These are new words or phrases that have caught my eye. My definition of a new word is one which is not in the Macquarie Dictionary online.
Some words seem to have more significance than others in terms of reflecting changes in the Australian culture, so I will give each word a Zeitgeist rating (ZG) within a range of 1-10.
If you disagree with the rating that I give, please argue your case in the comment field provided.
I would love you to contact me if you have made any new word discoveries of your own.
It has become fashionable for companies and organisations to claim in their public documents that they are doing wonderful things for the environment. Climate disclosures and commitments are now being revised in a process that is described as green hushing.
ZG: 6
A term employed by those engaged in environmental watchdog activities.
Read MoreThis is the increase in the number of tourists visiting a tourist destination to the point where it is beyond the capacity of the people who live there to deal with the influx. In these post-pandemic times travel is once again an option and overtourism is becoming an acute problem.
ZG: 8
I expect a great deal more discussion of over tourism and how to manage it.
Read MoreThis is syndrome that has come into prominence because there is a similarity with the symptoms of long COVID. The acronym stands for postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome.
ZG: 4
A term of the medical world which has surfaced because of the interest in long COVID.
Read MoreIn Australia this expression surfaced in the reality TV show, The Challenge. Late 2022 there was a ride-or-die series in which contestants were invited to bring their choice of partner along with them as support, their own particular ride-or-die rather than a partner chosen for them by the producers of the show.
ZG: 4
Read MoreThe expression You really slay me! dates back to American English of the 1920s so it is fairly traditional slang these days. You might even seem a bit quaint if you used it. But there is a new way in which slay is being used adjectivally, as in He is so slay! That movie was slay! Or as an interjection. What do you think of the movie? Slay!
ZG: 5
As with all such slang it has huge currency in a particular group.
Read MoreThere is another lit to add to the collection, a genre of novels featuring menopausal women. A variant on this is the crime sub-genre, hot-flush noir.
ZG: 6
The community of book readers is shrinking as the hot-flush lit is catching on, which means it has a small but enthusiastic group of supporters.
Read MoreOn the golf course spectators are asked to be as quiet as possible. No sudden loud noises, no loud voices or energetic movements. This is all set out in the Aberdeen Code of 1783.
ZG: 5
A fashionable way of expressing disdain that may take off.
Read MoreThe no-wash movement is hardline about not washing clothes, both for the sake of the fabric and for environmental reasons. Alongside them are the low-wash people who agree that we are obsessive about washing our clothes and that the environment would benefit if we stopped doing this, but they also feel that our clothes can reach a point where throwing them in the washing machine is the correct thing to do.
Read MoreThis is slightly misleading as a name because it gives the impression that the flu virus is somehow targeting young children which it isn’t. But more young children are getting the flu because the vaccination rate is so low this year.
ZG: 5
This one is picking up in frequency as winter progresses and there is a push for more vaccinations.
Read MoreThis is the sector of the economy of the country that comprises people, both paid and unpaid, who take care of children, the elderly, the sick and the disabled. The reason why it has been given a label is because it is the most rapidly expanding sector of the economy in many countries.
ZG: 4
A word for the bureaucrats and economists but an important one for all concerned with it.
Read MoreThe first of these was the laser gun but, now that we have other kinds of weapons that rely on directed energy, we need an all-encompassing term for all weapons that damage or destroy a target using highly focused energy alone.
ZG: 2
A bit of military jargon.
Read MoreI had thought that we had written all there was to say at the entry for fuck in the Macquarie Dictionary after many rewrites and revisions, but no — there is more.
ZG: 7
A popular bit of slang at the moment, probably one that will incur disapproval from the older generation.
Read MorePeople who use dating sites have acquired a certain amount of wisdom in how to navigate them. They recognise red flags, and green flags. But in 2022 a new flag appeared — the beige flag, one which indicated terminal boredom.
ZG: 7
I like this one so I am tempted to push it up the rankings but it is limited by its online use.
Read MoreNitro coffee is a cold coffee with a thick creamy head and a silky texture. As with beer you serve it in a glass so that the drinker can admire the head and the drifting bubbles.
ZG: 4
I haven’t had nitro coffee. I will have to do some research so that I can drink the words I define.
Read MoreThis is an acronym for Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminist, that is, a feminist who opposes the inclusion of transgender women in the ranks of the feminist movement. In effect they do not accept transgender women as women at all. They therefore wish to exclude transgender women from women’s spaces and they are opposed to legislation giving transgender rights.
ZG: 5
In this climate of establishing rights for minority groups TERF is gaining currency.
Read MoreMore correctly this is the sodium-ion battery contrasted with the lithium-ion battery. We all know we want better batteries and sodium may provide at least one answer.
ZG: 6
The currency of this item will increase if it does become the solution to the battery problem.
Read MoreThis is leather which is made from plastic or plant products, not from animal products. Vegan is not usually applied to leather made from PVC which ultimately comes from fossil fuels. This sort of leather is described as vinyl.
ZG: 7
Quite fashionable and environmentally sound.
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