The Oxford Dictionaries recently declared that “vape” was its Word of the Year. If you’re unfamiliar with “vape,” it means “to inhale and exhale the vapor produced by an electronic cigarette or similar device.”
The Oxford Dictionaries’ Word of the Year is a word or expression that Oxford editors say has “attracted a great deal of interest during the year to date.” In 2013, the choice was “selfie.”
Now to me, “vape” is a rather “vapid” (“offering nothing that is stimulating or challenging”) choice. But it could have been worse. Here are the words that came close, but didn’t quite make it as Word of the Year:
- bae, n. Used as a term of endearment for one’s romantic partner.
- budtender, n. A person whose job is to serve customers in a cannabis dispensary or shop.
- contactless, adj. Relating to or involving technologies that allow a smart card, mobile phone, etc. to contact wirelessly to an electronic reader, typically in order to make a payment.
- indyref, n. An abbreviation of ‘independence referendum,’ in reference to the referendum on Scottish independence, held in September, in which voters were asked to answer yes or no to the question, “Should Scotland be an independent country?”
- normcore, n. A trend in which ordinary, unfashionable clothing is worn as a deliberate fashion statement.
- slacktivism, n. Informal actions performed via the Internet in support of a political or social cause but regarded as requiring little time or involvement, e.g. signing an online petition or joining a campaign group on a social media website; a blend of slacker and activism.
