Category Archives: vocabulary

“Dumpster fire” was chosen as the American Dialect Society’s 2016 word of the year.  To be considered, the word (in this case a phrase) must have become prominent in the past year and must have “reflected public preoccupations,” according to the chair of the selection committee, Ben Zimmer, who also writes the “Word on the Street” column for The Wall Street Journal.

The Dialect Society defines dumpster fire as “an exceedingly disastrous or chaotic situation.”  A synonym could be “train wreck.”

2015’s word of the year by this group was “they.”  They?  Yes, they, but with a new meaning, referring to the singular, not the plural.

In 2014 the word was “#blacklivesmatter.”

In 2013 the word was “because.”  That’s right.  Because.  It was chosen because it was being used not to introduce a clause (as in this sentence) but to introduce other grammatical constructions such as nouns.  Because bologna.  Hmm.

In 2012 the word was “hashtag,” in 2011 it was “occupy,” and in 2010 it was “app.”

For more on “dumpster fire” go to the American Dialect Society website (www.AmericanDialetc.org) or to this past weekend’s Wall Street Journal, p. C4.

By the way, did you know the word “dumpster” was coined by the Dempster brothers who invented the dumpster in the 1930’s?  You learn something new every day.

“Post-truth” is the word of 2016, according to the Oxford Dictionaries*.  This adjective means “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.”  Post-truth has often been paired with politics, both in the US and UK, and saw a spike in usage beginning in May (before the Brexit vote), peaking at the time of the US Presidential election in November.

Contenders for Oxford’s word of the year include:

• Adulating, a noun: meaning behaving like a responsible adult
• Alt-right, a noun: an ideological group of extreme conservatives
• Brexiteer, a noun: a person favoring the UK’s withdrawal from the EU
• Chatbot, a noun: a computer program which simulates human conversation on the internet
• Coulrophobia, a noun, an extreme fear of clowns
• Glass cliff, a noun: a situation in which a woman or minority member gains leadership and where the risk of failure is high
• Hygge, a noun: cosiness and comfortable socializing, making a person feel well
• Latinx, a noun or adjective: a person of Latin American descent
• Woke, woker, wokest, an adjective: alert to injustice, especially racial injustice

*https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/word-of-the-year/word-of-the-year-2016

“Surreal” is the word of the year according to Merriam Webster Dictionary.  It is an adjective meaning “marked by the intense irrational reality of a dream.**”  The word is used to describe something shocking or surprising, something above or beyond what is real.  In 2016 it was used to describe terrorist attacks and the US Presidential election.

Contenders for Merriam-Webster’s word of 2016 include

• Revenant, a noun: one who returns after a long absence

• Icon, a noun: a person who is successful and admired

• In omnia paratus, a Latin prepositional phrase: ready for all things.  This phrase was used in the original Gilmore Girls TV show and in its revival.

• Bigly, a phantom word thought to be used by Donald Trump. Actually, he said “big league” in debating, but it sounded like “bigly.”

• Deplorable, an adjective used as a noun by Hillary Clinton. It means “lamentable,” “deserving censure or contempt,” “wretched” or “abominable.”

• Irregardless, an adverb used on air by a broadcaster during the final game of the World Series. This word is nonstandard English, and the dictionary recommends using “regardless” instead.

• Assumpsit, a noun: a legal term meaning an express or implied promise of a contract.  It was used by Rep. Joe Kennedy at the Democratic National Convention.

• Faute de mieux, a French phrase: “for lack of something better.”  It was used by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in a decision she wrote.

• Feckless, an adjective: weak or ineffective.  Mike Pence used it in a Vice-Presidential debate.

**https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/word-of-the-year-2016