Merriam-Webster's 200 New Words Include "Nepo Baby," and "Touch Grass"

Merriam-Webster just added 200 new words and terms including some you know, and a few you might not. Here are the highlights.

 

 

1.  Touch grass. To participate in normal activities in the real world.

 

 

2.  Nepo baby. A person who gains opportunities through family connections. (Dakota Johnson, Gwyneth Paltrow)

 

 

3.  Beach read. A usually light work of escapist fiction.

 

 

4.   IDGAF. Short for "I don't give [an eff]."

 

 

5.  Badassery. The state or condition of being a badass.

 

 

6.  True crime. A nonfiction genre of literature, film, podcasts, and shows.

 

 

7.  Creepy-crawly. A slang term for bugs.

 

 

8.  MAGA. You've been under a rock for eight years if you don't know that one.

 

 

9.  Street corn. Grilled corn on the cob that's coated with a creamy spread.

 

 

10.  Snog. British slang for making out.

 

 

11.  Jam band. A band whose performances are distinguished by frequent and often lengthy jazzlike improvisation.

 

 

12.  Dungeon crawler. A video game that's primarily focused on defeating enemies in a dungeon-like environment.

 

 

13.  Ultra-processed. Food made primarily with highly-processed ingredients.

 

 

14.  Shadow ban. Hiding someone's content from other people, usually without the user's knowledge.

 

 

15.  FYP, or "For You Page". A social media feed with personalized content based on your interests. 

 

 

(Merriam-Webster)

 

 

(200 new terms is actually a pretty small batch. They added 690 last year, including rizz, mid, jorts, 'grammable, quiet quit, rage quit, and girlboss.)