Politics dictionary
RBG
[ ahr-bee-jee ]
What does RBG stand for?
RBG are the initials of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who was a US Supreme Court justice from 1993 until her death in 2020. The initialism RBG was and is popularly used as a short way of referring to her.
Ginsburg was nominated by President Bill Clinton and confirmed to the Supreme Court in August 1993. Ginsburg was the second woman and first Jewish woman to serve on the Supreme Court.
Ginsburg was considered a liberal justice and was seen as a champion for progressive issues, making her a popular figure among those with similar politics. In addition to the initialism RBG, Ginsburg was in later years sometimes referred to with the nickname “the Notorious RBG,” a humorous reference to the rapper known as the Notorious B.I.G.
The abbreviation of Ginsburg’s name follows the popular practice of abbreviating the name of other notable political figures. The tradition continued with the justice who was confirmed to fill her vacant seat, Amy Coney Barrett (ACB), and later with Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson (KBJ).
Examples of RBG
Who uses RBG?
Although political and public figures are often polarizing, the initialism RBG itself—like the abbreviations for many other figures’ names—was and is generally used in a neutral way, regardless of whether it’s being used by supporters, opponents, or in media reports.
RBG sides with conservative justices in 5-4 ruling https://t.co/o81h2PvM88 pic.twitter.com/p9atIiVJgT
— The Hill (@thehill) June 4, 2019
Was obviously not a fan of RBG. But let’s put politics aside, RIP RBG. If I see any Conservatives celebrating her death, that’s wrong.
— Adam Johnson™ (@TigerPanthrHeat) September 18, 2020
RBG in a 2015 interview on how she'd like to be remembered: "Someone who used whatever talent she had to do her work to the very best of her ability and to help repair tears in her society, to make things a little better through the use of whatever ability she has." Rest in power pic.twitter.com/yC48hMjrFZ
— The Rep Project (@RepresentPledge) September 19, 2020
Note
This is not meant to be a formal definition of RBG like most terms we define on Dictionary.com, but is rather an informal word summary that hopefully touches upon the key aspects of the meaning and usage of RBG that will help our users expand their word mastery.