INDEPTH: LANGUAGE
5,000 new words
CBC News Online | July 26, 2004
Canada has 5,000 new official words. They have been added to the recently released Second Edition of the Canadian Oxford dictionary. Here’s a random sampling of some of the terms:
cube farm: slang: an office where the work space is divided into cubicles.
goal suck: a player who lets teammates bring the puck down the ice then lingers by the net so as to score easily.
puck bunny: a young female hockey fan, especially one motivated more by a desire to meet the players than by an interest in hockey.
beer league: a sports minor league of the lowest rank, a league of recreational hockey, baseball players, etc.
quick-change artist: a person who is adept at changing quickly from one costume, policy, etc. to another.
culture jamming: the practice of criticizing and subverting advertising and consumerism in the mass media, by methods such as producing advertisements parodying those of global brands.
regime change: the replacement of one governing administration by another. euphemism, the removal of a hostile government by a foreign power, esp. by means of military force.
studmuffin: a man perceived as sexually attractive, typically one with well-developed muscles.
geek chic: a fashion style incorporating characteristics traditionally associated with computer geeks, e.g. heavy-rimmed glasses.
cougar: slang: an older woman pursuing or dating a younger man.
polyamorist: this is a derivative of polyamory, which is defined as: the custom or practice of engaging in multiple sexual relationships, with the full knowledge and consent of all partners concerned.
hurry: a curling term meaning "sweep."
barley sandwich: beer
kubie burger: (Cdn./Alta.) kubasa pressed into a patty and eaten on a bun, like a hamburger.
rappie pie: (Cdn.) a savoury Acadian dish of Nova Scotia and P.E.I. consisting of grated potatoes and meat.
Frankenfood: a genetically modified food.
loungecore: any of a variety of musical styles which combine elements of lounge music and hardcore.
kokum: (among Cree, Ojibwa, and some Métis peoples) a grandmother.
co-parent: (of a divorced couple or a gay man and a lesbian) share parenting duties for (a child).
commuter marriage: a marriage in which the spouses live at considerable distance from one another because of work obligations, and regularly travel to be together.
after-party: a party held after another event, esp. a concert or another party.
stagette: a pre-nuptial party for the bride and female friends.
shag: a combined stag and wedding shower, used in Thunder Bay.
lesbigay: lesbian, bisexual or gay.
eco-warrior: a person actively involved in preventing damage to the environment.
change agent: a person who initiates a movement toward social or corporate change in a group.
co-sleep: parents and babies sleeping in the parents' bed.
marriage: the legal or religious union of two people.
agenting: the practice of working as an agent, e.g. for an actor, athlete, etc.
Japanimation: anime
board shorts: long shorts of a kind originally worn by surfers.
job-hopping: moving frequently from one job to another.
synthespian: a computer-generated character who may appear to interact with human actors in a film, or as part of an animated film using only such characters.
thin client: Computing: a client terminal with minimal processing power and storage capacity, esp. one with no hard disk.
broccoflower: a hybrid vegetable, the result of a genetic cross between broccoli and cauliflower, resembling a green cauliflower that tastes like broccoli.
scuppernong: a variety of the muscadine grape native to the basin of the Scuppernong River in North Carolina.
magalogue: a promotional catalogue or sales brochure designed to resemble a high-quality magazine.
eurozone: the economic region formed by those member countries of the European Union that have adopted the euro prosumer.
prosumer: a person who buys electronic goods that are of a standard between those aimed at consumers and professionals. 2. a consumer who purchases component elements of products in order to build or administer his or her own goods and services.
novel food: a genetically modified or radically altered food, or a substance sold as a food that does not have a history of safe use as a food.
genetic discrimination: discrimination, esp. refusal to provide health benefits or denying employment to someone, based on the result of a genetic test that suggests that that person might have a genetic predisposition to a disease or disorder.
genetic pollution: the spread of altered genes from genetically engineered organisms to other, non-engineered organisms, esp. by cross-pollination.
gabba: a harsh, aggressive type of house music originating in Rotterdam, characterized by its extremely fast dance beat.
harmolodic: is a derivative of harmolodics, defined as: a form of free jazz in which musicians improvise simultaneously on a melodic line at various pitches.
Inuinnaqtun: an Inuit language spoken in the Coronation Gulf area of the Central Arctic.
teachable moment: a situation or event that serendipitously offers an opportunity to educate people about a topic.
Distinctly Canadian Words & Sayings
- Alberta clipper
- banquet burger
- Block Parent
- compassion club
- conditional sentence
- double-double
- “It’ll be a frosty Friday in July”
- May Two-Four
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