MiddleFinger
01-22-2006, 08:54 AM
Word of the Year
WINNER truthiness: the quality of stating concepts or facts one wishes or believes to be
true, rather than concepts or facts known to be true. First vote: 32. Run-off: 66
Katrina: all Katrina-related words. First vote: 36. Run-off: 22
podcast: a digital feed containing audio or video files for downloading to a portable MP3
player. From the brand name MP3 player iPod + broadcast. 2
intelligent design: the theory that life is could only have been created by a sentient being. Often acronymized and pronounced as ID, the theory is being pushed by
proponents of creation science as a necessary part of school curricula alongside
explanations of evolution.
refugee: a person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war,
persecution, or natural disaster. 2
Cruiselex: Cruiselex is not itself a nominated word, but the term refers collectively to all
the other Tom-Cruise-related words of the year in the special category below. 0
Heck of a job: catch phrase coined by President Bush. 5
brown-out: the poor handling of an emergency. 1
disaster industrial complex: the array of businesses which make profit from by
providing emergency services, especially those that result from no-bid government
contracts.
Most Useful
WINNER podcast: a digital feed containing audio or video files for downloading to a
portable MP3 player. From the brand name MP3 player iPod + broadcast. 49
lifehack: to make one’s day-to-day behaviors or activities more efficient. Also as a noun.
Lifehacks apply the make-do, can-do, what-will-it-do attitude that originated in computer
hacking. 4
truthiness: the quality of stating concepts or facts one wishes or believes to be true, rather
than concepts or facts known to be true. Stephen Colbert: “I don't trust books.
They're all fact, no heart.” 25
patent troll: a person or business, especially a lawyer, who applies for or owns a patent with no
intention of developing the product but with every intention of launching lawsuits against
patent infringers.
Most Creative
WINNER whale tail: the appearance of thong or g-string underwear above the waistband
of pants, shorts, or a skirt. Also known as a longhorn. First vote: 44. Run-off: 56
pinosaur: a very old Wollemi pine tree near Australia’s Blue Mountain. 6
muffin top: the bulge of flesh hanging over the top of low-rider jeans. 25
flee-ancée: runaway bride Jennifer Wilbanks. First vote: 15. Run-off: 38
Most Unnecessary
WINNER K Fed: Kevin Federline, Mr. Britney Spears. 48
man date: when two heterosexual men engage in an activity together without romantic
implications. 10
pope-squatting: registering a domain name that is the same of a new pope before the
pope chooses his new name in order to profit from it. 2
reverse logistics: a process by which you de-supply a warehouse or distribute stored
merchandise. 34
Most Outrageous
WINNER crotchfruit: a child; children. Perhaps inspired by the expression the fruit of
one’s loins, this term began among proponents of child-free public spaces, but has
since spread to parents who use it jocularly. 56
Whizzinator: a trademarked urinating device using a realistic prosthetic penis and
synthetic urine in order to pass a drug test. 10
Bumper Nutz: fake testicles hung from the rear end of a vehicle. 8
Ex-Lax option: nuclear option; immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq. 0
intelligent design n. the theory that life is could only have been created by a sentient
being. Often acronymized and pronounced as ID, the theory is being pushed by
proponents of creation science as a necessary part of school curricula alongside
explanations of evolution. 22
Most Euphemistic
WINNER internal nutrition: force-feeding a prisoner against his or her will. First vote:
33. Run-off: 51
holistic practitioner: a prostitute. First vote: 23. Run-off: 36
VBIED: a car bomb. An acronym for Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device.
Sometimes pronounced vee-bid or vee-bidder. 12
holiday tree: a Christmas tree. 6
extraordinary rendition: the surrendering of a suspect or detainee to another jurisdiction,
especially overseas. 12
man date: when two heterosexual men engage in an activity together without romantic
implications. 0
Best Tom-Cruise-Related Word: Cruiselex
WINNER jump the couch: to exhibit strange or frenetic behavior. Inspired by the couchbouncing
antics of Tom Cruise on Oprah Winfrey’s talk show in May. It derives
from an earlier term, jump the shark, meaning to (irretrievably) diminish in
quality; to outlast public interest or popular support. 69
TomKat: the celebrity couple of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. 1
Cruisazy: crazy in the manner of Tom Cruise. 5
Most likely to Succeed
WINNER sudoku: a number puzzle in which numbers 1 through 9 must be placed into a
grid of cells so that each row or column contains only one of each. The current
craze started in Japan, caught on in the U.K. in 2004, and then exploded in the
U.S. in 2005. 23, 43
podcast: a digital feed containing audio or video files for downloading to a portable
MP3player. From the brand name MP3 player iPod + broadcast. 31, 33
Cyber Monday: the Monday after Thanksgiving, purported to be the day that most online
shopping takes place. 10
folksonomy: a taxonomy created by an ad hoc group of non-experts. From folk +
ta(x)onomy. 11
Least Likely to Succeed
WINNER pope-squatting: registering a domain name that is the same of a new pope
before the pope chooses his new name in order to profit from it. 55
metrospiritual: an unspecific, cosmopolitan, and expansive view of spirituality. Inspired
by metrosexual. 9
Cruiselex: Cruiselex is not itself a nominated word, but the term refers collectively to all
the other Tom-Cruise-related words of the year in the category above. 9
Brangelina: the celebrity couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. 6
GSAVE: Global Struggle Against Violent Extremism.
WINNER truthiness: the quality of stating concepts or facts one wishes or believes to be
true, rather than concepts or facts known to be true. First vote: 32. Run-off: 66
Katrina: all Katrina-related words. First vote: 36. Run-off: 22
podcast: a digital feed containing audio or video files for downloading to a portable MP3
player. From the brand name MP3 player iPod + broadcast. 2
intelligent design: the theory that life is could only have been created by a sentient being. Often acronymized and pronounced as ID, the theory is being pushed by
proponents of creation science as a necessary part of school curricula alongside
explanations of evolution.
refugee: a person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war,
persecution, or natural disaster. 2
Cruiselex: Cruiselex is not itself a nominated word, but the term refers collectively to all
the other Tom-Cruise-related words of the year in the special category below. 0
Heck of a job: catch phrase coined by President Bush. 5
brown-out: the poor handling of an emergency. 1
disaster industrial complex: the array of businesses which make profit from by
providing emergency services, especially those that result from no-bid government
contracts.
Most Useful
WINNER podcast: a digital feed containing audio or video files for downloading to a
portable MP3 player. From the brand name MP3 player iPod + broadcast. 49
lifehack: to make one’s day-to-day behaviors or activities more efficient. Also as a noun.
Lifehacks apply the make-do, can-do, what-will-it-do attitude that originated in computer
hacking. 4
truthiness: the quality of stating concepts or facts one wishes or believes to be true, rather
than concepts or facts known to be true. Stephen Colbert: “I don't trust books.
They're all fact, no heart.” 25
patent troll: a person or business, especially a lawyer, who applies for or owns a patent with no
intention of developing the product but with every intention of launching lawsuits against
patent infringers.
Most Creative
WINNER whale tail: the appearance of thong or g-string underwear above the waistband
of pants, shorts, or a skirt. Also known as a longhorn. First vote: 44. Run-off: 56
pinosaur: a very old Wollemi pine tree near Australia’s Blue Mountain. 6
muffin top: the bulge of flesh hanging over the top of low-rider jeans. 25
flee-ancée: runaway bride Jennifer Wilbanks. First vote: 15. Run-off: 38
Most Unnecessary
WINNER K Fed: Kevin Federline, Mr. Britney Spears. 48
man date: when two heterosexual men engage in an activity together without romantic
implications. 10
pope-squatting: registering a domain name that is the same of a new pope before the
pope chooses his new name in order to profit from it. 2
reverse logistics: a process by which you de-supply a warehouse or distribute stored
merchandise. 34
Most Outrageous
WINNER crotchfruit: a child; children. Perhaps inspired by the expression the fruit of
one’s loins, this term began among proponents of child-free public spaces, but has
since spread to parents who use it jocularly. 56
Whizzinator: a trademarked urinating device using a realistic prosthetic penis and
synthetic urine in order to pass a drug test. 10
Bumper Nutz: fake testicles hung from the rear end of a vehicle. 8
Ex-Lax option: nuclear option; immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq. 0
intelligent design n. the theory that life is could only have been created by a sentient
being. Often acronymized and pronounced as ID, the theory is being pushed by
proponents of creation science as a necessary part of school curricula alongside
explanations of evolution. 22
Most Euphemistic
WINNER internal nutrition: force-feeding a prisoner against his or her will. First vote:
33. Run-off: 51
holistic practitioner: a prostitute. First vote: 23. Run-off: 36
VBIED: a car bomb. An acronym for Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device.
Sometimes pronounced vee-bid or vee-bidder. 12
holiday tree: a Christmas tree. 6
extraordinary rendition: the surrendering of a suspect or detainee to another jurisdiction,
especially overseas. 12
man date: when two heterosexual men engage in an activity together without romantic
implications. 0
Best Tom-Cruise-Related Word: Cruiselex
WINNER jump the couch: to exhibit strange or frenetic behavior. Inspired by the couchbouncing
antics of Tom Cruise on Oprah Winfrey’s talk show in May. It derives
from an earlier term, jump the shark, meaning to (irretrievably) diminish in
quality; to outlast public interest or popular support. 69
TomKat: the celebrity couple of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. 1
Cruisazy: crazy in the manner of Tom Cruise. 5
Most likely to Succeed
WINNER sudoku: a number puzzle in which numbers 1 through 9 must be placed into a
grid of cells so that each row or column contains only one of each. The current
craze started in Japan, caught on in the U.K. in 2004, and then exploded in the
U.S. in 2005. 23, 43
podcast: a digital feed containing audio or video files for downloading to a portable
MP3player. From the brand name MP3 player iPod + broadcast. 31, 33
Cyber Monday: the Monday after Thanksgiving, purported to be the day that most online
shopping takes place. 10
folksonomy: a taxonomy created by an ad hoc group of non-experts. From folk +
ta(x)onomy. 11
Least Likely to Succeed
WINNER pope-squatting: registering a domain name that is the same of a new pope
before the pope chooses his new name in order to profit from it. 55
metrospiritual: an unspecific, cosmopolitan, and expansive view of spirituality. Inspired
by metrosexual. 9
Cruiselex: Cruiselex is not itself a nominated word, but the term refers collectively to all
the other Tom-Cruise-related words of the year in the category above. 9
Brangelina: the celebrity couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. 6
GSAVE: Global Struggle Against Violent Extremism.