That Word Chat
@thatwordchat.bsky.social
That Word Chat is an online chat show featuring people and things lexical, hosted by @editormark.bsky.social.
Website: thatwordchat.com
YouTube: bit.ly/ThatWordVideo
Website: thatwordchat.com
YouTube: bit.ly/ThatWordVideo
People in Gen Z definitely say ‘Gen Z.’ Older people still say ‘Gen Zed’ — especially if they learned it from Prince. - Murphy
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January 13, 2026 at 10:33 PM
People in Gen Z definitely say ‘Gen Z.’ Older people still say ‘Gen Zed’ — especially if they learned it from Prince. - Murphy
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UK to US: fiddly — a long-running nominee gaining traction in American English
US to UK: Z — especially in Gen Z
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US to UK: Z — especially in Gen Z
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January 13, 2026 at 10:32 PM
UK to US: fiddly — a long-running nominee gaining traction in American English
US to UK: Z — especially in Gen Z
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US to UK: Z — especially in Gen Z
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Every year, Murphy posts her Transatlantic Words of the Year on her blog Separated by a Common Language. #ThatWordChat
January 13, 2026 at 10:32 PM
Every year, Murphy posts her Transatlantic Words of the Year on her blog Separated by a Common Language. #ThatWordChat
She noted that rage bait was also the public’s favorite. It even sparked mild debate: is rage bait one word or two? “That alone could be seen as a bit of rage bait from Oxford.” - McPherson
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January 13, 2026 at 10:26 PM
She noted that rage bait was also the public’s favorite. It even sparked mild debate: is rage bait one word or two? “That alone could be seen as a bit of rage bait from Oxford.” - McPherson
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“It’s used as a distraction technique too, flooding the zone with outrage while more important things slide by.” - McPherson
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January 13, 2026 at 10:25 PM
“It’s used as a distraction technique too, flooding the zone with outrage while more important things slide by.” - McPherson
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“Rage bait” showed a threefold increase in use from the previous year. It has become shorthand for content designed to provoke.
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January 13, 2026 at 10:25 PM
“Rage bait” showed a threefold increase in use from the previous year. It has become shorthand for content designed to provoke.
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Fiona McPherson shared that Oxford’s Word of the Year for 2025 was “rage bait.” Oxford doesn't base its pick on dictionary lookups. It draws from a massive corpus (30+ billion words), tracking sharp increases in usage.
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January 13, 2026 at 10:24 PM
Fiona McPherson shared that Oxford’s Word of the Year for 2025 was “rage bait.” Oxford doesn't base its pick on dictionary lookups. It draws from a massive corpus (30+ billion words), tracking sharp increases in usage.
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The winner for Political Word of the Year: icy conditions, a coded phrase used to warn that ICE agents had been spotted in a neighborhood. The term reflects grassroots methods of signaling danger in immigrant communities.
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January 13, 2026 at 10:18 PM
The winner for Political Word of the Year: icy conditions, a coded phrase used to warn that ICE agents had been spotted in a neighborhood. The term reflects grassroots methods of signaling danger in immigrant communities.
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“Doge” also reappeared as a verb, especially in the context of Elon-related news. Even the Department of Government Efficiency, it seems, got Doge’d.
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January 13, 2026 at 10:18 PM
“Doge” also reappeared as a verb, especially in the context of Elon-related news. Even the Department of Government Efficiency, it seems, got Doge’d.
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Many nominations addressed issues of consent, control, and surveillance, said Wright. Some didn’t make the final cut due to tone or content, but the pattern was clear.
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January 13, 2026 at 10:17 PM
Many nominations addressed issues of consent, control, and surveillance, said Wright. Some didn’t make the final cut due to tone or content, but the pattern was clear.
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The American Dialect Society’s Political Word of the Year category delivered some sharp and inventive entries in 2025. A few standouts include “trolligarchy,” “geopolitical power throuple,” and “fashi.”
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January 13, 2026 at 10:17 PM
The American Dialect Society’s Political Word of the Year category delivered some sharp and inventive entries in 2025. A few standouts include “trolligarchy,” “geopolitical power throuple,” and “fashi.”
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It’s also one of the -isms that people look up often: feminism, socialism. "Fascism" has been sending people to the dictionary for over 80 years.
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January 13, 2026 at 10:12 PM
It’s also one of the -isms that people look up often: feminism, socialism. "Fascism" has been sending people to the dictionary for over 80 years.
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Was “fascism” on Merriam-Webster’s radar in 2025? Absolutely, said Solowski. Fascism is consistently high in lookups at Merriam-Webster, not just this year, but across many years.
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January 13, 2026 at 10:12 PM
Was “fascism” on Merriam-Webster’s radar in 2025? Absolutely, said Solowski. Fascism is consistently high in lookups at Merriam-Webster, not just this year, but across many years.
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He researched dictionary definitions and saw alignment between what’s defined and what’s happening around us. “It kind of fits the bill.”
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January 13, 2026 at 10:08 PM
He researched dictionary definitions and saw alignment between what’s defined and what’s happening around us. “It kind of fits the bill.”
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As an independent operator, Kelly said he could make the call others might not. And through an etymological lens, “fascism” carries deep resonance.
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January 13, 2026 at 10:08 PM
As an independent operator, Kelly said he could make the call others might not. And through an etymological lens, “fascism” carries deep resonance.
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“People don’t always look to the Word of the Year for linguistic data. They want a statement about what it felt like to live through the year.” - Kelly
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January 13, 2026 at 10:07 PM
“People don’t always look to the Word of the Year for linguistic data. They want a statement about what it felt like to live through the year.” - Kelly
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“When you choose a word like fascism as Word of the Year, you’re going to get bristling... you’re going to get CEOs asking: Are we alienating people?” - Kelly
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January 13, 2026 at 10:07 PM
“When you choose a word like fascism as Word of the Year, you’re going to get bristling... you’re going to get CEOs asking: Are we alienating people?” - Kelly
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“Fascism” has been a high-traffic dictionary lookup for about a decade. It spiked again in 2025, so Kelly saw a moment worth naming.
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January 13, 2026 at 10:06 PM
“Fascism” has been a high-traffic dictionary lookup for about a decade. It spiked again in 2025, so Kelly saw a moment worth naming.
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John Kelly, author of the Mashed Radish blog, chose fascism as his Etymology of the Year: a word that’s top of mind, emotionally loaded, and top of lookup data.
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January 13, 2026 at 10:06 PM
John Kelly, author of the Mashed Radish blog, chose fascism as his Etymology of the Year: a word that’s top of mind, emotionally loaded, and top of lookup data.
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ADS is already collecting nominations for 2026!
Anyone can submit a word — the form is open year-round.
Aiming to break 1,000 next year.
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Anyone can submit a word — the form is open year-round.
Aiming to break 1,000 next year.
#ThatWordChat
January 13, 2026 at 10:00 PM
ADS is already collecting nominations for 2026!
Anyone can submit a word — the form is open year-round.
Aiming to break 1,000 next year.
#ThatWordChat
Anyone can submit a word — the form is open year-round.
Aiming to break 1,000 next year.
#ThatWordChat
January 13, 2026 at 10:00 PM
At the ADS, most nominated words are submitted only once, but even those one-offs are informative and fun. There’s a long tail, and “slop” rode a meaningful wave.
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January 13, 2026 at 9:59 PM
At the ADS, most nominated words are submitted only once, but even those one-offs are informative and fun. There’s a long tail, and “slop” rode a meaningful wave.
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Zimmer compared it to the term “enshittification,” another word born of public frustration with digital overload. Sloppification!
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January 13, 2026 at 9:55 PM
Zimmer compared it to the term “enshittification,” another word born of public frustration with digital overload. Sloppification!
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“Really anything can sort of fill the blank... blank slop.” A flexible label for content that feels mass-produced, low-value, and hard to avoid.
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January 13, 2026 at 9:54 PM
“Really anything can sort of fill the blank... blank slop.” A flexible label for content that feels mass-produced, low-value, and hard to avoid.
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ADS gathered public nominations via Google Form, and “slop” came in strong. It also caught linguists’ attention because it was productive. It started combining with other words: work slop, friend slop, and more.
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January 13, 2026 at 9:53 PM
ADS gathered public nominations via Google Form, and “slop” came in strong. It also caught linguists’ attention because it was productive. It started combining with other words: work slop, friend slop, and more.
#ThatWordChat
#ThatWordChat