Linguistic Lair

The American Dialect Society Has named it's Words of the Year. Some favorites:

Word of the Year:
red state, blue state, purple state: together, a representation of the American political map.

Most Useful: phish: to acquire passwords or other private information (of an individual, an account, a web site, etc.) via a digital ruse.

Most Creative: pajamahadeen: bloggers who challenge and fact-check traditional media.

Other favorites nominated:

Other nominees for word of the year were:

flip-flopper, a politician who changes political stances;

meet-up, a local special interest meeting organized though a national Web site;

mash-up, a blend of two songs or albums into a single cohesive musical work; and

wardrobe malfunction, an unanticipated exposure of bodily parts.

Some other that didn't make the short list:

"lawn mullet," which describes a lawn that is neatly mowed in the front but unmowed in the back. (they obviously have driven by my house in the Summer)

"Hillbilly armor," describing U.S. troops scavenging for material to protect their vehicles, and "nerdvana", a term for collaborative geekiness, also were nominated in that category, but lost to pajamahadeen: bloggers who challenge and fact-check traditional media.

Just some Monday morning humor.

Flash