४ डिसेंबर, २०२३

The Oxford "Word of the Year" is one of those Gen Z slang words that is just an abbreviated version of a regular word.

It's "rizz" — short for "charisma."

Reported here in the NYT, which offers some detail on the procedure, because you want assurance that the selection is not rigged:

Usually, Oxford’s lexicographers assemble a shortlist of words or expressions that saw a statistically relevant surge, and then choose a winner. But... [l]ast year, Oxford let the public vote on three finalists. (“Goblin mode” came out on top, because 2022.) This year, the public was invited to cut the shortlist list in half by weighing in on four head-to-head thematic pairings. (Some 30,000 people voted, Oxford said.) Oxford’s team then made the final selection.

One pairing, “Swiftie” vs. “de-influencing,” related to celebrity culture. Others reflected personal characteristics (“rizz” vs. “beige flag,” a characteristic suggesting a partner is boring), the changing world (“prompt” vs. “heat dome”) and relationships (“parasocial” vs. “situationship”). 

Grathwohl guessed, correctly, that the contest would ultimately come down to “Swiftie” vs. “rizz.” Which it did, but only after “de-influencing” (the practice of discouraging people from buying particular products, or reducing their consumption more generally) made a strong run at knocking out “Swiftie.” 

If people are going to vote, looks matter. "Rizz" looks good. People just like the double "z" — jazz, snazzy, dizzy, dizzy mizz lizzy, buzz, fuzzy, fizz, jizz, zzzz.

If only Swifty could be Swizzy, she'd'a won.

"Swizzy" is a already slang word though, Urban Dictionary suggests (with 22 up votes against 2 downs):

Awkward, middle-age white guy for “elite”.
I’m too swizzy to be bothered by you peasants
by Swizzy Swag March 4, 2022

Maybe next year.

३६ टिप्पण्या:

Steven Wilson म्हणाले...

I've noticed that cringe has been moved from verb to noun recently. Things are not cringeworthy or cringe-making. They are simply cringe. Can we look forward to it becoming cringe sometime soon. Language marches on.

Jersey Fled म्हणाले...

Weak

Jeff Gee म्हणाले...

The correct spelling is "RZZZZ!" No 'i,' five 'z's, all caps, terminating always with an exclamation mark.

Jake म्हणाले...

And it’s a dumb abbreviation to boot.

narciso म्हणाले...

You maniacs you blew it all up

Whiskeybum म्हणाले...

“Goblin mode” is not a word; it’s an expression.

rhhardin म्हणाले...

Charisma or semen.

Bob Boyd म्हणाले...

Rizz charmed its way to number one.

Bob Boyd म्हणाले...

Charisma or semen.

One thing leads to another.

narciso म्हणाले...

When did we drift into the stupidest timeljne

Leland म्हणाले...

I care not for the word or how it looks.

Old and slow म्हणाले...

Pathetic.

Temujin म्हणाले...

You can trace the decline of Western Civilization by looking at the history of the 'word of the year' by Miriam-Webster and Oxford.

Rizz? Seriously?

Oxford transformed into The Oxford Urban Dictionary so quickly and quietly we barely noticed.

Prediction: 'Rizz' will last exactly 8-10 months in use and will be replaced by a new word that gets used by everyone on social media. Oxford will spend the next few years trying to keep up, to appear relevant.

The Vault Dweller म्हणाले...

If you have the rizz you will be straight bussin. The rizz is even more important than drip fr fr no cap.

tim maguire म्हणाले...

If Rizz is short for charisma, and has exactly the same meaning as charisma, then how is it a new word, as opposed to simply a new pronunciation?

I wrote them a scathing tweet earlier today, so you can be assured action will be taken!

Steven Wilson म्हणाले...

Dammit, meant to say can we look forward to cringe becoming ringe sometime soon, but autocorrect did its thing without me noticing. That's ringe isn't it?

cassandra lite म्हणाले...

It appears that in reality the Oxford word of the year is pledge.

Jaq म्हणाले...

Let's check again in 5 years if this "word" is still in use.

Quaestor म्हणाले...

I pizz on your rizz.

Scotty, beam me up... म्हणाले...

My children are Gen Z. I have never heard them once use the word “rizz”. Makes you wonder who does use it…

Kate म्हणाले...

I feel stupider for having contemplated this. @narciso 's comment made it all worthwhile, though.

Quaestor म्हणाले...

When did OED start publishing a "word of the year"? And can we have a graphic, say, a cartesian 2D space plotting x, the word of the year, against y as a function of charm, wit, and usefulness?

I think it would look something like this.

tcrosse म्हणाले...

Kids today. This sort of construction gives me a bad vibe.

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

My post is missing.

n.n म्हणाले...

They abort syllables and transform words in order to reduce their linguistic burden and empathize with their progressive dissonant perceptions.

William म्हणाले...

The election was rigged. I'm guessing that the people who voted were far more likely to be academics than Taylor Swift fana. If the election were held at a Taylor Swift concert, I'm pretty sure Swiftie would be the chosen word....Re deinfluencers. Dylan Mulvaney should be awarded recognition as the most influential de-influencer of all time. Bud Light should embrace the message. Hire Santos, Weiner, Jussie Smollett to be their spokespersons: "When I need a drink, I reach for a Bud Light". Couldn't possibly hurt, and it would give the aforementioned a much needed paycheck.

William म्हणाले...

The election was rigged. I'm guessing that the people who voted were far more likely to be academics than Taylor Swift fana. If the election were held at a Taylor Swift concert, I'm pretty sure Swiftie would be the chosen word....Re deinfluencers. Dylan Mulvaney should be awarded recognition as the most influential de-influencer of all time. Bud Light should embrace the message. Hire Santos, Weiner, Jussie Smollett to be their spokespersons: "When I need a drink, I reach for a Bud Light". Couldn't possibly hurt, and it would give the aforementioned a much needed paycheck.

Joe Smith म्हणाले...

'Charisma or semen.'

Does Bill Clinton have rizz jizz?

Apparently he does...

MB म्हणाले...

30,000 votes doesn't seem like that many for an online poll by a big-name entity.

Joe Smith म्हणाले...

'My post is missing.'

Among other things...

Narr म्हणाले...

The mizz lacks rizz.

I guess she'll have to settle for money and fame.

baghdadbob म्हणाले...

Weasels Ripped My Flesh

RZZZZZ

h/t F. Zappa

mikee म्हणाले...

"Oxford’s team then made the final selection."

This description lacks any proof of linkage between the public's votes and the final outcome.

Old and slow म्हणाले...

If I am not mistaken, I have seen this word used one time before in my life. It was used on this blog by Ride Space Mountain discussing Henry Kissinger. I found it very off-putting.

The Godfather म्हणाले...

So far, the Word of This Decade is "fuct".

Narr म्हणाले...

Good catch, baghdadbob.