List of 100 New English Words and Meanings
New English Word Meaning
A-game One’s highest level of performance
ambigue An ambiguous statement or expression.
Anglosphere English-speaking countries considered collectively (the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, and Ireland).
anti-suffragism Opposition to the extension of the right to vote in political elections to women; the political movement dedicated to this.
Aperol A proprietary name for an orange-coloured Italian aperitif flavoured with gentian, rhubarb, and a variety of herbs and roots.
April Fool’s April Fool’s Day (1 April), a day on which tricks or hoaxes are traditionally perpetrated
ar Used to express a range of emotions or responses, esp. affirmation, assent, or agreement.
arr In humorous representations of the speech of pirates expressing approval, triumph, warning, etc.
assault weapon A weapon designed for use in a large-scale military assault, esp. one used to attack a fortified or well-defended location.
athleisure Casual, comfortable clothing or footwear designed to be suitable for both exercise and everyday wear
Aucklander A native or inhabitant of city or region of Auckland, New Zealand.
awedde Overcome with anger, madness, or distress; insane, mentally disturbed.
awe-inspiringly So impressively, spectacularly, or formidably as to arouse or inspire awe.
awesomesauce Extremely good; excellent.
awfulize To class as awful or terrible
awfy Terrible, dreadful; remarkable or notable.
awfy As simple intensive; very, exceedingly, extremely.
bidie-in A person who lives with his or her partner in a non-marital relationship; a cohabiting partner.
bigsie Having an exaggerated sense of one’s own importance; arrogant, pretentious, conceited.
bok A South African
broigus Angry; irritated
bukateria A roadside restaurant or street stall with a seating area, selling cooked food at low prices.
by-catch A catch of unwanted fish
cab sav Red wine made from the Cabernet Sauvignon grape
cancel culture Call for the withdrawal of support from a public figure, usually in response to an accusation of a socially unacceptable action or comment.
chicken finger A narrow strip of chicken meat, esp. from the breast, coated in breadcrumbs or batter and deep-fried.
chicken noodle soup A soup made with chicken and noodles, sometimes popularly regarded as a remedy for all ailments or valued for its restorative properties
chickie Used as a term of endearment, especially for a child or woman
chipmunky Resembling or characteristic of a chipmunk, typically with reference to a person having prominent cheeks or a perky, mischievous character.
chuddies Short trousers, shorts. Now it usually means underwear; underpants.
contact tracing The practice of identifying and monitoring individuals who may have had contact with an infectious person
contactless Not involving contact (physical and technological meanings of contactless are being used much more frequently).
coulrophobia Extreme or irrational fear of clowns
Covid-19 An acute respiratory illness in humans caused by a coronavirus, which is capable of producing severe symptoms and death, esp. in the elderly
deepfake An image or recording that has been convincingly altered to misrepresent someone as doing or saying something that was not actually done or said
de-extinction The (proposed or imagined) revival of an extinct species, typically by cloning or selective breeding.
deleter A person who or thing which deletes something.
delicense To deprive (a person, business, vehicle, etc.) of a license providing official permission to operate
denialism The policy or stance of denying the existence or reality of something, esp. something which is supported by the majority of scientific evidence.
denialist A person who denies the existence or reality of something, esp. something which is supported by the majority of scientific or historical evidence
destigmatizing The action or process of removing the negative connotation or social stigma associated with something
dof Stupid, dim-witted; uninformed, clueless.
droning The action of using a military drone or a similar commercially available device
e-bike An electric bike
eco-anxiety A state of stress caused by concern for the earth’s environment
enoughness The quality or fact of being enough; sufficiency, adequacy.
Epidemic curve A visual representation in the form of a graph or chart depicting the onset and progression of an outbreak of disease in a particular population
e-waste Worthless or inferior electronic text or content
fantoosh Fancy, showy, flashy; stylish, sophisticated; fashionable, exotic. Often used disparagingly, implying ostentation or pretentiousness.
forehead thermometer A thermometer that is placed on, passed over, or pointed at the forehead to measure a person’s body temperature.
franger A condom.
hair doughnut A doughnut-shaped sponge or similar material used as the support for a doughnut bun or similar updo
hench Of a person having a powerful, muscular physique; fit, strong.
hir Used as a gender-neutral possessive adjective (his/her/hir watch). In later use often corresponding to the subjective pronoun ze (he/she/ze wears a watch).
hygge A Danish word for a quality of cosiness that comes from doing simple things such as lighting candles, baking, or spending time at home with your family
influencer Someone who affects or changes the way that other people behave:
jerkweed An obnoxious, detestable, or stupid person (esp. a male). Often as a contemptuous form of address.
kvell Meaning to talk admiringly, enthusiastically, or proudly about something
kvetchy Given to or characterized by complaining or criticizing; ill-tempered, irritable.
LOL To laugh out loud; to be amused.
macaron A confection consisting of two small, round (usually colourful) biscuits with a meringue-like consistency
MacGyver To construct, fix, or modify (something) in an improvised or inventive way, typically by making use of whatever items are at hand
mama put A street vendor, typically a woman, selling cooked food at low prices from a handcart or stall. Also a street stall or roadside restaurant.
mentionitis A tendency towards repeatedly or habitually mentioning something (esp. the name of a person one is infatuated with), regardless of its relevance to the topic of conversation
microtarget To direct tailored advertisements, political messages, etc., at (people) based on detailed information about them
misgendering The action or fact of mistaking or misstating a person’s gender, esp. of addressing or referring to a transgender person in terms that do not reflect…
next tomorrow The day after tomorrow.
oat milk A milky liquid prepared from oats, used as a drink and in cooking
onboarding The action or process of integrating a new employee into an organisation, team, etc
patient zero Is defined as a person identified as the first to become infected with an illness or disease in an outbreak
pronoid A person who is convinced of the goodwill of others towards himself or herself
puggle A young or baby echidna or platypus.
puggle A dog cross-bred from a pug and a beagle; such dogs considered collectively as a breed.
quilling The action or practice of bribing electors in order to gain their votes, especially by providing free alcohol
rat tamer Colloquial meaning for a psychologist or psychiatrist
report An employee accountable to a particular manager
sadfishing Colloquial the practice adopted by some people, especially on social media, of exaggerating claims about their emotional problems to generate sympathy
sandboxing The restriction of a piece of software or code to a specific environment in a computer system in which it can be run securely
schnitty Colloquial a schnitzel, especially a chicken schnitzel
Segway A proprietary name for a two-wheeled motorised personal vehicle
self-isolate To isolate oneself from others deliberately; to undertake self-imposed isolation for a period of time
shero A female hero; a heroine.
single-use Designed to be used once and then disposed of or destroyed
skunked Drunk, intoxicated. In later use also under the influence of marijuana
slow-walk To delay or prevent the progress of (something) by acting in a deliberately slow manner
social distancing The action of practice of maintaining a specified physical distance from other people, or of limiting access to and contact between people
stepmonster Colloquial (humorous) (sometimes derogatory) a stepmother
tag rugby A non-contact, simplified form of rugby in which the removal of a tag attached to the ball carrier constitutes a tackle
theonomous Ruled, governed by, or subject to the authority of God
thirstry Showing a strong desire for attention, approval, or publicity.
title bar A horizontal bar at the top of a program window, used to display information such as the name of the program in use, the file or web page that is active.
topophilia Love of, or emotional connection to, a particular place or physical environment
truthiness A seemingly truthful quality not supported by facts or evidence
UFO UnFinished Object: In knitting, sewing, quilting, etc.: an unfinished piece of work
unfathom To come to understand (something mysterious, puzzling, or complicated); to solve (a mystery, etc.)
weak sauce That lacks power, substance, or credibility; pathetic, worthless; stupid.
WFH An abbreviation for “working from home.”
WIP Work in progress
zoodle A spiralised strand of zucchini, sometimes used as a substitute for pasta
