Search Results for: drag culture

1. 

   “Race” vs. “Ethnicity”: Why These Terms Are So Complex

   by Alyssa Pereira Historic protests against racial inequality. National debates over offensive names of sports team names and conflicts over the place of Confederate monuments in our culture. Arguments about border walls, language barriers—rising tensions over immigration despite an increasingly diverse populace. In this cultural moment, the concepts of race and ethnicity have never been more important to grasp. They’ve also never been so complicated …

2. 

   Which Words Did English Take From Other Languages?

   English is a more varied (and delicious) melting pot than you think … English—is one of the most incredible, flavorfully-complex melting pots of linguistic ingredients from other countries that’s been left to simmer for (in some cases) centuries. These linguistic ingredients are called loanwords that have been borrowed and incorporated into English. The loanwords are oftentimes so common now, the foreign flavor has been completely …

3. 

   Is There A Difference Between “Calling In” And “Calling Out”?

   by Ashley AustrewWhen you hear the phrases calling out and calling in, you probably picture someone taking a sick day at their job. And, there’s a whole lot of debate about which phrase you use when doing that. Twitter, go! The sniffles are affecting most people this year. If you have to miss work due to illness, do you call IN sick or call OUT …

4. 

   sickening

   Originating in and popularized by drag culture, sickening means “amazing,” “wonderful,” or “excellent.” It is especially used to compliment a drag queen as looking “extremely attractive" or "flawless."
5. 

   Has The Word “Ninja” Been Culturally Appropriated?

   Traditionally, the word ninja is defined as “a member of a feudal Japanese society of mercenary agents, highly trained in martial arts and stealth (ninjutsu), who were hired for covert purposes ranging from espionage to sabotage and assassination.” These ninjas have captured the Western pop culture imagination since at least the 1960s, when the word was borrowed into English. Since then, ninja has expanded to describe “a …

6. 

   The Important Rise Of “#DemThrones”

   by Kimberly C. Ellis, PhD I remember that Sunday so clearly. I saw something called “#RedWedding” trending on Twitter and when I clicked on the hashtag, I discovered it was related to the hit television show Game of Thrones already into its third season. I decided that night I would find out about the show, watch it for the first time, and learn about this Red …

7. 

   dragée
8. 

   New Terms We Added To Our Slang Dictionary

   Why is everyone suddenly tweeting about OK boomer? What is that Baby Yoda meme all up in our feeds about? And who are Becky and Karen, anyways? Oh, we’ve got this. We love keeping up with the latest terms in slang and getting to the bottom of the funniest, strangest, and, yes, thorniest trends in pop culture and social media. We love it so much, …

9. 

   What Happens When Memes Go Wrong

   LOLcats. Good Guy Greg. Forever Alone Rage Face. Scumbag Steve. If you recognize that these are internet memes, you’re not oblivious to the raging cultural phenomenon that has swept internet screens in the last several years.  So, what does meme mean? For the uninitiated, an internet meme is any concept expressed through digital media that goes viral—a photo, video, GIF, song, doodle, fictional character, symbol. The …

10. 

    bish

    Bish, sometimes spelled as beesh, is an alternative form of the coarse slang bitch, often used as a playful term among Black women or in Black drag culture. It's not to be confused with BiSH, a…
11. 

    What Is Louisiana Creole And How Was It Created?

    Dictionary.com’s United States of Diversity series by Taneesh Khera Music resounds from every direction. Drums, brass, and strings clash against the cacophony of song and dance. The crowd, as diverse as the Black, Native, and European people who’ve called the area home for centuries. Smells waft in with the sound: from street-side vendors, gumbo, jambalaya, and cajun and creole spices you can taste in the …

12. 

    “Hispanic” vs. “Latino”: When To Use Each Term

    by Alyssa Pereira From boxes on census forms to drop-down menus on job applications, we often see Hispanic and Latino positioned side by side, seemingly as interchangeable terms to describe the race and heritage of a population that makes up nearly 20% of the United States. It’s easy to see why these two words are so often conflated and frequently confused. But Hispanic and Latino …