By Elaine Viets
New words are multiplying faster than mosquitoes in a Michigan summer. I mean “official” new words. The ones enshrined in a dictionary.
New words are a sign that English is a living, active language. This year, the Merriam Webster Collegiate dictionary added some 5,000 new words and a thousand new phrases.
Some of us are already using these new words. Take “farm-to-table,” which Webster says means food that is “sourced locally and served directly to customers. Old news.
Here are a few other new words and phrases I’m pretty sure you already know:
“Cold brew” is coffee “made by steeping grounds in cold or room temperature water.” That phrase has been around for so long, Starbucks has about nine different cold brew flavors.
“Hard pass,” means not just no, but hell no. Excuse me, it’s a “firm rejection.”
Here’s one new word I’m not familiar with: “petrichor,” which is a “distinctive, earthy, usually pleasant odor that is associated with rainfall especially when following a warm, dry period . . .” I didn’t realize there was a word to describe that smell.
The Oxford English Dictionary has added another definition of the noun “goo”: “characteristic babbling noises or vocalizations made by babies and by people interacting with them.” The OED reminded us to check out “goo-goo,” which has a similar definition for baby noises.
“Para-athlete, a physically disabled athlete,” is another already familiar OED addition.
And every TKZ reader and writer knows about the dreaded phrase “plot hole.”
The OED likes to add foreign words familiar to many English speakers, including “pobrecita.” The OED says, “Among Hispanic Americans and in Spanish or Latin American contexts” it’s “a poor or unfortunate girl or woman, especially one who deserves pity or sympathy…”
“Perreo” is defined as “a type of dance originating and popular in Puerto Rico and usually performed to reggaeton music, typically characterized by a female dancer . . .” I’ll stop there. The rest of the entry is a bit spicy, especially for the venerable OED.
The most puzzling word of the year is Dictionary.com’s choice of “67” or “6-7.”
That word has been driving teachers crazy. When they tell their class to “turn to page 67,” or ask students to recite numbers one through ten, “six-seven” can cause pandemonium.
Avoiding ’67’ can be a mark of respect. TKZ reader Alan Portman said, “I was at a class last week. The instructor stopped saying 6 or 7 things and started saying 8. There were several middle school teachers in the room.”
What’s it mean?
Dictionary.com, which nominated “67,” isn’t sure.
“Perhaps the most defining feature of ‘67’ is that it’s impossible to define,” the site said. “It’s meaningless, ubiquitous, and nonsensical. In other words, it has all the hallmarks of brainrot. It’s the logical endpoint of being perpetually online, scrolling endlessly, consuming content fed to users by algorithms trained by other algorithms. And what are we left with in the wake of this relentless sensory overload? ‘67.’”
Don’t underate the power of “67.”
“ . . .it remains meaningful to the people who use it because of the connection it fosters. ‘67’ shows the speed at which a new word can rocket around the world as a rising generation enters the global conversation.”
Six-seven (never sixty-seven) belongs to Gen Alpha, mostly children born from 2010 to the present, though I doubt many babies care about 6-7.
SlangSphere.com gave an erudite explanation. It said, “Simply put, ‘67’ is a slang term that means ‘kill,’ or more broadly, to get rid of, drop, or even ‘leave’ something or someone. . . If someone tells you to ‘67 that plan,’ they mean scrap it.”
The article also has helpful hints on how to use 67:
“Do: Use it with close friends or in casual texting where informal slang is welcome.
“Do: Keep it light and playful—this is slang, not a serious threat.
“Don’t: Use it in professional or formal settings—your boss might get confused (or alarmed).
“Don’t: Use it toward strangers or in sensitive contexts—tone can get lost.
“Do: Use 67 when you want to sound casual and meme-savvy.
“Don’t: Panic if someone says ‘67’ to you. It’s slang, not actual harm.
“Do: Pair it with an emoji to soften the tone, like 😂 or 👋.
“Don’t: Use it to seriously insult someone.
“Do: Remember context is king—know who you’re talking to!
“So, next time you want to digitally ‘kill’ a dull plan or leave a chat dramatically, ‘67’ is your shorthand hero. It’s quirky, a little mysterious, and definitely meme-worthy.”
It’s mysterious, all right. So mysterious, I still can’t figure out if 67 means to kill something, or if it means nothing.
Is it a word with clearly defined rules of etiquette? Or is it a feeling?
67.
Preorder now: “Sex and Death on the Beach,” my new Florida mystery, will be published in paperback Dec. 16. https://tinyurl.com/mrc87fm7