According to Merriam-Webster, this year has been the year of -isms. Feminism, socialism, racism, terrorism -- American rhetoric in 2015 was filled with the suffix. Or so says our country's "most trustworthy dictionary," which just deemed "-ism" its word of the year.
"A suffix is the Word of the Year because a small group of words that share this three-letter ending triggered both high volume and significant year-over-year increase in lookups at Merriam-Webster.com," the dictionary professed this week. It specifically identified the four -isms above as popular search terms, along with fascism, communism and capitalism.
Advertisement
What might have prompted these searches?
Advertisement
While there are 2,733 English words ending in -ism entered in Merriam-Webster’s Unabridged dictionary, these seven -isms accounted for millions of lookups in 2015. Merriam-Webster says that searches for "socialism" in 2015 have increased by 169 percent since last year, while searches for "racism" have increased by 50 percent and searches for "communism" increased by 38 percent.
The dictionary also notes that searches for terms like "terrorism" and "fascism" spiked after the attacks in Paris, Colorado Springs, and San Bernardino this year.
"In November, some conservatives began using fascist to describe Trump’s proposals and style, and at the beginning of December, writers for Slate and The New York Times and a commentator on CNN all referred to Trump as a 'fascist,' sending many people to the dictionary."
Advertisement
Socialism and capitalism shared the No. 1 and 2 spots in Merriam-Webster's 2012 ranking of words, influenced by the popularity of the terms during Obama's reelection campaign. In 2008, the word was similarly relevant to the time period: it was bailout.
You can compare "-ism" to the words of the year chosen by Oxford and Dictionary.com, which are, respectively, the emoji known as "Face with Tears of Joy," or, 😂, and "identity."
Merriam-Webster bestowed honorable mention upon a few other terms -- marriage, hypocrite, respect, inspiration and ... minion. Yes, minion, referring to a small, yellow creature endemic to the world depicted in the 3D animated film "Minions," made the cut.
Past Words Of The Year
Also on HuffPost:
11 Untranslatable Words From Other Languages
Advertisement
Support HuffPost
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
At HuffPost, we believe that everyone needs high-quality journalism, but we understand that not everyone can afford to pay for expensive news subscriptions. That is why we are committed to providing deeply reported, carefully fact-checked news that is freely accessible to everyone.
Whether you come to HuffPost for updates on the 2024 presidential race, hard-hitting investigations into critical issues facing our country today, or trending stories that make you laugh, we appreciate you. The truth is, news costs money to produce, and we are proud that we have never put our stories behind an expensive paywall.
Would you join us to help keep our stories free for all? Your contribution of as little as $2 will go a long way.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you’ll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.