Each week, we scan the latest headlines to spot words in action. From major news stories to pop culture buzz, this feature highlights language as it’s unfolding. Stories about basketball, a bird bounce-back, and the world’s best cheese all contributed to the vocabulary from this week’s news.
accolade
noun: a symbol of approval or distinction
From the headlines: A standout cheese earned top accolades at the World Cheese Awards in Bern, Switzerland. Gruyère AOP Vorderfultigen Spezial claimed the highest honor, being named the 2025 world champion. The dry-salted cheese, aged for 18 months, impressed the 265 judges. One praised it enthusiastically, saying, “Anyone who eats it just gets excited about it and wants to go back for more.”
anaphylactic
adjective: related to or caused by a severe allergic reaction
From the headlines: Researchers say a New Jersey man died from alpha-gal syndrome, a red meat allergy caused by tick bites that can cause anaphylactic shock. It’s the first known death from the condition. The man became sick after eating a hamburger, and tests showed he had a severe allergic reaction.
encroach
verb: advance beyond the usual limit
From the headlines: Iceland’s former prime minister has warned that the island nation’s mother tongue is at risk of fading away as English continues to encroach on Icelandic. Katrín Jakobsdóttir noted that with reading and writing in English becoming increasingly common, the language has begun to overtake Icelandic, and fewer citizens now read and write their native language on a regular basis.
envoy
noun: someone on a mission to represent another’s interests
From the headlines: After Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested that Chinese military action against Taiwan could justify a response from her government, she sent an envoy to China to ease tensions. Masaaki Kanai, a director-general at the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, met his Chinese counterpart in Beijing. On behalf of his government, Kanai pressed China on its travel advisory warning its citizens against visiting Japan. The two were unable to immediately repair the diplomatic rift between the countries.
insectivore
noun: any organism that feeds mainly on bugs
From the headlines: Seven years after an EU ban on using bee-harming pesticides on crops, insect-eating birds are making a recovery in France. Populations of insectivores like blackbirds, blackcaps, and chaffinches, which feed on insects as adults and as chicks, had plummeted in recent decades. A new study found that the numbers of bug-eating birds had increased by about 3 percent in areas affected by the pesticide ban.
juggernaut
noun: a massive, overpowering force
From the headlines: Fresh off last year’s NCAA championship, the University of Connecticut’s women’s basketball team appears poised to be a juggernaut once again. The top-ranked Huskies cruised through their first four games, each by more than twenty points, while leading the field in assists, rebounds, and turnovers. With standout sophomore Sarah Strong at the helm and a deep roster of talented players, the team boasts a bench as nearly as formidable as its starters.
requiem
noun: a song or hymn of mourning as a memorial to a dead person
From the headlines: A new monument erected in Rock Springs, Wyoming, commemorates the Chinese miners who were killed and injured during the 1885 Rock Springs massacre. The statue, titled Requiem, depicts a Chinese coal miner and serves as a poignant reminder of the deadly violence that erupted during a dispute over worker pay and conditions. Several blocks were deliberately burned to the ground, and twenty-eight Chinese laborers died.
rescind
verb: cancel officially
From the headlines: The Federal Aviation Authority has moved to rescind its earlier limits on commercial flight volume. During the government shutdown, staffing shortages led the FAA to restrict air traffic at fourty U.S. airports, cutting flights by 6 percent. Lifting those restrictions now allows air travel operations to return to normal levels.
unscathed
adjective: not injured
From the headlines: After a dog named Whisp plunged 100 feet down a Scottish cliff, rescuers were astonished to find him entirely unscathed. The 2-year-old border collie had toppled over a rocky edge on Shetland’s Northmavine peninsula and landed on an inaccessible ledge. A coast guard team first attempted to reach him by sea, then used ropes and pulleys to lift him to safety. Still unhurt, Whisp bounded back to his relieved owner.
verboten
adjective: forbidden or prohibited
From the headlines: A new federal mandate forbids painting artistic or political displays on public roads. Transportation officials say banning distracting crosswalks will improve safety and mobility. The rule means Lubbock, Texas, must remove a popular Buddy Holly-themed crosswalk featuring four huge pairs of Holly’s signature glasses. Installed in 2020 to celebrate the Lubbock-born musician, the crosswalk is now verboten.
