Having a way with words

A way with words

Keeping up with the latest buzzwords

As a copywriter I write for a variety of different companies and industries, which requires a range of different skills. Sometimes I have to get to grips with very technical concepts and transform them into eye-catching sales material for customers. Other times, I need to become the voice of authority and draft educational yet conversational video scripts.

I also spend much of my time writing for real estate, producing content to support a property’s marketing campaign. Real estate copywriting is a unique skill in itself. It is too easy to simply fill each property description full of adjectives and jargon just to meet the word count. Rather, successful copywriting relies on understanding your potential customer, or in the case of real estate, potential buyer demographic. There’s a true art to creating compelling and impactful descriptions that work together with the photography.

Sharing my secrets

Despite what I said about not simply packing copy full of the latest buzzwords, I’m sure I’m not alone in having a spreadsheet of adjectives! I know it sounds very geeky, but it’s my go-to when I sit down to start a property description – my moment of creative inspiration before I start to put words on the page.
But what’s important is that it’s an evolving document. Every time I come across a new word or phrase I like, or think might be useful, I add it to my list. Because there are always times when even professional copywriters suffer from writer’s block.

Bringing the past into the present

So, when I came across an article about words that are now considered archaic, I had to take five minutes to scroll through and see how many I’d heard of and how many I might even still be using! And while I did have to laugh at some of the ridiculous words and meanings on there (Wonder-wench meaning Sweetheart was a particular favourite!), what I actually found was something far more interesting.

As I read through the list (and it’s a long list…500 words to be exact, thanks to Jerome London at ThoughtCatalog), I discovered it contained quite a few words that are still commonplace in today’s modern language. However, they have changed their meaning over time. They’ve effectively reinvented themselves.

Here’s a few that caught my attention.

  • Abroad – once meant out of doors, now means foreign countries.
  • Advertisement – used to be a notice to readers in a book, now broadened to a notice or announcement in a public medium.
  • Audition – was the power of hearing, now used to describe a sample performance.
  • Bedlam – originally an asylum but now more commonly means uproar and confusion.
  • Cadet – once was a younger son or daughter, but is now a trainee
  • Chicane – meant to deceive or hoodwink, but now means a sharp double bend that forms an obstacle on a road or track.
  • Receipt – this was a recipe and now means the action of receiving something
  • Recipe – used to be a medical prescription, but it now a set of instructions
  • Wife – saving the best for last…was a woman, especially an old or uneducated one. Do I really need to explain how this has changed?

New words for a new world

My curious mind then moved to thinking about how language changes and the speed at which new words quickly find a home in our vocabulary, be they abbreviations, colloquialisms or words that when you first hear them don’t even sound plausible.

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) officially updates the dictionary four times a year. It has a team of dedicated wordsmiths who constantly survey the English language landscape for new and changing words. Traditionally, the OED waits for 10 years of evidence before adding a word but there are exceptions. A few years ago, the dictionary honoured renowned author Roald Dahl on what would have been his 100th birthday, by including some classic “Dahl-isms, like “scrumdiddlyumptious” and “Oompa Loompa”!

For those of you wondering what scrumdiddlyumptious actually means…according to the official definition, my scrumdiddlyumptious afternoon snack is apparently “extremely scrumptious; excellent, splendid; delicious.” And what’s more, my spell check doesn’t even pick it up as a spelling mistake.

Who would have thought…

It wasn’t surprising to discover the list of new words for 2018 extends into the many thousands. After a coffee break spent browsing, I thought I’d share a few of my personal highlights.

Comical additions

I’m not sure any of these will find my way into client communications, but clearly, they’re popular with some people.

  • Anyone enjoy a spot of “bump and grind”?
  • I just had to “facepalm” when I saw what she was wearing.
  • My ice cream turned into a “gloopy” mess after I left it in the sun.
  • He was such a “slimeball”.

Bizarre words

Then there’s the words that sound like a mistake.

  • Commodify – used as a verb, to turn into or treat as a commodity.
  • Philosophisingly – an adverb that explains something philosophically.
  • Howzit – a greeting like hello or hi.

Foodie and fitness-inspired language

New cultural trends bring with them new words, and our fascination for food and fitness has certainly brought some interesting additions. Most are now in frequent conversational use but these are a few that I was surprised to see as dictionary entries.

  • CrossFit – a brand name that’s become a noun.
  • Dine-in – rather than just eat at home!
  • Dunkable – best carried out with a chocolate Hob Nob.
  • Hangry – a clever combination of hungry and angry.
  • Tomahawk chop – we can probably thank MasterChef for this.
  • Well-buttered – I wouldn’t have through this was a new word, but we all know how much chef’s love cooking with butter!

Technologically-driven

This category is probably where you would expect most new words to appear, and it doesn’t disappoint.

  • Hashtag – who doesn’t love one of these?
  • Ransomware – everyday vernacular for cyber specialists.
  • Uncheck – how many boxes have you “unchecked” on online forms?
  • Vox pop – originate from the Latin phrase vox populi, meaning “voice of the people”.

The rise of the “self”

Again, the use of “self” as a prefix definitely isn’t new, but so many of these words now have formal recognition. The likes of self-activating, self-boasting, self-financed, self-diagnosed, self-obsessed and self-sacrifice are remarkable purely for the fact that they weren’t already in the dictionary before 2018. In fact, around 100 “self” words were added last year.

And it wouldn’t be right if we didn’t give a special mention to the inclusion of selfy and selfing – absolutely no definitions needed.

A final thought

It doesn’t matter if you’re a linguist who is fascinated by the origins of words and still breaks out in a sweat at the thought of using anything other than the Queen’s English, or if you’re fully sold on the Millennials and Gen Z way of “text speak”, you’ll appreciate the fact that language and words are an essential part of our everyday being. Words come and go into fashion, just like music or diets do, and it ensures we’ll never be short of a topic for conversation.

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