Antiwork, bachelorx party, 45, Ohtani rule, pawternity leave, Zelenskyy. As ever, there is great variety in the new terms and meanings just added to Dictionary.com.
by Nick Norlen, Senior Editor, and Heather Bonikowski, Lexicographer
Let’s set things straight: a word doesn’t become a “real word” when we add it to the dictionary. It’s actually the other way around: we add a word to the dictionary because it is a real word used by real people in the real world.
And you—the real people in this real, complicated world—have been busy generating a wildly diverse assortment of new words and new ways to use existing words for countless aspects of our modern life.
As always, we’ve been keeping track. That’s our job! The work of a dictionary is to document these changes.
Learn more about how new words get added to Dictionary.com—and how the dictionary works.
Many of the words may be new to you. Others you have already been using for some time. (Don’t at us.) Either way, that’s how words work. That’s how the dictionary works. We strive to keep pace with the ever-changing English language—a language whose changes come from you, the people who use it.
What’s in this dictionary update
This update is not just new entries. It also includes, as always, new and revised senses of existing words in our dictionary. Here’s the breakdown for this release:
Our lexicography team has also recently begun to do the work of revising entries for Ukrainian place names and the names of Indigenous Peoples. You can read about both below in the special section titled “Endonyms & Exonyms.”
Now, let’s get to the newly added words and meanings. Note that many of these terms have more than one definition. We’ll be highlighting the most prominent or notable meanings relevant to this release.
Lie Flat
verb. to reject overwork and withdraw voluntarily from relentless competition and pressure to achieve.
🧐 Editor’s note: The term comes from—and is also a synonym for—the name of the movement known as Lying Flat that originated in China.
antiwork
adjective. of or relating to a social and cultural movement that distinguishes between labor, which generates goods, and work, which generates wealth, and that rejects work as artificially incentivized, while embracing or elevating labor as essential or intrinsically rewarding.
churn rate
noun. the percentage of employees that leave a company in a given period of time, or the rate at which any group loses members.
golden handcuffs
plural noun. incentives like bonuses, raises, insurance plans, and flexible hours that discourage employees from leaving a company.
OOO
abbreviation. out of office: used as a notification to colleagues or clients when an employee is on vacation, out sick, or away from the office for another reason, and cannot be reached.
pawternity leave
noun. a brief leave of absence for employees who are adding a new pet to their household, caring for a pet when it is sick or injured, or mourning the death of a pet.
lavender ceiling
noun. an upper limit to professional advancement imposed upon LGBTQ+ people that is not readily perceived or openly acknowledged.
🧐 Editor’s note: This term is modeled on glass ceiling. The word lavender has a history of being used to represent the LGBTQ+ community.
simp
noun. a person, especially a man, who is excessively attentive or submissive to an object of sexual attraction.
verb. to be excessively attentive or submissive, especially to an object of sexual attraction.
Example: Why do you simp for him when he doesn’t even notice you?
🧐 Editor’s note: Yes, we know, you may have already learned this word years ago from your nephew, who probably no longer uses it. It’s actually even older than you think, originating at least from the 1980s in hip-hop—another example of a term from Black culture being taken up by the mainstream in a way that obscures or erases its origins. We expect use of simp to continue and evolve (likely by becoming more general), perhaps differentiating it from other recent slang terms that rapidly became very popular but were then mostly yeeted from the lexicon. It’s important to note that the word is criticized, among other reasons, for its sexist implications, specifically when applied to men, for reinforcing the idea that women are sexual objects, and that men are “weak” if they show any deference toward or consideration of women.
at
verb. to argue with someone, or dispute someone’s stated views, especially on social media.
Example: The sequel was better than the original—don’t at me!
🧐 Editor’s note: Lexicographers get excited whenever they get to add a meaning to a word as common, basic, and old as at. Its most recent sense originated from the @ symbol in social media usernames, which can be used to tag someone, such as when calling them out for some opinion they’ve stated. In this case, adding this verb sense of at to the dictionary also meant that the lexicographers had to research how the different tenses are spelled in the wild. For example, the past tense can be @ed or at-ed. At us if you want, but that’s how people use it.
bodycon
adjective. (of clothing) designed to be close-fitting, and often made with stretchy material, so as to display the shape of the body; skintight.
bottle episode
noun. an episode of a television series set in a single limited or confined location, such as a hotel room or a broken elevator, and often using only a few regular cast members, sometimes undertaken as a cost-cutting measure or as a creative challenge.
hopepunk
noun. a subgenre of speculative fiction and art that shows optimism, gentleness, kindness, and collaboration to be effective weapons in the fight to create a better future.
grimdark
noun. dystopian fantasy fiction characterized by harsh settings, extreme violence, and a bleak, fatalistic perspective on the future of humanity.
Harness that dark vibe by entering our Haunting Hooks Scary Story Opener Writing Contest. This year’s theme: Sci-Fi. Enter here.
brigading
noun. the practice of organizing or participating in a coordinated campaign of online harassment against a targeted individual or group, especially on social media.
review bomb
noun. to manipulate an online rating system with a semiorganized campaign of unfavorable user reviews, often as a general statement of disapproval for a creator, a publisher, or other business, rather than a genuine opinion about a specific product or experience.
Example: The game was review bombed by angry players after the publisher blocked fan-created content.
shadow ban
noun. the suppressing from public view of a social media post or posts by platform moderators, without notifying the user who published the content, usually in response to a violation of the platform’s terms of service.
sock puppet
noun. a false name or identity assumed by an internet user, often to deceive or to preserve the user’s anonymity.
🧐 Editor’s note: This sense of sock puppet emerged in the early 2000s and continues to have relevance. A recent prominent use relates to Russian online disinformation campaigns.
Ohtani rule
noun. a rule that allows the pitcher to be assigned to the designated hitter spot in the batting order and to remain as the designated hitter even if replaced on the mound by another pitcher.
🧐 Editor’s note: The rule, made official by Major League Baseball in 2022, is named for MLB phenom Shohei Ohtani, whose exceptional performance as both a pitcher and a hitter gave rise to it.
ghost runner
noun. a runner who is automatically placed on second base at the beginning of each half of an extra inning, before any pitch is thrown.
pickleball
noun. a game, similar to tennis and badminton, played indoors or outdoors on a court with a low net, using a short-handled, lightweight paddle and a perforated plastic ball.
dyslexic thinking
noun. an approach to problem solving, assessing information, and learning, often used by people with dyslexia, that involves pattern recognition, spatial reasoning, lateral thinking, and interpersonal communication.
🧐 Editor’s note: Read more about how we added dyslexic thinking to the dictionary—and how it was added as a skill on LinkedIn.
stimming
noun. the repetition of physical movements or articulated noises exhibited by people, especially young children and those with autism spectrum disorders, in reaction to a mental or emotional state.
Example: Stimming, like covering my ears while repeating a sound, can soothe intense feelings and bring back my sense of control.
🧐 Editor’s note: This term is new to our dictionary, but it’s actually been in use since at least the 1980s. Its addition reflects an overdue focus on neurodiversity and the terms used by neurodiverse people themselves. Part of this focus is the important acknowledgement that the ways people experience neurodiversity vary widely, as do the associations that often accompany words like stimming, which may be positive for some but negative for others.
social-emotional learning
noun. the process of acquiring interpersonal and emotional skills such as empathy, cooperation, conflict resolution, self-awareness, and self-control. Abbreviation: SEL.
bachelorx party
noun. an inclusive pre-wedding party, often on the night before or in the days leading up to the wedding, and ranging from a night of drinking to a destination vacation (used in contrast to bachelor party and bachelorette party, and intended to be welcoming for wedding participants and guests of any gender).
See also: bachelorx.
🧐 Editor’s note: Bachelorx is another example of the recent practice of using the letter x to create gender-neutral terms, as seen in words like Latinx and Mx.
neopronoun
noun. a type of gender-neutral pronoun, coined after 1800, and used especially by nonbinary and genderqueer people, as in English ze/hir/hirs, e/em/eirs, or xe/xem/xyrs.
nounself pronoun
noun. a type of invented gender-neutral pronoun used by some nonbinary and genderqueer people in place of gendered pronouns such as he/himself or she/herself to express a spiritual or personal connection to a specific concept: the nounself pronoun is derived from a word, usually a noun, that is linked to that concept, such as the use of star/starself by people who feel a connection to celestial objects or bun/bunself, derived from bunny, by people who feel a connection to rabbits.
Example: Orion chose stars nounself pronouns as one way to remind starself that star is always connected to the sky above star.
Here are just a few examples of nounself pronouns and their different grammatical forms.
aromantic
adjective. noting or relating to a person who experiences little or no romantic attraction to other people.
demisexual
adjective. noting or relating to a person who is sexually attracted only to people with whom they already have an emotional bond.
masculine of center
adjective. noting or relating to a person, especially an LGBTQ+ person, who is more masculine than feminine on a spectrum of gender expression.
feminine of center
adjective. noting or relating to a person, especially an LGBTQ+ person, who is more feminine than masculine on a spectrum of gender expression.
unlabeled
adjective. noting or relating to a person who does not name their gender or sexuality.
sologamy
noun. the practice or state of marriage to one’s self.
Endonyms & Exonyms
Maintaining a dictionary involves more than just adding words. In recent months, our lexicography team has worked to make revisions to entries involving endonyms and exonyms, particularly for Ukrainian places and Indigenous names.
🤔 Did you know?
An endonym is a name that an ethnic, racial, or social group uses for itself or its language; it can also mean a name used to refer to a place by its inhabitants (endo- means “within”; -nym means “name”).
In contrast, an exonym is a name used by outsiders (exo- means “outside”).
Ukrainian place names and pronunciations
More than 40 entries involving Ukrainian place names were either added or updated to reflect and prioritize the Ukrainian spellings or pronunciations (rather than the Russian versions that have traditionally been recorded). Examples include:
- Chornobyl
- Dnipro
- Kharkiv
- Luhansk
- Lviv
- Odesa
Entries with Russian-spelled Ukrainian place names are now specifically defined as such and cross-referenced to the primary entries with Ukrainian spellings.
Indigenous names
In the context of Indigenous names, changes include the addition of names that Indigenous Peoples use for themselves (as opposed to names applied to them by others, many of which persist in outside use today). In addition, several entries have been revised to show the endonym as the primary spelling and pronunciation. Examples include Mi’kmaq, Ojibwe, and CHamoru.
In some cases, more than one name is used by members of a community. As explained in the language note for the newly added term Diné, the name comes from the Native Athabascan language of the people also known as the Navajo. It is preferred by many over Navajo, a name assigned by Spanish missionaries. Nevertheless, Navajo and Navaho are still in use and remain acceptable.
Our work to properly reflect endonyms is ongoing.
decarbonize
verb. to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide or other carbon compounds emitted into the atmosphere by the activities of (a household, industry, country, etc.).
pancake ice
noun. a grouping of circular, flat pieces of ice with raised rims, formed by the accumulation of frazil and slush on the surface water of seas and large lakes.
Zelenskyy
noun. Volodymyr Zelenskyy, born 1978, president of Ukraine since 2019.
🧐 Editor’s note: The ending of this transliterated spelling uses two y’s to represent a specific y sound in Ukrainian (which has more than one). It’s also the spelling that Zelenskyy himself prefers. Still, you’re likely to see the name spelled with one y in some news reports, reflecting a different transliteration.
45
noun. an identifier of or nickname for Donald Trump, the 45th U.S. president, alternately used with disparaging intent by opponents and with affection by supporters.
🧐 Editor’s note: This term follows the practice of referring to presidents—including both current and former—by their number in the progression of presidencies. The widespread use of 45 to refer to Donald Trump (by both supporters and opponents, as noted in the definition) is evidence of his continued prominence in political discussion and the news.
shadow docket
noun. a list of the cases resolved by the U.S. Supreme Court by unsigned procedural orders issued without full briefing, oral arguments, or lengthy written opinions. Compare merits docket.
🧐 Editor’s note: The term shadow docket is typically used in a way that implies criticism of the practice. A more neutral term for the same thing is orders docket. The word shadow adds this shade of meaning to other terms as well, often indicating that the thing being referred to is unofficial, secret, or difficult to detect. Notably, it appears in two other terms on this list: shadow inflation and shadow ban.
shadow inflation
noun. the phenomenon of decreasing quantity or diminishing quality of goods and services compared to a comparable purchase that previously had more value at the same price point.
shrinkflation
noun. a decrease over time in quantity or in package size compared to the quantity previously sold at the same price point, resulting in a higher cost per unit for the consumer.
school resource officer
noun. an on-site law enforcement officer responsible for safety and crime prevention at a school. Abbreviation: SRO.
kettling
noun. a crowd control technique, in which a line of police officers encircles demonstrators and confines them in a contained area known as a kettle.
air hug
noun. the gesture of extending one’s arms as if to embrace another person (used as a greeting or expression of affection without physical contact when a physical hug is not possible or not appropriate).
mompreneur
noun. a woman who is the primary caregiver to her young child or children and also manages her own business.
🧐 Editor’s note: These final three highlights aren’t new or even recent—sometimes it just takes a while for an obscure word to get on our radar (but we’re glad they did!). Why are all three p-words? Just a coincidence.
pogonophile
noun. a person who likes beards.
pareidolia
noun. the illusory perception of meaningful patterns or images of familiar things in random or amorphous data, as a face seen on the moon.
psithurism
noun. a rustling or whispering sound, such as leaves in the wind; susurration.
Example: The psithurism from the breeze blowing through the Spanish moss made me picture the tree trunks as faces with windswept beards, but that’s because I’m a pogonophile prone to pareidolia.
Sometimes you just can’t find the right word to describe a feeling, thing, or event. That’s when you resort to making up words.
Thanks to the proliferation of news via speed-of-light social media, new words and phrases are catching on faster than ever. Some are short-lived or only used among a select group of people, like “feels” or “bae.”
But when a word gets added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, you know it’s more than just a fad. The dictionary itself explains that words get added based on their usage. So when a word starts showing up in online conversations, it gets noticed.
But it’s not enough to be a trending tweet for a news cycle. To be included in the dictionary, “a word must be used in a substantial number of citations that come from a wide range of publications over a considerable period of time.”
Going into 2022, 455 new words earned a coveted spot in the dictionary or updated entry to reflect their changing use in today’s lexicon. Here are some of the most interesting ones to note.
Our Favorite Merriam-Webster Dictionary Additions for 2022
These words prove that English is an ever-evolving language, full of wonderful new ways to combine letters and make meaning. It’s interesting to note how many of these definitions reflect our societal move toward a more digital communication landscape.
Because (conjunction)
The new definition of “because” is “by reason of.” It’s often used comedically to explain complicated things vaguely. As in, “the sky is blue because science,” or “I don’t like her because reasons.”
TBH (abbreviation)
This abbreviation stands for “to be honest.” It’s often used in text conversations, as in “I don’t feel like going out tonight, TBH.”
Fluffernutter (n)
This word describes a sandwich that entails spreading peanut butter and marshmallow topping on white bread. Yum?
Amirite (interjection)
This is a combination of three words “am I right.” It’s used conversationally, often humorously. As in, “Writers and their love of words, amirite?”
Copypasta (n)
This refers to any type of data (including text) that has been copied and spread online. It can range from lighthearted memes to serious political messages.
Deplatform (v)
Use this word to refer to taking any sort of speaking platform away from somebody. Specifically, it can refer to kicking someone off of a large communication platform, like social media.
Whataboutism (n)
This word refers to the act of responding to an accusation by saying that somebody else committed an offense that was the same or worse. As in “sure, I was late to work but whatabout that guy who didn’t even show up today?”
FTW (abbreviation)
These three letters stand for “for the win.” This abbreviation is often used in social media commentary or when stating approval for something. As in “Fridays off FTW.”
What’s Next for the English Language? Stay Tuned
Who knows what new words will be added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary in the future. That’s all part of the fun of the English language!
It’s not always possible to know what 400 or some words are being added to the dictionary at any given time. Fortunately, you can keep your writing fresh and up-to-date by using a proofreader like Grammarly.
If you’d prefer to leave the words to someone else, we can help. People First Content can write conversational and engaging content that communicates your brand’s message to your target audience. Click below to get in touch!
Like Our Content? Try It Yourself!
Among the new additions: Oobleck, air fryer, whataboutism, FTW, and fourth trimester. Just as the language never stops evolving, the dictionary never stops expanding.
For instance, What is the newest word 2020? And if you want to stay current on language, make sure you avoid these 4 Words the Dictionary Says You Should Stop Using.
- Amirite.
- Battle Royale.
- Contouring.
- Dunning-Kruger Effect.
- Ecoanxiety.
- Empty Suit.
- Gender Reveal.
- GOAT.
What is the newest word in the English language 2022? 5 new English words you should start using in 2022
- Hellacious. This word is a mix of the word ‘Hell’ and the suffix ‘cious’.
- Fast fashion.
- Supposably.
- Hygge.
- Long hauler.
Besides, What is the newest English word 2022?
Metaverse. This is one word you’re likely to hear a lot in 2022 thanks to Mark Zuckerberg.
Beside above, What is the newest word in the dictionary 2022?
The English language dictionary is going into 2022 with 455 new words, which were recently added by Merriam-Webster, including the likes of ‘dad bod,’ ‘fluffernutter,’ ‘amirite’ and ‘TBH.
What is the oldest word?
According to a 2009 study by researchers at Reading University, the oldest words in the English language include “I“, “we“, “who“, “two” and “three“, all of which date back tens of thousands of years.
What was the first word ever?
Also according to Wiki answers,the first word ever uttered was “Aa,” which meant “Hey!” This was said by an australopithecine in Ethiopia more than a million years ago.
What is the most used word in the world 2021?
This revelation was made by Google with the help of its tool Ngrams, which had been launched in 2009. Most-used phrase in 2021: Google has revealed the most used phrase of 2021 amid the coronavirus pandemic. In 2020, “now more than ever” had been the most used phrase, this changed to “new normal” in 2021.
What is Oxford’s word of the year?
Vax has been chosen as the word of the year by lexicographers at the Oxford English Dictionary (OED). Words related to vaccines have spiked in frequency in 2021 due to Covid, with double-vaxxed, unvaxxed and anti-vaxxer all seeing a surge in use.
What was the newest word invented?
Zyzzyva has achieved notoriety for being the last word in several English-language dictionaries.
What is a unique word?
To explain this very simply, a unique word is one that’s unusual or different in some way. It might have a complicated history or interesting connections to another language. But, primarily what makes an English word interesting is its unusual spelling, pronunciation or meaning.
Is YEET in the Oxford dictionary?
At least one thousand new entries were added to English dictionaries in 2021, with the Oxford English Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, Collins and Dictionary.com transforming our sweet, sweet slang to actual English. Thank goodness: we can now say ‘yeet’ and still be technically correct.
Is YEET in the dictionary?
verb (used with object) to hurl or move forcefully:Somebody just yeeted a water bottle into the crowd. He’s an early riser, so his mom never had to yeet him out of bed! to move forcefully or quickly: My cat yeeted out of there in a big hurry.
What was the first human word?
Mother, bark and spit are some of the oldest known words, say researchers. Continue reading → Mother, bark and spit are just three of 23 words that researchers believe date back 15,000 years, making them the oldest known words.
WHO said the first curse word?
The year 1310 would be a couple of centuries before a monk reportedly scrawled the word on a manuscript by Cicero, which has commonly been considered the first appearance of the F-word in English writings.
What’s the smallest word in the world?
Eunoia, at six letters long, is the shortest word in the English language that contains all five main vowels. Seven letter words with this property include adoulie, douleia, eucosia, eulogia, eunomia, eutopia, miaoued, moineau, sequoia, and suoidea. (The scientific name iouea is a genus of Cretaceous fossil sponges.)
What is the longest word in the world that takes 3 hours to say?
Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis (45 letters)
What is the last word in the dictionary?
Zyzzyva, a genus of South African weevils found on or near palm trees, is the newest last word you’ll find in the Oxford English Dictionary. Zyzzyva replaces the previous last word in the OED, zythum, an ancient Egyptian malt beer.
What is the new word for cool?
Sic/Sick – Cool or sweet. Snatched – Looks good, perfect, or fashionable; the new “on fleek” Fire – Hot, trendy, amazing, or on point (formerly “straight fire”)
What’s the most popular word right now?
The Most Popular Words of 2020
- of 13. “Karen”
- of 13. “Zoom”
- of 13. “Essential”
- of 13. “Virus”
- of 13. “Quibi”
- of 13. “Social Distance”
- of 13. “COVID/Coronavirus”
- of 13. “Remote”
What is the most used word 2022?
Instead, here are the five most popular words and phrases of 2022.
- Metaverse. A popular word thanks to the blockchain technology explosion in 2021, people are more curious than ever about the metaverse.
- Non-binary.
- UBI.
- Supply Chain Crisis.
- NFT.
What is Merriam-Webster’s word of the year?
Merriam-Webster has chosen “vaccine” as the word of the year, citing a sustained surge in lookups. In 2020, the Merriam-Webster dictionary selected “pandemic” as its word of the year. This year, like some 59% of fully inoculated Americans, it went with “vaccine.”
What is Oxford word of the year 2021?
Oxford Word of the Year 2021 | Oxford Languages. Vax is our 2021 Word of the Year. When our lexicographers began digging into our English language corpus data it quickly became apparent that vax was a particularly striking term.
What is the word of the year 2021 as per Collins dictionary?
NFT’, the abbreviation of ‘non-fungible token’, the unique digital identifier that records ownership of a digital asset which has entered the mainstream and seen millions spent on the most sought-after images and videos, has been named Collins Word of the Year 2021.
What is Oxford word of the year 2020?
Oxford
| Year | UK Word of the Year |
|---|---|
| 2017 | youthquake |
| 2018 | toxic |
| 2019 | climate emergency |
| 2020 | No single word chosen |
butter board noun [C]
UK /ˈbʌt.ə ˌbɔːd/ US /ˈbʌt̬.ɚ ˌbɔːrd/
a wooden board spread generously with butter and topped with other foods, such as herbs, spices, fruit, sauces, etc.
If you’ve ever put together a charcuterie board, you know it usually costs a small fortune to buy all the fixings. Luckily, that’s not the case with a butter board. The simple ingredients make it a much more affordable option that still packs a punch and will leave your guests feeling just as satisfied.
[theeverygirl.com, 13 October 2022]
sourfaux noun [U]
UK /ˈsaʊə.fəʊ/ US /ˈsaʊr.foʊ/
bread that is labelled “sourdough” by the shop that sells it but actually contains cheaper ingredients and is made in a way that takes less time
Sourfaux, sold as sourdough, contains extra ingredients, such as yeast, ascorbic acid and yoghurt and vinegar. While these are not necessarily bad for you or unhealthy, it is misleading. When you are buying something, you should get what you pay for. Particularly when some of the supermarkets are charging a premium for that product. The Real Bread Campaign group says it wants to see a legal definition of the terms “sourdough” or “artisan bread”, so stores cannot “misinterpret” them.
[petitecuisine.ca, 11 April 2022]
cloud bread noun [U]
/ˈklaʊd ˌbred/
a very light, sweet food, made by mixing egg whites with sugar and cornflour, then forming the mixture into round shapes and baking
First up, cloud bread isn’t actually bread at all – made of just 3 ingredients, egg whites, sugar and corn starch, it’s more soft baked meringue than loaf of bread. Essentially, don’t try to slice this up and stick slices of cheese between it.
[you.co.uk, 18 May 2022]
About new words
Every year, more than a thousand new words are added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary and we’re all excited to see what terms will officially be documented and considered a part of the English language.
Actually, have you ever wondered how Merriam-Webster decides what to include? The answer — everyday usage. If people use those words in daily speech, they have a shot of making into the official dictionary. This means it can contain words and acronyms you wouldn’t expect to be cited by a traditional English language dictionary.
Thus, it isn’t any wonder why the dictionary is filled with new and not-so-well-known terms from all areas including science, medicine, pop culture, sports, and just about everything in between. And with the constant growth of technology, the English language grows as well.
That being said, we thought it would be fun to search for new tech terms that have been added to the dictionary and are now considered a part of our everyday language. We created a list of the most interesting ones. Don’t believe us? Take a look for yourself.
1. NSFW
A not so “traditional” tech word, but it can easily fit into today’s conversation. It’s still unclear whether it means “not safe for work” or “not suitable for work” (both are commonly used), but one thing is certain — it’s used to warn someone that internet content (a website, image or something else) is inappropriate for the typical work environment. And we thank whoever came up with the term for that.
Image Source: LinkedIn.com
2. Open Source
If you haven’t heard about an open–source term before then you are probably not sitting next to a developer. Open-source (OS) refers to computer software that is freely available for others to make modifications and changes with distribution accessible to anyone and for any purpose. Sound’s a bit geeky, right?
3. Ping
Not to be mistaken with Ping Pong (table tennis), a Ping is completely different from Ping Pong sharing nothing in common with it. Technically, it measures the round-trip time of a signal sent from one computer (host) to a destination computer across the network. The program also reports errors and presents you with a summary of the results. Not even close to Ping Pong!
Image Source: DSLReports.com
4. Clickbait
Quick explanation — Clickbait is something that business are making fortune from. It’s a term that describes any marketing content whose goal is to attract consumers to click on a hyperlink, allowing companies to generate online advertising revenue. The trickery relies on sensational headlines and eye-catching thumbnail pictures to attract those click-throughs. Sneaky.
Image Source: ifunny.co
5. Net Neutrality
In broad terms, net neutrality promotes the idea that everything on the internet should be equally accessible. Healthy competition is acceptable and the internet should be a place for all those amazing ideas and content to compete, but always on equal terms. “The idea, principle, or requirement that Internet service providers should or must treat all Internet data as the same regardless of its kind, source, or destination” is a slogan that defines net neutrality. And we agree.
6. GIF
If you have a problem and don’t know if you should pronounce it “GIF” or “JIF”, you’re not alone. The Merriam-Webster dictionary lists both of those two pronunciations, so you can use whichever you prefer. Despite the variation in pronunciation, the word refers to a file format for the compression and storage of digital information. A format that is a true gift. Or is it “jift”?
Image Source: PopularMechanics.com
7. Botnet
One not-so-pleasant term crawled into this list. Botnets refer to computers that are responsible for infecting massive networks. You can imagine them as networks of bots linked together by malware that can create damage measured in millions of dollars. It takes only one click on an email attachment and you become a part of a botnet army. We live in a scary world, indeed.
Image Source: HowToGeek.com
8. Backward Compatible
Maybe you haven’t heard of this expression, but you’ve undoubtedly understood its meaning at one point or another. Backward Compatible means that your computer hardware or software can be used with an older piece of technology without any special adaptation. For example, games that are for Xbox 360 (an older version) can also be played on Xbox One without modification. In other words, you can now get Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 for the Xbox One that’s finally backward compatible.
Image Source: SegmentNext.com
9. Click Fraud
Click fraud is a term that describes how certain organizations are able to take advantage of a search engines’ pay-per-click (PPC) online advertising. The fraud occurs when an automated script or computer program imitates a real web user and clicks on the ads without having an actual interest. It’s a practice of repeatedly clicking on an advertisement with the intention of generating revenue for the host web.
Image Source: Virool Blog
Bonus:
Face-Palm
The expression says it all, but here’s the full explanation — it means to cover one’s face with his or her hands as an expression of embarrassment or a gesture in exasperation. While this word has been widely used in pop culture for years, it was just recently added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary in February 2017 (face-palm).
Image Source: Desiderians
That’s it. Take a look at these words and just think about them for a second. Believe it or not, they represent the way in which our language is evolving. And Merriam-Webster is already working on the next batch!