WORDS YOU SHOULD KNOW IN 2020

stan - Definition: An extremely excessively enthusiastic and devoted fan (stalker-fan).

Did you know everything about Game of Thrones before everyone else? Do you have an obsession with Channing Tatum? Well, congratulations, you might just be a stan – a combination of the two words “stalker” and “fan”.

nomophobia - Definition: Fear or worry at the idea of being without your phone or unable to use it.

You know that nervy anxious feeling you get when you can’t find your phone? It turns out we’re all addicts, and there’s a name for it. We might be suffering from nomophobia.

Quick, find your phone and Google it!

peoplekind - Definition: A gender-neutral alternative to ‘mankind’.

Justin Trudeau famously encountered problems with his use of the word ‘peoplekind’. But we’re not ready to discard it yet. We expect this word to be added to the dictionaries in 2020!

cap - Definition: To lie

To “cap” is essentially to lie. This particular phrase can be used in situations of scepticism (“he’s capping”) or to convince someone of the legitimacy of your statement (“no cap”). As an added bonus, if you feel that your friend isn’t quite telling the truth, you can simply send them the baseball cap emoji and still get your message across

cancelled - Definition: To stop being of interest

While this word used to typically refer to things like trains or TV shows, these days anything can be cancelled. If a celebrity says something scandalous or turns out to be a problematic individual, they may be pronounced “cancelled”. Burger King accidentally puts meat in a veggie burger? They’re cancelled. Whether or not these people/things/institutions continue on after this unofficial cancelling is, mostly, irrelevant.

flex- Definition: To "flex" (as a verb) is to knowingly flaunt and show off. As a noun, a "flex" is the thing being shown off itself.

Situation One: "He drove himself to school in a new car the day after he got his license. He's trying to flex."

Situation Two: "Big flex, I just got a job promotion last night." 

they - Definition: Used to refer to a single person whose gender identity is not fixed.

Last year we included the word ‘gender-fluid’ on our list. Here’s another that reflects people’s changing attitudes to gender stereotypes.

The pronouns ‘they’ and ‘them’ are used for a person whose gender identity is non-binary and was added as a definition in September 2019.

buzzy - Definition: Something that generates excitement and gets people talking.

Whether it’s Peaky Blinders Season 5 or a new Japanese eggs benedict cafe – if you and your friends are talking about it, it’s definitely buzzy.

sober-curious - Definition: Experimenting with a period of not drinking alcohol.

There was a time when being sober had a stigma. We now welcome a generation who are less fixated on drinking. It’s not in the dictionary yet, but expect people to be more curious about going alcohol-free.

G.O.A.T.s - Definition: Acronym for Greatest of All Time

Tennis seems to have three GOATS at the top of their game at the moment.

clout - Definition: online influence

According to the Oxford Dictionary, one of the official definitions of this word is “power and influence over other people or events”. What it’s come to mean on social media isn’t worlds apart from that, primarily referring to influencers’ and YouTubers’ fame. Someone who is a “chasing clout” is therefore someone who is simply after more followers or looking for more opportunities that will get them clout.

anti-woke - Definition: those wary of wokeness

Cancel culture is cancelled. Internet outrage isn’t activism and social media doesn’t always beget social justice. 2020 will see society organize into two camps — those who stay woke and those wary of wokeness.

extra - Definition: to be OTT or overly dramatic

"She celebrated her birthday for an entire month. She's so extra." 

SOURCES:

1. https://www.ef.com/wwen/blog/language/10-english-slang-terms-you-need-to-know-in-2020/
2. https://writerswrite.co.za/19-new-words-to-add-to-your-vocabulary-in-2020/
3. https://oxfordhousebcn.com/en/15-new-english-words-you-need-for-2020/
4. https://medium.com/thoughtmatter/20-words-for-2020-9a8f4c8c39b5#
5. https://www.businessinsider.com/slang-words-terms-teens-current-2019-8?r=US&IR=T#extra-to-be-extra-is-to-be-unnecessarily-dramatic-and-over-the-top-1