Quirky words that pop out of our mouths.
English spoken here ain't English spoken around the corner from you.
Remember when ‘bro’ turned to ‘bruh,’ and ‘yeet’ vanished as fast as it arrived? I tend to be a word nerd. I collect and analyze them. Any teacher (or parent of a teen!) will tell you we are the first to notice when words gain currency. So I decided to jot these down before they were extinguished by the TikTok ether. Enjoy!
Image by: Oladimeji Odunsi on Unsplash
Who Says This?
Who came up with ‘weaponized’?
And who taught the kids ‘gaslighting’?
Were you asleep when the world got ‘woke’?
Can a day job be called moonlighting?
Why don’t ‘filter bubbles’ dissolve?
Did you say ‘Low key’ for subtle?
How did plain gossip become ‘tea’?
Is confutation a rebuttal?
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Who in their right mind uses ‘slay’?
Is ‘influencer’ a resume title?
When did a boycott become ‘cancel’?
And did anti-vaxxers go viral?
Explain ‘doxing’ without Googling it
Don’t ask - you may get ‘roasted’
And if you get the silent treatment
Guess what? You’re getting ‘ghosted.’
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And in case you’re worried about such ‘FOMO’
And you’ve lost your hair and humour*
Panic not - just scream ‘YOLO!’
When they say, ‘OK, Boomer!’
* Couldn’t resist the British spelling, you might notice :-)
Finally, a shameless plug. My first podcast, Wide Angle was out a few weeks ago. BI discuss bias, which is part of our toxic eco-system swirling with noxious fumes of intolerance and stereotyping. I had two amazing guests on this podcast. Please give it a listen and tell me what you think. Thank you!