3.1.2 Neologisms

Every year, new words appear in the English language. Some may be transient slang, but most of them become permanent members of the English word-stock. Some new words may appear because of cultural and technological changes, as in the case of iPad and iPhone: technological advances usually trigger a cascade of new words. “Coinings, or neologisms, are words that have been recently created” (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 194). True neologisms are rare; usually new words are coined from old ones with the help of word-formation processes. Some true neologisms are bling (flashy jewellery worn, especially as an indication of wealth; expensive and ostentatious possessions), which is “hip-hop slang,” and googol coined by Milton Sirotta (the figure 1 followed by 100 zeros equals to 10¹⁰⁰) (p.194). Tebowing (kneeling on one knee in prayer in a public place or being photographed doing this) was coined after Tim Tebow, a NFL player, who “started praying, even if everyone else around [him] was doing something completely different” (Introducing ‘Tebowing,’ 2011). Some new words are coined from place names. Examples are “oughterby, which is defined as someone we do not want to invite to a party but feel we should, and nottage, a word for the things we find a use for right after we have thrown them away” (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 194). Metrosexual is a blending from metropolitan + -sexual, coined on the analogy of heterosexual. This neologism means ‘a usually urban heterosexual male given to enhancing his personal appearance by fastidious grooming, beauty treatments, and fashionable clothes’ (Merriam-Webster Online).

A professional group of linguists of the American Dialect Society (ADS) hold an annual competition “A Word of the Year” to showcase new words (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 192). The table shows some new words which were coined between 2001 and 2010. Not all the words made ‘A Word of the Year,’ but they are still in circulation. The American Dialect Society (ADS) listed the following words in its website: http://www.americandialect.org/

Year	Word/expression	Meaning
2011	occupy(v), (n)	referring to the Occupy protest movement
2010	app (n) hacktivism (n) -pad (n) Obamacare (n) Refudiate (v)	an application program for a computer or phone operating system. As in “there’s an app for that,” an advertising slogan for the iPhone. using computer hacking skills as a form of political or social activism combining form used by iPad and other tablet computers (ViewPad, WindPad, etc.). a pejorative term for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010. blend of refute and repudiate used by Sarah Palin on Twitter. It means ‘reject.’
2009	tweet (n) (v) charging station (n)	(noun) a short message sent via the Twitter.com service, and (verb) to send such a message a place where electric cars recharge their batteries
2008	bailout (n) (v) shovel-ready (adj)	the rescue (n) (to rescue-v.) by the government of companies on the brink of failure, including large players in the banking industry used to describe infrastructure projects that can be started quickly when funds become available
2007	subprime (adj) elderproof (v)	an adjective used to describe a risky or less than ideal loan, mortgage, or investment to make something safe for the elderly to use.
2006	to pluto/be plutoed (v) flog (n) lactard (n)	to demote or devalue someone or something, as happened to the former planet Pluto when the General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union decided Pluto no longer met its definition of a planet. a fake blog created by a corporation to promote a product or a television show a person who is lactose-intolerant
2005	truthiness (n)	what one wishes to be the truth regardless of the facts
2004	red state, blue state, purple state (comp. noun) phish (v) fetch (adj) krunked mash-up (n) meet-up (n) orange revolution ( n)	together, a representation of the American political map to acquire passwords or other private information (of an individual, an account, a web site, etc.) via a digital ruse cool or stylish, from the movie Mean Girls cool, crazy a blend of two songs or albums into a single cohesive musical work. a local special interest meeting organized through a national website. the recent Ukrainian political crisis.
2003	embed (v)	to place a journalist with troops or a political campaign
2002	google (v)	to search the Web using the search engine Google for information on a person or thing
2001	facial profiling (n)	using video “faceprints” to identify terrorists and criminals