New Words in English - 2 

Here are more words and expressions that have been coined in recent years. Some can be found in official dictionaries; others may never make their way there, but new words will continue to appear as the English language adapts to innovations and trends.

• copyleft
  • Opposite of copyright.
    Whereas copyright imposes restrictions on the distribution of a work or publication, copyleft eliminates restrictions and allows freedom of use for all.
    
    
• coronacut
  • Cutting your hair yourself when hairdressers and barbers are closed due to Coronavirus restrictions.
    
    
• coronials
  • Babies conceived or born during the Coronavirus pandemic.
    
    
• cosmeceutical
  • A pharmaceutical product with beneficial effects on the skin e.g. anti-ageing creams containing a product that changes the cell biology.
    
    
• cot potato
  • Very young child who spends a lot of time watching television.
    (cot = a baby's bed)
    
    
• couch commerce
  • Buying goods online from one's home.
    
    
• couch potato
  • A person who spends a lot of time sitting in front of the television.
    
    
• covidiot
  • Someone ignoring public health advice such as lockdown rules during the Coronavirus pandemic.
    
    
• cronut
  • A ring-shaped pastry that is a cross between a croissant and a doughnut.
    
    
• crowdfunding
  • Raising money for a project by getting a large number of people to make a small financial contribution, particularly by using a website.
    
    
• cyberbully
  • A person who uses the Internet, electronic communication or social networks to harm, harass or intimidate another person.
    
    
• cyber cafe
  • A place which provides internet access to the public.
    
    
• cyberchondriac
  • A person who imagines that he/she is suffering from an illness after reading about the symptoms on the Internet.
    
    
• cyberloafing/cyberslacking
  • Using one's employer's Internet and email facilities for personal purposes during working hours.
    
    
• daycation
  • A trip or short vacation which lasts only one day. Daycationers do not stay away overnight.
    
    
• decruitment
  • Euphemism for laying-off staff or downsizing a company.
    
    
• demitarian
  • A person who reduces by half their consumption of meat and animal products in order to reduce the environmental impact of their diet.
    
    
• dench
  • Extremely attractive, fashionable, impressive, etc
    
    
• docusoap
  • Blend of 'documentary' and 'soap'.(soap opera: sentimental TV serial)
    A 'docusoap' is a reality television programme in the style of a documentary.
    
    
• dramedy
  • Combination of 'drama' and 'comedy'.
    A film, play or TV programme that mixes drama and comedy.
    
    
• droolworthy
  • Something so attractive or exciting that it makes you want to have it e.g. a droolworthy dress, a droolworthy cake...
    
    
• drug driving
  • Driving a vehicle while under the influence of drugs.
    
    
• duffin
  • A cake which is a combination of a muffin and a doughnut.
    
    
• dwell time
  • The length of time spent on a website.
    
    


• earworm
  • A tune that keeps repeating itself over and over again in our heads.
    
    
• e-cruitment
  • Online recruitment of employees, including online submission of resumes and cover letters.
    
    
• e-lancer
  • A professional person who works from home and sells their services on the internet.
    
    
• elbow bump
  • Greeting someone by touching elbows, a way of avoiding hand-touching.
    
    
• emoji
  • Small icon  or digital image used to express an idea or emotion in emails, text messages and webpages.
    
    
• emoticon
  • A blend of 'emotion' and 'icon'.
    A symbol, used in email and text messages, which is made out of punctuation marks and resembles a human face. It is used to convey the emotional attitude of the writer.
    
    
• e-piracy
  • Electronic piracy.
    Illegal downloading of material found on the internet (films, music, etc.)
    
    
• e-quaintance
  • A person you know only through online networks.
    
    
• e-stalk
  • To stalk (follow) someone using Internet searches and email.
    
    
• essential workers
  • People allowed to continue working in their usual workplace despite restrictions, for example medical staff, emergency personnel, postal services, grocery store workers, delivery drivers, etc.
    
    
• EV
  • Electric vehicle.
    A vehicle which runs entirely on electricity stored in rechargeable batteries.
    
    
• e-waste
  • Electronic material and devices that have been thrown away.
    
    
• face time
  • Application which enables people to make video phone calls. They can speak and see each other at the same time.
    
    
• fandom
  • Blend of’ fan’ and the suffix ‘-dom’, (as in 'kingdom').
    The fans of a particular person, team, etc. regarded collectively as a community.
    
    
• fashionista
  • A person who dresses according to the latest fashion trends.
    
    
• favicon
  • Favourite icon.
    A tiny little graphic that appears when you bookmark a site.
    
    
• finlit / fin lit
  • Financial literacy.
    Knowledge and understanding of financial language and issues related to finance.
    
    


• flame war
  • A period during which angry or rude email messages are exchanged.
    
    
• flash mob
  • A crowd that gathers in a pre-determined place, performs an action then disperses very quickly. The mob is not told exactly what to do until just before the event.
    
    
• flexitarian
  • A vegetarian who sometimes eats meat or fish.
    
    
• flotus
  • First Lady Of The United States.
    
    
• freemale
  • A woman who is happy to stay single and independent so that she can do what she wants when she wants.
    
    
• flightmare
  • Blend of 'flight' and 'nightmare'.
    Unpleasant air travel experience (lost luggage, missed connections, etc.)
    
    
• flog
  • A fake blog.
    A blog (online journal) which appears to have been written by an independent person but has in fact been created by a company or business in order to advertise a product or service.
    
    
• floordrobe
  • Blend of 'floor' and 'wardrobe'.
    An untidy pile of clothes that have been dropped on the floor of a room. Teenagers tend to develop floordrobes.
    
    
• foodoir
  • A blend of 'food' and 'memoir'.
    An account of someone's life or personal experiences, with a strong emphasis on food, often including recipes and cookery advice.
    
    
• fracking
  • A method of extracting oil or natural gas from rock formations deep below the earth's surface, by drilling and creating cracks.
    
    
• frape
  • Blend of ‘Facebook’ and ‘rape’.
    Making changes to someone’s Facebook pages without their knowledge or permission.
    
    
• frenemy
  • An enemy who pretends to be your friend.
    
    
• frostjack / frostjacking
  • A blend of the words 'frost' and 'hijack'.
    Stealing a car on a cold day when the owner leaves the engine running to defrost the windows.
    
    
• funemployed / funemployment
  • A blend of 'fun' and 'unemployed' or 'unemployment'' meaning enjoyable unemployment.
    Someone who enjoys not having a job because they receive unemployment benefits from the state and have time for leisure and fun activities.
    
    
• funkinetics
  • A form of energetic step aerobics that mixes exercise and soul music.