The term mansplaining received the high honor of being nominated as one of the “most creative” new words at the American Dialect Society 2012 Word of the Year vote. In addition to being creative, this term, particularly the -splaining part, has proven to be incredibly robust and useful as a combining form. What does -splain mean? In 2013, the lexicography team at Dictionary.com added definitions …
As flashy and fun as the terms selfie and binge-watch are, it’s important to keep in mind another, more business-casual buzzword of the 2010s: lean in. In fact, this term existed before Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg started using lean in to encourage women to embrace challenge and risk in the workplace. What is the traditional meaning of lean in? Traditionally lean in has been used in the …
The word twerk bounced its way into the universal consciousness of English speakers thanks to the controversial performance of Miley Cyrus at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards. Only a few days later, Oxford Dictionaries Online announced its quarterly update, listing twerk among the new additions (additions that had been planned months before “Twerkgate”). This led to public outcry against making this term “official.” As lexicographers …
A curious word hit the mainstream following the 2013 release of a romantic comedy called Drinking Buddies: mumblecore. The term was rumored to have been coined in jest by a sound editor in 2005, but the construct demonstrated considerable lasting power, canonized in New York Times articles such as “A Generation Finds Its Mumble” from 2007 and later in “Mumblecore Masters, Enunciating Clearly,” in reference to Drinking Buddies, starring …
Two recent events have raised the complicated question of whether or not dictionaries belong in courtrooms. A murder trial in Virginia was disrupted because the jurors illicitly consulted two dictionaries and a thesaurus. (The defense is currently seeking a mistrial.) And even on the Supreme Court it seems dictionaries are being misused. In the past, judges have resorted to the dictionary to decide important trials, …
The phrase body language or nonverbal communication often gets tossed around. From public speaking to a first date, our movements and facial expressions say a lot about our feelings and intentions. During political debate season, politicians’ body language is under just as much scrutiny as their remarks, and if the candidates aren’t careful, they might misspeak without saying a word. Most researchers conclude that human …
There has been much ado about the specific clothing, furniture, and products in the hit AMC series Mad Men. Of course, fans love the accurate details. The afternoon cocktails and elaborate dresses are a constant reminder of how much has changed since the 1960s. The show gets the set right, but what about the dialogue? Is the language on Mad Men accurate? Apparently not. There are …
The popular American sitcom, Modern Family once featured a swearing toddler in an episode. It was not a “fleeting expletive.” The show intentionally included a cursing two-year and bleeped out all swear words. When the show premiered, the New York Times wrote about how accurately it reflected contemporary American families, and that the storylines seemed to be an accurate portrait of what many parents go through. …
The Los Angeles Lakers‘ Ron Artest has spent the majority of his basketball career stirring up controversy with his own brand of joie de vivre. The eccentric, at times rowdy, small forward and shooting guard now graces this column for a linguistic reason. Artest plans on officially changing his name to Metta World Peace. If, as our recent post conjectures, our given names play a part …
Imagine this: your beloved great uncle bequeaths to you an old book, so old that it is literally coming apart at the seams. You tuck away the tattered tome in the attic, where it will stay for decades. One day you decide to unearth the inherited manuscript and have it appraised. To your astonishment, your great uncle left you a highly coveted artifact that dates back …
In 2011, something shocking and mysterious happened: on New Year’s Day, residents of Beebe, Arkansas found thousands of dead blackbirds in the street. Days later, Louisiana residents discovered hundreds more deceased birds. Each event in isolation was disturbing enough, but with such proximity, it was hard not to draw conclusions. Within days, the dual avian tragedies planted a question in the popular imagination: could this be …
What exactly is the holy grail? Search recent and current headlines, and you’ll find folks looking for the “holy grail” of everything from winemaking, to math and clean energy. The term is so rich in myth and history that we can’t resist the opportunity for elucidation. What is a holy grail? For the record, most of the uses of this term holy grail are informal …