Welcome to Word Buzz Wednesday, your weekly roundup of some of the most interesting words of the week. The latest: mad props to the Queen of Soul, a rosehip isn’t a rosehip isn’t a rosehip, a tweet-sized press conference.

props

“Regardless of whether ‘propers’ might be concealing something less than proper, the word has had a lasting impact on the lexicon, particularly when it got shortened to a single syllable: ‘props.’”

Ben Zimmer, “Aretha Franklin Finally Gets Credit for the Term She Popularized,” The Atlantic, August 27, 2018

In her 1967 hit, “Respect,” Aretha Franklin sings:

I’m about to give you all of my money / And all I’m askin’ in return, honey / Is to give me my propers when you get home.

According to The Atlantic, when New York Times “On Language” columnist William Safire asked the Queen of Soul about my propers, she said she “got it from the Detroit street,” that it “was common street slang in the 1960s,” and it meant “‘mutual respect’—what you know is right.” My propers gave way to the abbreviated props, which “exploded in popularity [in the 1990s] thanks to its widespread usage in hip-hop.” In 2007, props was added to the Oxford English Dictionary.

cwtch

“It is likely cwtch is a Welsh version of couch, which itself was a medieval adoption of the French ‘coucher’, derived from Latin ‘collocāre’ – ‘to lay in its place, lay aright, lodge’.”

Rob Penhallurick, “What the Welsh-English Word ‘cwtch’ Tells Us About Dialects Everywhere,” The Independent, August 17, 2018

Cwtch, which is Welsh-English, has been voted Wales’s favorite word and means “hug” or “cuddle,” says The Independent. Moreover, cwtch can “be a noun or a verb,” refer to “a small storage place used for food or odds and ends” or a hiding place, and mean “to squat down or crouch.”

rosehip neuron

“It’s compact, bushy, and responsible for telling other neurons to shush. Beyond that, nobody is entirely sure what a newly discovered variety of brain cell called a rosehip neuron does.”

Mike McCrae, “Scientists Have Found a New Type of Brain Cell And It Looks Like It’s Unique to Humans,” Science Alert, August 28, 2018

The newly discovered rosehip neuron, with its “rather compact” and “bushy” shape, is “reminiscent of a rose with its petals removed,” says Science Alert. However, the rosehip, which is the fruit of the rose plant, actually resembles a cherry tomato.

giardiniera

“In addition to pepperoni and sausage, giardiniera (JAR-DIN-AIR-UH) is a standard-issue, much-beloved topping, heaped under the cheese and into the sauce.”

Kate Knibbs, “The Best Pizza Topping That You’ve Probably Never Heard About,” The Ringer, August 28, 2018

Giardiniera, which seems to translate from Italian as “gardener,” is a relish popular in the Chicago area, says The Ringer. It’s “a blend of chopped vegetables (celery, peppers, carrots, cauliflower, and sometimes olives, although they are a controversial element) pickled in vinegar.” It’s also “marinated in a blend of oils, and frequently seasoned with sport peppers for added heat.”

pool spray

“‘Any thoughts on John McCain?’ a media representative asked at what’s known as a ‘pool spray.’ No thoughts, as it turned out.”

Erik Wemple, “President Trump really doesn’t want to talk about John McCain,” The Washington Post, August 27, 2018

A pool spray, where “pool” refers to a press or media pool, is a brief meeting with a small group of news reporters or photographers. A longer meeting with a larger group would be a press conference. Pool sprays, says NPR, “are to presidential communication what Twitter is to online prose.” The earliest citation we could find in a cursory search is from 2009 in The New York Times: “At the White House today, news photographers streamed into the Oval Office for what’s known as a ‘pool spray,’ a very brief photo opportunity.”

“Still Life,” Willem Kalf (c 1660)

After a short hiatus, Word Buzz Wednesday is back! Every week we bring you a roundup of some of the most interesting words of the week. The latest: combining work and pleasure, a disgusting scam, a useless pain.

bleisure

“Beyond the business and ‘bleisure’ travelers, the main reason visitors came to Boise were outdoor attractions – proximity to whitewater rafting key among them.”

Allison Maier, “It’s called ‘bleisure,’ and it’s a tourism mix that can be a boon for Boise,” Idaho Statesman, August 15, 2018

According to the Idaho Statesman, bleisure travelers are those “who make time for vacation activities” while traveling on business. The word is a blend of “business” and “leisure.”

vomit fraud

“It’s called ‘vomit fraud,’ a scam repeatedly denounced in social networks yet still taking place around the world.”

Catalina Ruiz Parra, “It’s called vomit fraud. And it could make your Uber trip really expensive,” Chicago Tribune, July 24, 2018

With vomit fraud, Chicago Tribune says, an Uber driver might claim a passenger has thrown up in their car — complete with fake photo as evidence — and attempt to charge said passenger a clean-up fee.

qurbani

“In some traditionally Islamic countries, families or groups of families may choose to purchase a sheep, goat or other livestock animal for what’s known as qurbani, an animal to be sacrificed, representing Ibrahim’s sacrifice of a ram in place of his son Ishmael.”

Steve Longo, “Eid al-Adha 2018: Everything you need to know,” The Daily Mail, August 21, 2018

The sacrificing of the qurbani traditionally occurs on Eid al-Adha, or the Festival of Sacrifice, an Islamic holy holiday celebrated by millions of Muslims around the world, says The Daily Mail.

dirty pain

“To take up the challenge of separating clean from dirty pain is a small but meaningful step in reducing suffering generally—most of all our own.”

Virginia Heffernan, “The Importance of Letting Go of So-Called ‘Dirty Pain,’” WIRED, July 26, 2018

Dirty pain, says CNN, refers to the pain associated with ruminating and worrying over an issue, rather than the issue itself. In other words, clean pain comes from a painful reality while dirty pain is from painful thoughts about that reality.

pronkstilleven

“These artists were masters of the Dutch still life paintings known as pronkstilleven.”

Jenni Avins, “17th-Century Dutch Painters Were the Original Instagram Influencers,” Quartzy, June 28, 2018

Pronkstilleven translates from Dutch as “showy still lives,” says Quartzy. The paintings aimed to visually convey “the social aspirations of their owners” and acted as “catalogues of what well-to-do families aspired to possess.”

Welcome to Word Buzz Wednesday, your go-to place for the most interesting words of the week. The latest: not just fake news, not a pretty shimmer, delightful and frightful weather.

deepfake

“Deepfakes are one of the newest forms of digital media manipulation, and one of the most obviously mischief-prone.”

Kevin Roose, “Here Come the Fake Videos, Too,” The New York Times, March 4, 2018

A deepfake is an “ultrarealistic fake video made with artificial intelligence software,” says The New York Times, such as a program called FakeApp, and may involve superimposing people’s faces onto other people’s bodies, resulting in “uncanny” hybrids.

bilabial trill

“Many of Vanuatu’s 130 languages appear to be Austronesian in origin—though some researchers say that particular aspects, including what’s known as a bilabial trill (a kind of ‘bwwww’ noise in the middle of some words), are distinctively Papuan—speaking to a kind of linguistic intermingling.”

Natasha Frost, “What Ancient DNA Can Tell Us About the Settlement of Vanuatu,” Atlas Obscura, March 5, 2018

Bilabial means pronounced with both lips, as with the letters b, p, m, and w, while a trill is a fluttering or tremulous sound.

shimming

“WalletHub, a personal finance website, says scammers have found a way to hack chip cards. It’s called ‘shimming.’”

“Chip Cards Can Be Vulnerable to Hackers,” NBC Miami, March 1, 2018

Shimming is done with shimmers, says NBC Miami, “devices hidden inside chip readers” which steal your data once you insert your debit card. Krebs on Security says the shimmer is so called because it acts a shim, or thin piece of material, “that sits between the chip on the card and the chip reader in the ATM or point-of-sale device — recording the data on the chip as it is read by the underlying machine.”

trolley sleeve

“Invest in a smart carry-on that can attach to your suitcase through what’s called a ‘trolley sleeve’ or a ‘pass-through pocket.’ Whatever you choose to call it, we call it genius.”

Brittany Nims, “10 Practical Carry-On Bags That Attach To Your Suitcase,” Huffington Post, March 2, 2018

The word trolley might come from verb sense of troll meaning to move or roam.

gluggaveður

“‘Window weather’ – weather that’s lovely to look at, but unpleasant to be outside in.”

Shaunacy Ferro, “9 Untranslatable Words for Comfort That Go Beyond Hygge,” Mental Floss, March 5, 2018

Gluggaveður is Icelandic in origin, says Mental Floss. Other great “beyond hygge” untranslatables include the Croatian fjaka, delighting in the feeling of doing nothing; the Danish morgenfrisk, a feeling of refreshment upon waking from a good night’s sleep; and the Japanese kanso, achieving clarity by eliminating clutter.

Welcome to Word Buzz Wednesday, your go-to place for the most interesting words of the week. The latest: the Scandinavians are it again; an incredible edible banana peel; and herebe The Last Jedi spoilers.

plogging

“Unlike the other Swedish lifestyle trend of lagom, which is all about being balanced, content, and centered, plogging sounds downright exhausting. But also pretty fulfilling.”

Andrea Romano, “This Swedish Fitness Trend Is Good for Both You and the Environment,” Travel+Leisure, January 29, 2018

Plogging refers to the act of running and “picking up litter as you go,” says Travel+Leisure. The term blends the Swedish plocka, to pick, and jogga, to jog.

Mongee banana

“Like all other fruit in the country, the Mongee banana isn’t cheap. A single piece of the fruit costs $5.75.”

Janissa Delzo, “Japanese People Are Eating Six-dollar Bananas with a Peel You Can Eat,” Newsweek, January 27, 2018

According to SoraNews24, mongee (pronounced “mon-gay”) is Okayama slang for “incredible.” Okayama Prefecture is the only place in Japan that grows this kind of banana.

microcuento

“He doesn’t know why microcuentos fell out of favor; perhaps because TV became more accessible.”

Molly Glentzer, “Exhibit explores comic-book curiosities known as microcuentos,” Houston Chronicle, January 24, 2018

Microceunto is a Spanish word that means “mini-comic,” and might also be translated as “flash fiction.” The pocket-sized books, says the Houston Chronicle, “are about 4-by-6-inches,” typically “92 pages,” and “were produced fast, and cheaply, in color-coded inks that varied by genre, including suspense stories, science-fiction yarns, romances and histories.”

hot wallet

“It kept customer assets in what’s known as a hot wallet, which is connected to external networks.”

Pavel Alpeyev and Yuji Nakamura, “How to Launder $500 Million in Digital Currency: QuickTake Q&A,” Bloomberg, January 29, 2018

Hot and cold wallets hold digital assets like Bitcoin or Litecoin. The basic difference is, says Medium, is that hot wallets are connected to the Internet while cold ones aren’t.

Holdo Maneuver

“According to him, despite your complaints, what’s known as the ‘Holdo Maneuver’ isn’t really a plot hole at all.”

Corey Plante, “‘The Last Jedi’ Director Rian Johnson Further Defends That Big ‘Plot Hole,’” Inverse, January 25, 2018

The Holdo Maneuver refers to a character in Star Wars: The Last Jedi  making “the jump to hyperspace inside of a another ship,” says Inverse, apparently a tactic never seen before in the Star Wars universe and assumed to be not possible.

[Image via SoraNews24]

Welcome to Word Buzz Wednesday, your go-to place for the most interesting words of the week. The latest: that storm was da bomb; more than just cozy; a shitty word of the year.

bomb cyclone

“At its peak, the storm resembled something like a hurricane: a ‘bomb cyclone’ spinning around a central eye.”

Brian Resnick, “Winter storm 2018: almost the entire East Coast is covered in snow,” Vox, January 5, 2018

A bomb cyclone, says Vox, is a kind of winter weather storm “defined by a very specific and very extreme drop in atmospheric pressure — 24 millibars in 24 hours,” which means it “will pack a powerful punch, with winds that could whip at hurricane-force strength.”

koselig

“I pointed out that Norwegians embrace the idea of koselig, or ‘coziness’—that making the conscious effort to light candles and fires, drink warm beverages and snuggle under blankets can be enjoyable and relaxing.”

Kari Leibowitz, “The Mindset that Keeps Norwegians Cheerful through one of Earth’s Coldest, Darkest Winters,” Quartzy, January 5, 2018

Koselig might be thought of as the Norwegian version of the Danish hygge. A Frog in the Fjord describes koselig as more than just “cozy.” Basically any thing or person can be koselig if it “makes you feel a sense of warmth very deep inside in a way that all things should be: simple and comforting.”

Banting

“In the 1860s, the LCHF diet became widely known as a Banting diet, after British undertaker William Banting, who wrote the first bestselling diet book based on his LCHF conversion experience.”

Gary Taubes, “Minimal carbs, lots of fat, incredible dieting results – but not enough science,” The Globe and Mail, December 22, 2017

A kind of precursor to the Atkins diet, Banting is “a method of reducing corpulence by avoiding fat, starch, and sugar in food, based on a pamphlet by William Banting published in 1864,” says the Oxford English Dictionary.

shitpost

“Shitpost is an example of how people used the internet, in a year that made clear just how powerfully the glut of online information can be weaponized against democracy.”

Corinne Purtill, “It’s official: ‘Shitpost’ is the word that best describes the internet in 2017,” Quartz, January 7, 2018

The American Dialect Society has named shitpost the Digital Word of the Year for 2017. It refers to the “posting of worthless or irrelevant online content intended to derail a conversation or to provoke others.”

hypocoristic

“Australian English is a jumble of abbreviations, diminutives, and what are called hypocoristics.”

Dan Nosowitz, “How Australian Nicknaming Conventions Turn an Afternoon Into an ‘Arvo’,” Atlas Obscura, January 4, 2018

A hypocoristic is a nickname, but, says Atlas Obscura, it doesn’t work like other nicknames. It doesn’t necessarily shorten a name or word but is often the same number of syllables and sometimes even longer. The word hypocoristic ultimately comes from the Greek hupokorizomai, “I speak in the language of children.”