,” from the song of that title by Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion 82 (27%) / 127 (41%)

MOST CREATIVE COMBINING FORM

☛ quaran-: as in quarantini, quaranteam, quaranbeard, quarantigue 119 (38%) / 211 (69%)
corona-: as in coronasomnia, coronababies, coronacut, coronacation 54 (17%) / 96 (31%)
Covid-: Covid baking, Covid fatigue, covidiot, Covid hair 25 (8%)
fatigue: as in Covid fatigue, lockdown fatigue, pandemic fatigue, Zoom fatigue 37 (12%)
mask-: as in maskne (acne caused by mask-wearing), maskhole, mask break 34 (11%)
Zoom-: as in Zoombombing, Zoom mom, Zoom party, Zoom school 37 (12%)

EUPHEMISM OF THE YEAR

☛ essential (workers, labor, businesses): used for people, often underpaid, who are actually treated as expendable because they are required to work and thus risk infection from coronavirus 209 (65%)
everything is cake: expression of extreme distrust, based on memes in which objects turn out to be hyper-realistic cakes 5 (2%)
freedom seeds: nickname for ammunition used by the National Rifle Association 8 (3%)
humaning: marketing term for a consumer-oriented approach 1 (0%)
officer-involved shooting: shooting by a police officer 97 (30%)
Toobin, v.: to expose oneself on Zoom in the manner of Jeffrey Toobin 4 (1%)

EMOJI OF THE YEAR

☛ 😷 (face with medical mask): indicating mask-wearing during the pandemic 108 (36%) / 184 (60%)
👉👈 (two fingers touching): used to indicate shyness, hesitation, or pleading 55 (19%)
🥺 (face with pleading eyes): used for timid begging or beseeching 29 (10%)
👁👄👁 (eye mouth eye): “It is what it is,” also used to express amazement, shock, disgust, or confusion 28 (8%)
✍️ (writing hand): used for bullet-pointed lists of how to fix things 1 (0%)
(emoji hugging a heart): used on Facebook for the “care” reaction 80 (27%) / 123 (40%)

2019 WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ (my) pronouns: introduction for sharing one’s set of personal pronouns (“pronouns: she/her”) 161
ok boomer: retort to someone older expressing out-of-touch or condescending views 88
cancel: withdraw support from someone considered problematic or unacceptable 10
Karen: stereotype of a complaining, self-important white woman, typically a member of Generation X (also “Generation Karen”) 34

WORD OF THE DECADE (2010-2019)

☛ they: gender-neutral singular pronoun for a known person, particularly as a nonbinary identifier (“they,” “them,” themself”) 128/210
#BlackLivesMatter: expression of protest over police violence against African Americans 31
climate: used in phrases related to the impact of climate change, including “climate crisis,” “climate emergency,” and “climate strike” 39
emoji: small icon in electronic communication, used to convey information or emotional attitude, or as a playful substitution for words 1
meme: a shared cultural item in the form of a phrase, image, or video circulated online, often with humorous, creative alterations 110/143
#MeToo: expression of solidarity for women surviving sexual assault or harassment (coined by Tarana Burke) 16
opioid crisis: epidemic of opioid-related drug overdoses across the U.S. 1
selfie: a photograph that one takes of oneself, typically with a digital camera and shared on social media 1
woke: socially aware, especially about issues of racial and social justice (also used negatively to mock ostensibly enlightened attitudes) 23

POLITICAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ quid pro quo: exchange of favors (central to Trump/Ukraine impeachment scandal) 114/174
#IMPOTUS: derogatory reference to Trump (IMPeached President Of The United States) 92/146
squad: nickname for four House Democrats (Reps. Ocasio-Cortez, Omar, Pressley, Tlaib) 61
Trumpschmerz: suffering induced by constant updates about the Trump administration 41

MOST USEFUL/MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

☛ ok boomer: retort to someone older expressing out-of-touch or condescending views 206
plant-based: made from plants, for food products marketed as meat alternatives 63
stan: to be devoted or enthusiastic about 25
zoomer: member of Generation Z 19

SLANG/INFORMAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ and I oop-: catchphrase of VSCO girls, expressing shock, surprise, or embarrassment (first used by drag queen Jasmine Masters) 142
hot girl summer: a call to live one’s best life (after Houston rapper Megan Thee Stallion) 132
zaddy: variation of “daddy” as a term of endearment for an attractive older person, typically with money 5

MOST CREATIVE

☛ nobody: : phrasal template mocking someone providing an unsolicited opinion 220
(X)-curious: interested in something 9
gerrymeandering: drawing convoluted congressional district lines for political gain 8
sksksk: keysmash exclamation, expressing laughter, awkwardness, or amazement 87

EUPHEMISM OF THE YEAR

☛ people of means: rich people (used by Starbucks executive Howard Schultz to refer to himself and fellow billionaires) 110/173
freedom gas / molecules of U.S. freedom: natural gas (used by Energy Dept. officials) 123/166
Heckboy: Hellboy (used on the marquee of a Tennessee movie theater) 15
self-partnered: single (used by Emma Watson) 68

DIGITAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ im🍑: emoji representation of “impeach” 112/166
📠: facts (pun on “fax machine” emoji) 85
VSCO girl: young woman who posts trendy pictures of herself on the VSCO photo app 107/128

2018 WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ tender-age shelter/camp/facility: government detention center for asylum-seekers’ children 71/147
yeet: indication of surprise or excitement 107/135
(the) wall: proposed barrier along the US/Mexico border to prevent illegal crossings 19
X strong: expression of solidarity after a tragedy in a particular place, as in “Pittsburgh Strong”16
Individual 1: pseudonym for Trump in documents from the Mueller investigation 9
white-caller crime: phenomenon of white people calling police on black people for doing mundane things 68

POLITICAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ (the) wall: proposed barrier along the US/Mexico border to prevent illegal crossings 102/168
nationalist: displaying a staunch belief in one’s own nation (used by Trump and supporters) 78/123
blue wave: major Democratic electoral gain 66
caravan: procession of Central American asylum-seekers to US/Mexico border 26
lodestar: guiding principle (used in op/ed by anonymous White House staffer) 18

DIGITAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ techlash: backlash against tech innovators 92/113
demonetize: remove ads from a YouTube channel to deprive the creator of revenue 71/77
blackfishing: pretending to be black on social media by using makeup and hair products 71/92
deepfake: realistic digitally composed video used to misrepresent someone 52
finsta: fake Instagram account 7

SLANG/INFORMAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ yeet: indication of surprise or excitement 120/156
big dick energy (BDE): calm, unassuming attitude 51
canceled: firmly rejected or dismissed 12
mood, big mood: strong emotion of agreement 10
weird flex but OK: rejoinder to improper boast 109/147

MOST USEFUL

☛ Voldemorting: avoiding mention of unpleasant person or topic by using a replacement term 114
himpathy: flow of sympathy away from female victims toward their male victimizers 26
orbiting: ending communication with someone while still monitoring them on social media 61
preferred pronoun: pronoun that a person opts to use for himself/herself/themself/etc. 3
situationship: undefined or unlabeled personal relationship 25
self-care: care for oneself 44

MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

☛ single-use: made to be used only once and destroyed 101/149
climate grief: negative feelings caused by climate-change-related weather events 125/146
cli-fi: science fiction relating to climate change 21
hothouse Earth: scenario of runaway global warming 20

MOST CREATIVE

☛ white-caller crime: phenomenon of white people calling police on black people for doing mundane things 158
girther: person skeptical of the president’s reported weight and height 11
procrasti-: related to procrastination 13
today years old: indication that someone has just recently learned something 60
treasonweasel: epithet for a traitorous person 4

EUPHEMISM OF THE YEAR

☛ racially charged: circumlocution for “racist” 223
executive time: presidential down-time 2
Individual 1: pseudonym for Trump in documents from the Mueller investigation 12
tender-age shelter/camp/facility: government detention center for asylum-seekers’ children 45

WTF WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ deleted family unit: bureaucratic term that referred to asylum-seeking families whose children were removed 95
emotional support peacock: therapy animal that airline passenger tried to bring on board 21
incel: involuntary celibate (online subculture) 77
shithole countries: Trump’s epithet for places he does not want to accept immigrants from 51
soy boy: term for a man perceived as not conforming to male gender stereotypes 9

HASHTAG OF THE YEAR

☛ #nottheonion: reporting something true that seems like satire from The Onion 96
#neveragain: call for gun-control measures after the Parkland shooting 84
#thankunext: expressing gratitude and readiness to move on (from Ariana Grande) 30
#timesup: movement protesting sexual assault 58 

EMOJI OF THE YEAR

☛ 🤔: thinking face (indicating bemused pondering) 149
🦞: lobster (adopted by trans community) 49
💅: nail polish (indicating air of nonchalance) 25
🤦‍♀️: facepalm (indicating exasperation, disbelief) 49

2017 WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ fake news

Disinformation or falsehoods presented as real news.

Actual news that is claimed to be untrue. 196

alternative facts

Contrary information that matches one’s preferred narrative or interpretation of events. 12

#MeToo

Indication by women that they have experienced sexual harassment or assault. 35

milkshake duck

Person or thing that is deeply loved until problematic behavior is revealed or unearthed. 5

persisterhood, persister

Blend of “persist” and “sister(hood),” an expression of solidarity for women who persist in the face of sexism and gender bias. 6

pussyhat

Pink knitted hat worn by demonstrators at the Women’s March. 2

take a knee

Kneel in protest, especially during a time when others are standing. 30

whomst

Humorous variant of “whom” used as a sarcastic display of intelligence. 3

POLITICAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ take a knee

Kneel in protest, especially during a time when others are standing. 181

antifa

Anti-fascist movements and organizations, treated as a whole. 16

persister, persisterhood

Blend of “persist” and “sister(hood),” an expression of solidarity for women who persist in the face of sexism and gender bias. 62

DIGITAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ shitpost

Posting of worthless or irrelevant online content intended to derail a conversation or to provoke others. 78

blockchain

Technology underlying cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, which exploded in value this year. 18

digital blackface

When a (usu. white) person uses images of black people as a proxy for themselves on social media. 19

emergency podcast

An audio show prepared at a moment of dire political need. 20

get the zucc

Be banned from Facebook (from the name of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg). 24

initial coin offering

Capital-raising process to collect funds to start up a new cryptocurrency. 21

ratio

On Twitter, amount of replies to a tweet compared to the number of retweets and likes. 25

rogue adj.

Describing someone ostensibly working in an administration who is posting messages against it. 34

SLANG/INFORMAL WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ wypipo

Humorous phonetic spelling of “white people” used to flag white privilege, cluelessness, or absurdity. 168

RIP

Humorous expression of being overwhelmed by emotions or other factors, as if dying. 5

shooketh

Mock-archaic way of expressing shock or excitement. 18

snatched

Good-looking, attractive. 22

MOST USEFUL

☛ die by suicide

A variant of “to commit suicide” that does not suggest a criminal act. 108

millennial pink

angry react, sad react

Expression of anger or sorrow (describing reaction emoji, e.g. on Facebook). 38

‑burger

Combining form modeled on “nothingburger.” 60

Tint of pink used in goods and social media by and for millennials. 8

MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

☛ fake news

Disinformation or falsehoods presented as real news.

Actual news that is claimed to be untrue. 196

stan v.

Be a big fan (from Eminem song “Stan”). 2

unicorn

A one-of-a-kind person or thing. 20

MOST CREATIVE

☛ broflake

Man or boy who lacks resilience or coping skills in the face of disagreements or setbacks. 100

askhole

Person who continuously asks ridiculous or obnoxious questions. 78

caucacity

Blatantly exhibiting white privilege or acting in a stereotypically white way (a blend of “Caucasian” and “audacity”). 36

milkshake duck

Person or thing that is deeply loved until problematic behavior is revealed or unearthed. 50

EUPHEMISM OF THE YEAR

☛ alternative facts

Contrary information that matches one’s preferred narrative or interpretation of events. 181

avocado toast

A minor indulgence for which people unfairly judge others, esp. millennials. 43

Internet freedom

Removal of net-neutrality regulations by the FCC. 23

problematic

An understated way to say something is very wrong or unacceptably politically incorrect. 13

WTF WORD OF THE YEAR

☛ covfefe

A (probably) mistyped word of unknown meaning used in a Donald Trump tweet. 113

Oh hi Mark, ohimark

Catchphrase based on a line from the notoriously bad movie The Room. 34

procrastination nanny

Person who moderates productivity for other adults, esp. as a group event. 16

raw water

Water from natural sources without filters or treatment. 74

HASHTAG OF THE YEAR

☛ #MeToo

Indication by women that they have experienced sexual harassment or assault. 231

#NeverthelessShePersisted

Feminist rallying cry based on Mitch McConnell’s warning to Elizabeth Warren during a Senate debate. 12

#ReclaimingMyTime

Phrase repeated by Rep. Maxine Waters when questioning Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin in a House committee hearing. 25

#Resist

Slogan of the (anti-Trump) resistance. 11

EMOJI OF THE YEAR

☛ 🧕

woman with head scarf or hijab. 96

🐐

GOAT (Greatest Of All Time). 44

im🍑

impeach. 50

🤔

thinking face. 53

2016 WORD OF THE YEAR
* dumpster fire: an exceedingly disastrous or chaotic situation (🗑️🔥). 112/162
woke: socially aware or enlightened. 74/129
normalize: treat as if normal that which was previously deemed beyond acceptable bounds. 60
post-truth: belonging to a time in which facts matter less than beliefs and emotions. 25
#NoDAPL: hashtag protesting the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline. 24
🔥: fire emoji, used as a general superlative: 2

POLITICAL WORD OF THE YEAR
deplorables (basket of): epithet used by Clinton in speech about Trump supporters. 26
nasty woman: epithet used by Trump addressing Clinton in final presidential debate. 89/138
Pantsuit Nation: popular Facebook group for Clinton supporters. 2
* post-truth: belonging to a time in which facts matter less than beliefs and emotions.133/164
unpresidented: erroneous version of unprecedented in a tweet by Trump. 44

DIGITAL WORD OF THE YEAR
fam: one’s crew, squad, or circle of friends; a member thereof (used as term of address). 5
Harambe: gorilla killed at Cincinnati Zoo, launching numerous tributes and memes. 9
tweetstorm: series of connected tweets about a particular subject, often a passionate rant. 138
* @: (verb) reply on Twitter using the @ symbol. 155

SLANG WORD OF THE YEAR
fire: (adj.) cool, fun, stylish; also used as a general superlative. 7
receipts: proof (as in “show me the receipts”). 130/136
slay: succeed, be excellent or amazing. 25
* woke: socially aware or enlightened. 122/168

MOST USEFUL / MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED
chip: (verb) insert a bank card into an electronic chip reader (as opposed to swipe). 64
* gaslight: psychologically manipulate a person into questioning their own sanity. 153
normalize: treat as if normal that which was previously deemed beyond acceptable bounds. 82
turn up: get excited, have fun, enjoy oneself. 4

MOST CREATIVE
-exit: combining form relating to departure, after Brexit (Calexit, Texit, Brangelexit) 124
facticide: killing or distortion of facts. 7
gynotician: politician seen as interfering with women’s healthcare. 31
* laissez-fairydust: magical effect brought upon by laissez-faire economics. 152

EUPHEMISM OF THE YEAR
alt-right: umbrella term for extremist racial ideologies including white nationalism and white
supremacy. 61
fake news: misinformation, hoaxes, and propaganda, especially as spread on social media sites to
boost web traffic. 15
* locker-room banter: lewd, vulgar talk (used by Trump to downplay Access Hollywood tape),
euphemizing discourse about harrassment of and aggression toward women. 187
small/tiny hands: a jab at hand size implying other anatomical deficiencies. 15

WTF WORD OF THE YEAR
* bigly: in a significant manner (from widespread mishearing of Trump’s use of big-league). 159
cuck, cuckservative: derisive term for mainstream Republicans by alt-right. 64
pussy: term for female genitalia used by Trump in Access Hollywood tape. 9
yuuuge: dialect pronunciation of huge used by Trump and Bernie Sanders. 2

HASHTAG OF THE YEAR
#blackgirlmagic: celebration of black women and their achievements. 5
* #NoDAPL: protest against construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline. 198
#OscarsSoWhite: criticism of Academy Award nominees’ lack of diversity. 8
#pussygrabsback: rallying cry responding to Trump’s “pussy” remark. 29

EMOJI OF THE YEAR
🙌 : raising hands (celebration, praise). 16
✊: raised fist (fist pump, solidarity). 33
🙃: upside-down face (silliness, sarcasm, irony). 11
*🔥: fire (“lit,” exciting); also used in : dumpster fire. 201

2015 WORD OF THE YEAR

ammosexual: someone who loves firearms in a fetishistic manner. 42
ghost: (verb) abruptly end a relationship by cutting off communication, especially online. 25
on fleek: put together, impeccable, well-arrayed. 4
thanks, Obama: sarcastic expression in which a person pretends to blame Obama for a problem. 76
* they: gender-neutral singular pronoun for a known person, particularly as a nonbinary identifier. 187

MOST USEFUL

mic drop: definitive end to a discussion after making an impressive point. 2
microaggression: subtle form of racism or bias. 62
shade: insult, criticism or disrespect, shown in a subtle or clever manner. 11
* they: gender-neutral singular pronoun for a known person, particularly as a nonbinary identifier. 214
zero fucks given, ZFG: indication of supreme indifference. 41

MOST CREATIVE

adult: (verb) behave like a grownup 71
* ammosexual: someone who loves firearms in a fetishistic manner. 153
lowkey: (adverb) to a small extent, in a subtle manner; opposite of highkey. 38
squad: one’s posse or close circle of friends. 3
yass, yaass, yaaass, etc.: expression of excitement, approval or strong agreement. 43

MOST UNNECESSARY

dadbod: the flabby physique of a typical dad. 16
* manbun: man’s hairstyle pulled up in a bun. 207
or nah: question tag expressing that something may not occur. 34
trigger warning: alert for potentially distressing material. 10
thanks, Obama: sarcastic expression in which a person pretends to blame Obama for a problem. 34

MOST OUTRAGEOUS
fish gape: posed expression with cheeks sucked in and lips slightly apart. 3
* fuckboy, fuckboi: derogatory term for a man who behaves objectionably or promiscuously. 127 / 173
schlong: (verb) defeat soundly. 93 / 148
sharewashing: deceptive marketing by companies treating services as “sharing.” 14
white student union: campus organization organized in response to a black student union. 27

MOST EUPHEMISTIC
af, asf: intensifier after an adjective (abbreviation for “as fuck”). 1
lit: amazing, exciting or fun. 2
* Netflix and chill: sexual come-on masked as a suggestion to watch Netflix and relax. 315
swipe right/left: accept or reject (based on gestures used on Tinder dating app). 24

MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

CRISPR: gene-editing technology allowing biologists to alter and control DNA sequences. 51
* ghost: (verb) abruptly end a relationship by cutting off communication, especially online. 223
mom: admiring term of address for a woman seen as a mother figure. 17
on fleek: put together, impeccable, well-arrayed. 23

LEAST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

Berniementum: momentum behind the candidacy of Bernie Sanders. 59
hoverboard: self-balancing motorized skateboard. 82 / 106
* sitbit: device that rewards sedentary lifestyle (play on Fitbit fitness tracker). 102 / 191
Uber for X: pitch used by startups seeking to emulate Uber in different tech sectors. 33

MOST NOTABLE HASHTAG (new category)

#JeSuisParis: expression of solidarity after the Paris terror attacks. 6
#LoveWins: celebration of Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage. 60
* #SayHerName: call to bring attention to violence against women of color. 178
#StayMadAbby: ridiculing plaintiff in Univ. of Texas affirmative action case. 17
#StayWoke: exhortation to remain vigilant and informed (used by #BlackLivesMatter movement). 59

MOST NOTABLE EMOJI (new category)

😍: heart eyes (romantic, passionate). 31
😉: winking face (humorous, flirtatious). 8
💁: information desk person (sassy, sarcastic). 31
* 🍆: eggplant (sexual innuendo). 138
💯: 100 (“keep it 100,” “keep it real”). 56

2014 Words of the Year

* #blacklivesmatter: hashtag used as protest over blacks killed at the hands of police (esp. Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. and Eric Garner in Staten Island). 196
bae: a sweetheart or romantic partner. 3
columbusing: cultural appropriation, especially the act of a white person claiming to discover things already known to minority cultures.11
even: deal with or reconcile difficult situations or emotions (from “I can’t even”). 5
manspreading: of a man, to sit with one’s legs wide on public transit in a way that blocks other seats. 5

MOST USEFUL

* even: deal with or reconcile difficult situations or emotions (from “I can’t even”). 133
budtender: a person who specializes in serving marijuana to consumers, especially in legal dispensaries. 69
Ebola: deadly virus that, in 2014, killed thousands in West Africa. 9
robocar: a self-driving car. 7
unbothered: not annoyed or distracted. 15

MOST CREATIVE

* columbusing: cultural appropriation, especially the act of a white person claiming to discover things already known to minority cultures. 158
manspreading: of a man, to sit with one’s legs wide on public transit in a way that blocks other seats. 44
misogynoir: misogyny directed toward black women. 8
narcissistick (or narcisstick): pejorative term for a selfie stick. 22

MOST UNNECESSARY

* baeless: without a romantic partner (lacking a bae). 96/133
narcissistick (or narcisstick): pejorative term for a selfie stick. 57/93
basic: plain, socially awkward, unattractive, uninteresting, ignorant, pathetic, uncool, etc. 27
lumbersexual: fashionably rugged man who adopts the stereotypical dress and facial hair of a lumberjack. 43

MOST OUTRAGEOUS

* second-amendment: v. to kill (someone) with a gun, used ironically by gun control supporters. 192
God view: display mode used by ride-sharing service Uber providing employees with real-time information on all users. 11
sugar-dating: pay-to-play relationship between an older, wealthier person (sugar daddy/momma) and a younger partner (sugar baby). 6

MOST EUPHEMISTIC

* EIT: abbreviation for the already euphemistic “enhanced interrogation technique.” 108/139
conscious uncoupling:a divorce or romantic separation by polite mutual agreement. 84/103
bye, Felicia: a dismissive farewell to someone deemed unimportant. 30
thirsty: so hungry for a romantic partner as to appear desperate. 13

MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

* salty: exceptionally bitter, angry, or upset. 78/131
basic: plain, socially awkward, unattractive, uninteresting, ignorant, pathetic, uncool, etc. 58/89
budtender: a person who specializes in serving marijuana to consumers, especially in legal dispensaries. 44
casual: a new or inexperienced person, especially a gamer (also in filthy casual). 7
plastiglomerate: type of stone made of melted plastic, beach sediment, and organic debris. 10
selfie stick: a pole to which a smartphone is attached to take selfies from a distance. 48

LEAST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

* platisher: online media publisher that also serves as a platform for creating content. 173
normcore: “anti-fashion” trend of adopting an intentionally ordinary, inexpensive personal style from cheap off-the-shelf brands. 15
pairage: term proposed by Utah legislator Kraig Powell to refer to same-sex marriages. 53

MOST NOTABLE HASHTAG (new category)

* #blacklivesmatter: protest over blacks killed at the hands of police (esp. Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., Eric Garner in Staten Island). 226
#icantbreathe: final words of Eric Garner, turned into rallying cry against police violence. 14
#notallmen: response by men to discussions of sexual abuse, sexism, or misogyny that they see as portraying all men as perpetrators (countered by #yesallwomen, used by women sharing stories of bias, harassment, or abuse). 1
#whyistayed: explanation by women about staying in abusive domestic relationships. 1

2013 Words of the Year

* because: introducing a noun, adjective, or other part of speech (e.g., “because reasons,” “because awesome”). 127
slash: used as a coordinating conjunction to mean “and/or” (e.g., “come and visit slash stay”) or “so” (“I love that place, slash can we go there?”). 21
twerk: A mode of dance that involves vigorous booty-shaking and booty-thrusting, usually with the feet planted. 7
Obamacare: term for the Affordable Care Act that has moved from pejorative to matter-of-fact shorthand. 39
selfie: a photo taken of oneself, typically with a smartphone and shared on social media. 20

MOST USEFUL

* because: introducing a noun, adjective, or other part of speech (e.g., “because reasons,” “because awesome”). 64/117
slash: used as a coordinating conjunction to mean “and/or” (e.g., “come and visit slash stay”) or “so” (“I love that place, slash can we go there?”). 51/79
selfie: a photo taken of oneself, typically with a smartphone and shared on social media. 37
strug(gle) bus: metaphor for a difficult situation, as in “I’m riding the struggle bus.” Also a verb. 32
ACC: “aggressive carbon-copy,” used to undermine the position of the recipient of an email, such as cc’ing the boss or legal counsel.

MOST CREATIVE

* catfish: to misrepresent oneself online, especially as part of a romantic deception. 62/94
doge: an Internet meme with intentionally ungrammatical exclamations over an image of a dog (typically the Shiba Inu breed). 70/88
bitcoin: an anonymous, decentralized, digital, encrypted currency and payment system. 4
robo sapiens: a class of robots with human-like intelligence. 51

MOST UNNECESSARY

* sharknado: a tornado full of sharks, as featured in the Syfy Channel movie of that name. 162
cronut: a croissant-doughnut hybrid. 18
stack-ranking: a method of ranking employees on a primitive curve (used and abandoned by Microsoft). 11

MOST OUTRAGEOUS

* underbutt: the underside of buttocks, made visible by certain shorts or underwear. 54/110
revenge porn: vindictive posting of sexually explicit pictures of someone without consent. 46/75
fatberg: large deposit of fat, grease, and solid sewage found in London sewers. 26
s(c)hmeat: (blend of sheet + meat): meat product grown in a lab. 17
thigh gap: a space between the thighs, taken by some as a sign of attractiveness (also box gap). 43

MOST EUPHEMISTIC

* least untruthful: involving the smallest necessary lie (used by intelligence director James Clapper). 121
demised: laid off from employment (used by the bank HSBC). 16
slimdown: reinterpretation of “shutdown” used on Fox News site. 72

MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

* binge-watch: to consume vast quantities of a single show or series of visual entertainment in one sitting. 117
drone: (trans. verb) to target with a drone, typically in a lethal drone strike. 19
glasshole: a person made oblivious by wearing Google Glass, a head-mounted computer. 21
Obamacare: term for the Affordable Care Act that has moved from pejorative to matter-of-fact shorthand. 51

LEAST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

* Thanksgivukkah: confluence of Thanksgiving and the first day of Hanukkah that will not be repeated for another 70,000 years. 159
birthmas: a simultaneous celebration of a birthday and Christmas. 19
Harlem Shake: a video meme featuring comic, convulsive dancing accompanied by excerpt of the song “Harlem Shake” by the DJ Baauer. 19

MOST PRODUCTIVE (new category)

* -shaming: (from slut-shaming) type of public humiliation (fat-shaming, pet-shaming). 98/132
-splaining: (from mansplaining) type of condescending explanation (whitesplaining, journosplaining). 49/68
–coin: (from bitcoin) type of cryptocurrency (peercoin, namecoin, dogecoin). 0
-(el)fie: (from selfie) type of self-portrait (drelfie ‘drunk selfie,’ twofie ‘selfie with two people’). 39
-hack: (from lifehack) type of shortcut to increase productivity. 13
-spo: (from thinspo) type of photo or video montage intended to inspire viewers to lose weight or stay fit (fitspo, sportspo). 1

2012 Words of the Year

#hashtag: a word or phrase preceded by a hash symbol (#), used on Twitter to mark a topic or make a commentary 45/118 WINNER

marriage equality: legal recognition of same-sex marriage 57/99

YOLO: acronym for “You Only Live Once,” often used sarcastically or self-deprecatingly 32

47 percent: portion of the population that does not pay federal income tax 31

fiscal cliff: threat of spending cuts and tax increases looming over end-of-year budget negotiations 25

Gangnam style: the trendy style of Seoul’s Gangnam district, as used in the Korean pop song of the same name 19

MOST USEFUL

-(po)calypse, -(ma)geddon: hyperbolic combining forms for various catastrophes 66/115 WINNER

YOLO: acronym for “You Only Live Once,” often used sarcastically or self-deprecatingly 59/62

hate-watching: continuing to follow a television show despite having an aversion to it 39

beardruff: dandruff from one’s beard 10

MOST CREATIVE

gate lice: airline passengers who crowd around a gate waiting to board 53/93 WINNER

mansplaining: a man’s condescending explanation to a female audience  54/90

alpacalypse: the Mayan apocalypse predicted for Dec. 21, 2012 (alpaca + -lypse) 50

dancelexia: inability to pull off dance moves (such as misspelling “YMCA”) 36

MOST UNNECESSARY

legitimate rape: type of rape that Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin claimed rarely results in pregnancy 94 WINNER

HD: abbreviation for “high-definition,” used for things that could not be high-definition 21

feels: slangy shortening of “feelings” 20

Frankenstorm: term for Hurricane Sandy’s hybrid storm system (after Frankenstein’s monster) 14

MOST OUTRAGEOUS

legitimate rape: type of rape that Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin claimed rarely results in pregnancy 156 WINNER

butt-chugging: an alcohol enema, used in college fraternity hazing rituals 36

Dunlop effect: when one’s stomach protrudes over ill-fitting pants (“belly done lop over the belt”) 3

slut-shaming: attacking a woman for socially stigmatized sexual activity 2

MOST EUPHEMISTIC

self-deportation: policy of encouraging illegal immigrants to return voluntarily to their home countries 142 WINNER

evolution: change of opinion 21

Gray Thursday: name given to Thanksgiving as a shopping day before Black Friday 12

ratchet: slang term originally referring to “urban divas” now used to mean “ghetto”  7

disruptive: destroying existing business models 3

MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

marriage equality: legal recognition of same-sex marriage 156 WINNER

big data: large collections of digital information used for revealing behavioral insights 20

superstorm: an unusually large and destructive storm, such as Hurricane Sandy 9

fiscal cliff: threat of spending cuts and tax increases looming over end-of-year budget negotiations 8

MOOC: acronym for “massive open online course” 4

LEAST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

phablet: mid-sized electronic device between a smartphone and a tablet 76/92 WINNER

YOLO: acronym for “You Only Live Once,” often used sarcastically or self-deprecatingly79/91 WINNER

meggings: a blend for “male leggings” 22

Windows Metro: name originally used for the Windows 8 operating system 8

cray-cray: slangy shortening and reduplication of “crazy” 5

Gangnam style: the trendy style of Seoul’s Gangnam district, as used in the Korean pop song of the same name 5

ELECTION WORDS (new category)

binders (full of women): term used by Romney in the second presidential debate to describe the resumes of female job candidates that he consulted as governor of Massachusetts 107 WINNER

47 percent: portion of the population that does not pay federal income tax 64

Romney/Obama: names of candidates used for blends (Obamaloney, Obamageddon, Romnesia, Romney Hood) 13

Eastwooding: photo fad inspired by Clint Eastwood’s unscripted speech at the RNC 10

Etch-a-Sketch: metaphor of reinvention used by Romney campaign adviser Eric Fehrnstrom 8

malarkey: nonsense, empty talk (as used by Biden in the vice-presidential debate) 8

2011 Words of the Year

occupy – verb, noun, and combining form referring to the Occupy protest movement. 82/174 WINNER

FOMO – acronym for “Fear of Missing Out,” describing anxiety over being inundated by information on social media. 41/28

the 99%, 99 percenters – those held to be at a financial or political disadvantage to the top moneymakers, the one-percenters. 43/24

humblebrag – expression of false humility, especially by celebrities on Twitter. 30

job creator – a member of the top one-percent of moneymakers. 4

MOST USEFUL

humblebrag – expression of false humility, especially by celebrities on Twitter. 87/121 WINNER

occupy – verb, noun, and combining form referring to the Occupy protest movement. 70/102

FOMO – acronym for “Fear of Missing Out,” describing anxiety over being inundated by information on social media. 25

tablet – lightweight portable computer with a touchscreen to input data. 30

MOST CREATIVE

Mellencamp – a woman who has aged out of being a “cougar” (after John Cougar Mellencamp). 103 WINNER

bunga bunga – name for sex parties allegedly involving former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. 21

kardash – unit of measurement consisting of 72 days, after the short-lived marriage of Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries (coined by Weird Al Yankovic). 82

put a bird on it – to add artistic flair to something, usu. used ironically or humorously. 23

MOST UNNECESSARY

bi-winning – term used by Charlie Sheen to describe himself pridefully, dismissing accusations of being bipolar. 77/156 WINNER

amazeballs – slang form for “amazing.” 82/85

planking – posing for a photograph, esp. in a public place, with one’s body in a stiff, prone position, for circulation online. 13

Qwikster : short-lived Netflix spinoff of its DVD rental service, separated from its streaming. 44

MOST OUTRAGEOUS

assholocracy – rule by obnoxious multi-millionaires. 166 WINNER

deather – one who doubts the official story of the killing of Osama bin Laden. 35

botoxionist – a doctor who administers Botox injections. 1

MOST EUPHEMISTIC

job creator – a member of the top one-percent of moneymakers. 111 WINNER

artisan, artisanal – faux-fancy term used to describe food and other products. 78

regime alteration – alternative to “regime change” promoted by Obama administration in some Middle Eastern countries. 19

sugar-coated Satan sandwich : something bad on the inside that looks good on the outside, as used by Missouri U.S Congressman Emanuel Cleaver. 1

MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

cloud – online space for the large-scale processing and storage of data. 155 WINNER

Arab Spring – a series of popular uprisings in Middle Eastern countries against dictatorial regimes. 54

tiger mom, tiger mother – an exceedingly strict parent (after Amy Chua’s memoir, “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother”).

LEAST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

brony – adult male fan of the “My Little Pony” cartoon franchise. 103 WINNER

Tebowing – posing for photograph praying on one knee, after Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow. 47

9-9-9 – tax plan proposed by Herman Cain (9% business tax, 9% personal income tax, 9% federal sales tax). 65

OCCUPY WORDS (new category)

the 99%, 99 percenters – those held to be at a financial or political disadvantage to the top moneymakers, the one-percenters. n-percenters, n-percent. 219 WINNER

occupy – verb, noun, and combining form referring to the Occupy protest movement. 17

people’s mic, human microphone – method of amplifying a person’s speech by having surrounding people repeat it line by line 7

twinkling – system of wiggly hand gestures to register approval or disapproval. 9

2010 Word of the Year

app : application program for a computer or phone operating system. As in “there’s an app for that,” an advertising slogan for the iPhone. 52/69 WINNER

nom: Onomatopoetic form connoting eating, esp. pleasurably. Can be used as an interjection or noun to refer to delicious food. 34/51.

junk as used in junk shot (attempt to fix BP oil spill), junk status (Greece’s credit rating), don’t touch my junk (protest against TSA pat-down procedure). 17

Wikileaks as proper noun, common noun, and verb. 12

trend verb: to exhibit a burst of online buzz. 12

MOST USEFUL

nom Onomatopoetic form connoting eating, esp. pleasurably. Can be used as an interjection or noun to refer to delicious food. 49/72 WINNER

fat-finger verb: to mistype, as by accidentally striking more than one key on a keyboard/pad. 16

junk junk shot (attempt to fix BP oil spill), junk status (Greece’s credit rating), don’t touch my junk (protest against TSA pat-down procedure). 46/42

vuvuzela : South African plastic trumpet used by fans during the FIFA World Cup matches.

MOST CREATIVE

prehab Preemptive enrollment in a rehab facility to prevent relapse of an abuse problem. 45/65 WINNER

-sauce Intensive suffix, as in awesome-sauce ‘great’ and lame-sauce ‘stupid’. 37/51

spillion An immense number, especially of gallons of oil in the Gulf spill. Also spillionaire, person made rich by money from BP’s spill cleanup fund. 29

phoenix firm A troubled company that reemerges under a new name. 13

MOST UNNECESSARY

refudiate Blend of refute and repudiate used by Sarah Palin on Twitter. 72/WINNER

ironic moustache Facial hair worn as a statement of retro hipsterdom. 6

star whacker Imagined celebrity killer (alleged by actor Randy Quaid and his wife Evi). 16

hipsterdom : the state of being hip beyond all recognition. So hip you’re unhip. 14

MOST OUTRAGEOUS

gate rape Pejorative term for invasive new airport pat-down procedure. 55/67 WINNER

terror baby Baby born to a terrorist family on U.S. soil in order to establish citizenship. 52/56

bed intruder Perpetrator of a home invasion in Huntsville, Ala., made famous by viral video. 22

MOST EUPHEMISTIC

kinetic event Pentagon term for violent attacks on troops in Afghanistan. 84/WINNER

corn sugar Corn Refiners Association’s rebranding of high fructose corn syrup. 1.

enhanced pat-down TSA’s term for controversial new frisking procedure. 21

bed intruder Perpetrator of a home invasion in Huntsville, Ala., made famous by viral video. 19

MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

trend Verb: to exhibit a burst of online buzz. 73/WINNER

hacktivism Using computer hacking skills as a form of political or social activism. 34

-pad Combining form used by iPad and other tablet computers (ViewPad, WindPad, etc.). 22

telework Term used at federal level for work by an employee away from the office. 9

LEAST LIKELY TO SUCCEED

culturomics Research project from Google analyzing the history of language and culture 44/85 WINNER

fauxhemian Winner of a Gawker poll to replace the term “hipster.” 31

skyaking Jumping out of a plane in a kayak. 47/33

top kill / top hat / junk shot Various failed techniques to fix the BP oil spill. 11

ELECTION TERMS (new category)

All terms agreed to be losers. The entire category was deleted by acclamation.

Aqua Buddha Fictitious deity in collegiate scandal involving Rand Paul, raised during his Kentucky Senate campaign.

mama grizzly Sarah Palin’s term for a fiercely conservative female candidate.

man up Exhortation to be responsible or “act like a man,” used by Sharron Angle against Harry Reid in Nevada Senate race.

Obamacare Pejorative term for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010.

FAN WORDS (new category)

gleek A fan of the TV show “Glee” (Glee + geek) 90 WINNER

belieber A fan of pop singer Justin Bieber (Bieber + believer) 3

little monster A fan of pop singer Lady Gaga, so called by the singer herself. 0

Twihard A fan of the “Twilight” books and movies. 7

Yat Dat A native-born fan of the New Orleans Saints. 14

2009 Word of the Year: tweet, noun, a short message sent via the Twitter.com service, and verb, the act of sending such a message WORD OF THE DECADE WINNER: google Verb meaning “to search the Internet.” Generic form of the trademarked “Google,” the world’s dominant Internet search engine. MOST USEFUL fail A noun or interjection used when something is egregiously unsuccessful. Usually written as “FAIL!” MOST CREATIVE: Dracula sneeze : Covering one’s mouth with the crook of one’s elbow when sneezing, seen as similar to popular portrayals of the vampire Dracula, in which he hides the lower half of his face with a cape. MOST UNNECESSARY sea kittens fish (according to PETA) Most Outrageous death panel A supposed committee of doctors and/or bureaucrats who would decide which patients were allowed to receive treatment, ostensibly leaving the rest to die. MOST EUPHEMISTIC hike the Appalachian trail To go away to have sex with one’s illicit lover. Follows on a statement by South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, who went to Argentina to visit his mistress. Most Likely to Succeed twenty-ten A pronunciation of the year 2010, as opposed to saying “two thousand ten” or “two thousand and ten.” (twenty- as prefix until 2099) Least Likely to Succeed name of the decade 2000-2009, such as Naughties, Aughties, Oughties, etc.

2008 Word of the Year: bailout, the rescue by the government of companies on the brink of failure, including large players in the banking industry. Most Useful: Barack Obama, both names as combining forms. Most Creative: recombobulation area, an area at Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee in which passengers that have just passed through security screening can get their clothes and belongings back in order. Most Unnecesssary: moofing, from “mobile out of office,” meaning working on the go with a laptop and cell phone. Created by a PR firm. Most Outrageous: terrorist fist jab, A knuckle-to-knuckle fist bump, or “dap,” traditionally performed between two black people as a sign of friendship, celebration or agreement. It was called the “terrorist fist jab” by the newscaster E. D. Hill, formerly of Fox News. Most Euphemistic: scooping technician, A person whose job it is to pick up dog poop. Most Likely to Succeeed: shovel-ready, Used to describe infrastructure projects that can be started quickly when funds become available. Least Likely to Succeed: PUMA,An acronym for Party Unity My Ass, used by Democrats who were disaffected after Hillary Clinton failed to secure a sufficient number of delegates. It was later said to stand for Party Unity Means Action. New Category, Election-Related Words: maverick, a person who is beholden to no one. Widely used by the Republican Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates, John McCain and Sarah Palin. Also in the adjectival form mavericky, used by Tina Fey portraying Palin on Saturday Night Live.

2007 Word of the Year: subprime, an adjective used to describe a risky or less than ideal loan, mortgage, or investment. Most Useful: green– prefix/compounding form, designates environmental concern, as in greenwashing. Most Creative: googlegänger, a person with your name who shows up when you google yourself. Most Unnecesssary: Happy Kwanhanamas! [Kwanza + Hanukka + Christmas] Happy holidays! Most Outrageous: toe-tapper, A homosexual. Senator Larry Craig was arrested in June for an encounter in a public restroom in which toe-tapping was said to have been used as a sexual come-on. Most Euphemistic: human terrain team, a group of social scientists employed by the US military to serve as cultural advisers in Iraq or Afghanistan. Most Likely to Succeeed: green- prefix/compounding form, designates environmental concern, as in greenwashing. Least Likely to Succeed: strand-in, protest duplicating being stranded inside an airplane on a delayed flight. New Category, Real Estate Words: subprime, used to describe a risky or poorly documented loan or mortgage.

2006 Word of the Year: to be plutoed, to pluto, to be demoted or devalued. Most Useful: climate canary, an organism or species whose poor health or declining numbers hint at a larger environmental catastrophe on the horizon. Most Creative: lactard, a person who is lactose-intolerant. Most Unnecessary: SuriKat, the supposed nickname of the baby girl of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. Most Outrageous: Cambodian accessory, Angelina Jolie’s adopted child who is Cambodian. Most Euphemistic: waterboarding, an interrogation technique in which the subject is immobilized and doused with water to simulate drowning; reported to be used by U.S. interrogators against terrorism detainees. Most Likely to Succeed: YouTube as a verb, to use the YouTube web site or to have a video of one’s self be posted on the site. Least Likely to Succeed: grup, a Gen-Xer who does not act his or her age. New Category, Pluto-Related Words: to be plutoed, to pluto, to be demoted or devalued.

2005 Word of the Year: truthiness, what one wishes to be the truth regardless of the facts. (From the Colbert Report with Stephen Colbert, a mock news show on Comedy Central.) Most Useful: podcast, audio or video file for downloading. Most Creative: whale-tail, the appearance of thong or g-string underwaear above the waistband. Most Unnecessary: K Fed, Kevin Federline, Mr. Britney Spears. Most Outrageous: crotchfruit, a child or children. Most Euphemistic: internal nutrition force-feeding a prisoner. Most Likely to Succeed: sudoku number puzzle from Japan. Least Likely to Succeed: pope-squatting registering a likely domain name of a new pope before the pope chooses his new name in order to profit from it. Special nonce category, Best Tom Cruise-Related Word: jump the couch, to exhibit frenetic behavior like Cruise’s couch-bouncing on Oprah Winfrey’s talk show.

2004 Word of the Year: red/blue/purple states, red favoring conservative Republicans and blue favoring liberal Democrats, as well as the undecided purple states in the political map of the United States. Most Useful: phish, to induce someone to reveal private information by means of deceptive e-mail. Most Creative: pajamahadeen, bloggers who challenge and fact-check traditional media. Most Unnecessary: stalkette, a female stalker. Most Outrageous: santorum, byproduct of anal sex, using the name of a senator opposed to the practice. Most Euphemistic: badly sourced, false. Most Likely to Succeed: red/blue/purple states. Least Likely to Succeed: FLOHPA, Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, important states in the 2004 presidential election.

2003 Word of the Year: metrosexual, fashion-conscious heterosexual male. Most Useful: flexitarian, vegetarian who occasionally eats meat. Most Creative: freegan, person who eats only free food. Most Unnecessary: freedom for “French,” as in fries and kisses. Most Outrageous: cliterati, feminist writers or leaders. Most Euphemistic: pre-emptive self-defense, attack before a possible attack on oneself. Most Likely to Succeed: SARS, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, viral disease first reported in Asia in February. Least Likely to Succeed: tomacco, poisonous hybrid of tomato and tobacco. Best Revival of an old term: spider hole, World War II term for a hole deeper than a foxhole used for surprise attacks; in 2003, where Saddam Hussein was hiding.

2002 Word of the Year: weapons of mass destruction or WMD, sought for in Iraq. Most Likely to Succeed: blog, from “weblog,” a website of personal events, comments, and links. Most Useful: google (verb), as in “to google someone,” to search the Web using the search engine Google for information on a person or thing. Most Creative: Iraqnophobia, strong fear of Iraq. Most Unnecessary: wombanization, feminization, from Alexander Barnes’s book “The Book Read Backwards: The Deconstruction of Patriarchy and the Wombanization of Being.” Most Outrageous: neuticles, fake testicles for neutered pets. Most Euphemistic: regime change, forced change in leadership.

2001 Word of the Year: 9-11, 9/11 or September 11, terrorist attacks on that date. Most Likely to Succeed: 9-11. Most Useful (tie): facial profiling, using video “faceprints” to identify terrorists and criminals, and second-hand speech, cell phone conversations heard by others in public places. Most Creative: shuicide bomber, terrorist with bomb in shoes. Most Unnecessary: impeachment nostalgia, longing for the superficial news of the Clinton era. Least Likely to Succeed: Osamaniac, woman sexually attracted to terrorist Osama bin Laden. Most Outrageous: assoline, methane used as fuel. Most Euphemistic: daisy cutter, large bomb that explodes a few feet above the ground. Most Inspirational: Let’s roll! words of Todd Beamer to start the attack that foiled the hijackers of United Flight 93 on September 11.

2000 Word of the Year: chad, a small scrap of paper punched from a voting card. Most Likely to Succeed: muggle, Harry Potter term for a non-wizard; a mundane, unimaginative person. Most Useful: civil union, legal same-sex marriage. Most Creative: dot bomb, a failed dot-com. Most Unnecessary: sudden loss of wealth syndrome. Least Likely to Succeed: kablokeys, used in phrases like “It scared the kablokeys out of me.” Most Outrageous: wall humping, rubbing a thigh against a security card scanner to allow access without removing the card from one’s pocket. Most Euphemistic: courtesy call, an uninvited call from a telemarketer. Brand New (coined during the year, not previously attested): unconcede, to rescind a concession as presidential candidate Al Gore did on election night. (It was later discovered that candidate Bob Dole had unconceded the presidential election in 1996, and there were occasional instances of that word going back several centuries.)

Also chosen in January 2000: Word of the Decade: web. Word of the Twentieth Century: jazz. Word of the Millennium: she.

1999 Word of the Year: Y2K. Most Likely to Succeed and Most Useful: dot-com, a company operating on the web. Most Original: cybersquat, to register a web address intending to sell it at a profit. Most unnecessary: Milly, dance commissioned by the city of Chicago for the millennium. Most Outrageous: humanitarian intervention, use of military force for humanitarian purposes. Most Euphemistic: compassionate conservative. Brand New (coined during the year, not previously attested): Pokémania, obsession with Pokémon.

1998 Word of the Year: prefix e- for “electronic” as in e-mail and newly prominent e-commerce. Most Likely to Succeed and Most Useful: e-. Most Original: multislacking, playing at the computer when one should be working. Most Unnecessary: the entire Monica Lewinsky word family, including Big She as a synonym for M.L., and the verb Lewinsky, to engage in what might be sexual relations. Least Likely to Succeed: compfusion, confusion over computers. Most Outrageous: Ejaculation Proclamation, the President’s confession. Most Euphemistic: senior moment, momentary lapse of memory due to age. Brand New (coined during the year, not previously attested): -agra or -gra (from the drug name Viagra), suffix denoting substance prompting men to perform unusually, as in Directra that causes men to ask for directions.

1997 Word of the Year: millennium bug, also known as Y2K bug or Y2K problem, that causes computers to think that the year after 1999 is 1900. Most Likely to Succeed: DVD, Digital Versatile Disk, optical disk expected to replace CDs. Most Useful: (tie) -[r]azzi, an aggressive pursuer, and duh (with a falling intonation), expression of someone else’s stupidity. Most Original: prairie dogging, popping one’s head above an office cubicle for the sake of curiosity. Most Unnecessary: heaven-o, replacement for “hello.” Most Outrageous: Florida flambe, fire caused by Florida electric chair. Most Euphemistic: exit bag, bag placed over the head to assist in suicide. Brand New (coined during the year, not previously attested): El Nonsense, illogical association of an event with El Niño.

1996 Word of the Year: mom as in soccer mom, newly significant type of voter. Most Likely to Succeed: drive-by, designating brief visits or hospital stays. Most Useful: dot, used instead of “period” in e-mail and URL addresses. Most Original: prebuttal, preemptive rebuttal. Most Unnecessary: Mexican hustle, another name for the Macarena (which is not Mexican). Most Outrageous: toy soldier, land mine. Most Euphemistic: (tie) urban camping, living homeless in a city, and food insecure, said of a country where people are starving. Most Controversial: Ebonics, African-American vernacular English.

1995 Word of the Year: (tie) World Wide Web on the Internet, and newt, to make aggressive changes as a newcomer. Most Likely to Succeed: World Wide Web and its variants the Web, WWW, W3. Most Useful: E.Q. (for Emotional Quotient), the ability to manage one’s emotions. Most Original: postal or go postal, to act irrationally, often violently, from stress at work. Most Unnecessary: Vanna White shrimp, large shrimp for the restaurant market. Most Outrageous: starter marriage, a first marriage not expected to be the last. Most Euphemistic: patriot, one who believes in using force of arms if necessary to defend individual rights against the government.

1994 Word of the Year: (tie) cyber, pertaining to computers and electronic communication, and morph, to change form. Most Promising: Infobahn, the Internet. Most Useful: gingrich, to deal with government agencies, policies, and people in the manner of U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Most Imaginative: guillermo, an e-mail message in a foreign language. (The Spanish name Guillermo has the nicknameMemo.) Most Trendy: dress down day or casual day, a workday when employees are allowed to dress casually. Most Euphemistic: challenged indicating an undesirable or unappealing condition. Most Beautiful: sylvanshine, night-time iridescence of certain forest trees.

1993 Word of the Year: information superhighway, network linking computers, television, telephone, and other electronic means of communication. Most Likely to Succeed: quotative like with a form of the verb be to indicate speech or thought. Most Useful: thing premodified by a noun, e.g. “a Chicago thing.” Most Imaginative: McJob, a generic, unstimulating, low-paying job. Most Amazing: cybersex, sexual stimulation by computer. Most Unnecessary: mosaic culture to describe a multicultural society. Most Outrageous: whirlpooling, assault of a female by a male group in a swimming pool. Most Euphemistic: street builder, a homeless person who constructs a shanty. Most Unpronounceable: Jurassosaurus nedegoapeferkimorum, a new dinosaur.

1992 Word of the Year: Not! expression of disagreement. Most Likely to Succeed: snail mail, s-mail, mail that is physically delivered, as opposed to e-mail. Most Useful: grunge, a style of clothing. Most Original: Franken-, genetically altered. Most Amazing: Munchhausen’s syndrome by proxy, illness fabricated to evoke sympathy for the caregiver. Most Unnecessary: gender feminism, belief that sex roles are social, not biological. Most Outrageous: ethnic cleansing, purging of ethnic minorities.

1991 Word of the Year: mother of all –, greatest, most impressive. Most Likely to Succeed: rollerblade, skate with rollers in a single row. Most Successful: in your face, aggressive, confrontational, flamboyant. Most Original: molecular pharming, pharming, genetically modifying farm animals to produce human proteins for pharmaceutical use. Most Amazing: velcroid, a person who sticks by the (U.S.) president, especially for photo opportunities. Most Unnecessary: massively parallel, many small computers yoked together.

1990 Word of the Year: bushlips, insincere political rhetoric. Most Likely to Succeed: (tie) notebook PC, a portable personal computer weighting 4-8 pounds, and rightsizing, adjusting the size of a staff by laying off employees. Most Useful: (tie) technostupidity, loss of ability through dependence on machines, and potty parity, equalization of toilet facilities for the sexes. Most Original: voice merging, the oral tradition of African-American preachers using another’s words. Most Amazing: bungee jumping, jumping from a high platform with elastic cables on the feet. Most Unnecessary: peace dividend, anticipated saving in military spending due to improved relations with the Soviet Union. Most Outrageous: politically correct, PC, adhering to principles of left-wing social concern.