Do you speak emoji? If you’re a millennial, you might think you do, since you came of age during the dawn of emojis. What might surprise you is finding out that the meanings of many of even the most popular emojis have completely changed. Gen Z came along and used their creativity and unique sense of style to reshape the way people use and understand …
So, you’re wondering why Beyoncé’s Renaissance album has proved to be so irresistible and has now inspired a record-breaking tour—declared the highest grossing for a female artist—in 2023. Well, we’ve got 15 words that help tell that story. The album, released in 2022, samples and incorporates elements of a highly danceable musical genre known as house. Renaissance in particular references and pays homage to the Black …
Just like any other close-knit community, the gaming community has its own commonly used slang words and phrases—and navigating them can be tough for a noob. Whether you’re acting pretty sus in Among Us or carrying the team in a game of League of Legends, you’re bound to pick up a few new words and phrases. So hit the pause button and take a peek at …
From shows like Squid Game to musical sensations like Twice and BTS, it’s no secret that Korean pop culture is trending worldwide. In the US and elsewhere, people can’t get enough of all things Korean, from food to music, movies, and fashion. Korean pop culture is so huge, in fact, that it’s spawned its own category of words: K-words. In the US especially, adding a …
By Nick Norlen, Senior Editor “Happy Monday!” Do you cringe a little every time someone says this or, worse, you find yourself saying it? “Happy” indicates celebration, right? “Happy Birthday!” “Happy New Year!” “Happy Friday!” These all make sense. But “Happy Monday”? Slow down, Captain Positive. For many of us, Monday morning begins a Monday mourning the end of Sunday Funday. Here at Dictionary.com, we …
Six guesses, five letters, infinite boasting rights. Since the word puzzle Wordle first released publicly online in October 2021, it has become a blockbuster hit. The principle of the game is simple: each player has six chances to guess one five-letter word. After each guess, the letters change color: green for right letter, right location; yellow for right letter, wrong location; and gray for wrong …
You’ve probably seen the hashtags on TikTok: cottagecore, royalcore, normcore. It’s clear they’re associated with a specific aesthetic and that people are major fans, but what’s the deal with every social trend suddenly getting its own unique -core name? Fandoms naming themselves isn’t a new thing—just ask Taylor Swift’s Swifties or Beyonce’s Beyhive. But the -core trend takes the idea of fandom and applies it …
You know that thing that happens when you first learn about something and then you start seeing it everywhere? Or when participants in a medical trial start to feel better even though they’ve been taking the pill with nothing in it? Helpfully, there are names for these things. In the context of psychology, these “things that happen”—these phenomena—are often referred to as effects, especially in …
As we enter the summer, you might be planning a big trip to have some fun during your summer vacation. If you want to gallivant across the globe, there’s no shortage of beautiful places full of interesting history to explore. And it’s worth noting (because we’re Dictionary.com, after all) many cities around the world have fascinating stories about where their names came from. Before you …
If you’re one of the many fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you’ll know that Dr. Strange has the power to explore the multiverse. He can travel to other worlds and meet alternate versions of himself, maybe even one that isn’t inexplicably charming. In comic books and science fiction, the multiverse refers to a collection of different universes that include our own. But what about …
by Claire Evans K-pop is the name of a pop music sensation that originated in South Korea and is sweeping the globe. From its energetic choreography and music to the beauty of its idols, K-pop (or K for Korea combined with pop) has entranced international and Korean fans alike—and chances are you’ve heard it, hummed it, or danced to it. (Did you catch BTS’ “Friends” …
Since its introduction in the early 20th century, the film industry’s contributions to the English language have been manifold. Some terms, along with the concepts they described, were fleeting. Take Smell-O-Vision, the movie-going experience in which plot-related scents were pumped into the theater during screenings; it made its first and last appearance in the same 1960s film, Scent of Mystery. (That’s probably a good thing.) With …