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Top Ten Words for 2010 January 4, 2011

Posted by alwaysjan in Blogging, Food for Thought.
Tags: , , , , , , , ,
7 comments

I was at my favorite bookstore (and it wasn’t even raining!) when I saw a poster listing the Top 10 Words for 2010 – the first being “austerity.” Gee, who saw that coming? The Top 10 Words are (drumroll please):

1. austerity
2. pragmatic
3. moritorium
4. socialism
5. bigot
6. doppelganger
7. shellacking
8. ebullient
9. dissident
10 furtive

You can go to Merriam-Webster’s Top 10 Words for 2010 for definitions, uses, and lists from years past.

I was most pleased though that I knew all of the words on the list, not that I have much occasion to use these gems in casual conversation with children who still believe in the Tooth Fairy. I have to admit that until President Obama used “shellacking,” I’d never heard of that unless it was hobby-related. And “doppelganger?” How 2009 is that?

I love words and wordplay, so I had to go back and review words from previous years. Geez, there was a word from 2009 and I didn’t have a clue what it meant. It was like getting hit with a cold fish in the face. Just see if you can spot it, smarty pants. I’ll give you a hint – it’s not “furlough” cause I’ve already got five of those babies under my belt.

What I found way more fun though was Merriam-Webster’s Top 10 User Submitted Words beginning with “nonversation.” (The site is riddled with ads so hit Skip to Page on the top right. The Top 10 User Submitted Words are on the left hand side under the title “Nonversation.” You can hit Next to see all of these words.) “Talk about a nonversation!” is going to be one of my new buzz phrases. Though most are cyber-related, “gaslighting,” a word those who know a thing about Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) are on a first-name basis with, is on that list also. Finally!

I wouldn’t say that things are a changing as I write this, but look how much has changed since 2004!

Merriam-Webster’s #1 Word of the Year for 2004:

1. Blog (noun)

[short for Weblog] (1999) : a Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer