Misnomer And Other Trending Words On Dictionary.com

misnomer

Misnomer was up 875% in searches this week . . . thank you (again), President Trump! The president used the word incorrectly in an interview about Steve Bannon’s quotes in the book Fire and Fury.

Trump stated, “He called me a great man last night. He obviously changed his tune pretty quick…. I don’t talk to him. I don’t talk to him. That’s just a misnomer.”

The correct words President Trump could have used here: lie, falsehood, fabrication, inaccuracy . . .

(Read on to the end of this list to see some other big word blunders made by our Chief this week.)

desist

Well, while we are talking about Steve Bannon and Fire and Fury, desist was up in searches by 293% this week.

Trump’s lawyers sent Bannon a cease-and-desist letter for his quotes that were featured in the book. Dra-ma.

whole number

The term whole number was up in searches by 194% this week, and this one is due to the weather, specifically that bomb cyclone hitting the east coast, hard.

Apparently, when calculating snow-depth numbers for specific locations, the measurements are rounded to the nearest whole number. Who knew?

invidious

Invidious increased in searches by 442% because of some sneaky attempts to redistrict in the south.

Apparently, the legislative GOP illegally gerrymandered North Carolina’s congressional district map. The judges who ruled on its legality said the plan had “invidious partisanship.”

flea

Up 283% in searches, fleas made the news this week. Those pesky parasites that live on domestic animals, like dogs and cats, are now threatening wildlife, too.

Cosmos Magazine reports, “A study led by the University of Queensland, Australia, has found that fleas from domestic pets are infesting numerous wildlife species globally, affecting animals on every continent except Antarctica.”

Apparently, the cause is due to humans living close to wildlife habitats and increased contact between feral animals (rats, foxes) and wildlife. There’s potential to threaten many species of wildlife if fleas continue to spread.

stalking

Guess what? January is stalking awareness month, which drove searches for the term up 89%.

Stalking is a serious crime, and it often goes unreported, so let’s support those who are affected by promoting awareness this January.

nullify

Nullify was up 131% in searches, and this one takes us back to net neutrality. Remember, when that was overturned a couple weeks ago? Well, some senators have been fighting that decision, creating a resolution that would nullify the FCC’s vote to repeal net neutrality. And now, a 30th senator has jumped on board to sponsor the bill.

This is big because 30 senators are needed to bring it to a vote on the floor.

asexual reproduction

Hm, asexual reproduction, you say? Well, this term piqued people’s interest this week as it was up in searches by 177%. The reason could be twofold:

1) Cosmos Magazine reported that there is a new species of worm that exhibits asexual reproduction (or “selfing”). This is a step forward in evolution.

2) The New Yorker wrote a piece about Netflix’s series Black Mirror, describing the newest season as one that “. . . tells tales of love in the age of asexual reproduction . . . .” It is a seriously dystopian show that is oh-so relatably horrifying. Netflix, you get us.

faucet

Faucet-related news, weird we know, spiked searches for the word by 190%.

There are some high-tech faucets coming out this year, y’all. Get ready. Kohler is releasing a faucet system that connects to Apple’s HomeKit platform. You can voice command the faucet to turn on and off or fill to a specific amount, and it monitors your water usage.

And, because consumerism, KALLISTA is also releasing a sink faucet that was created with 3-D metal printing.

consensual

We’re sure you were waiting for this one . . . up in searches by 393% this week is consensual. Trump retweeted a quote from a New York Post article about his first term in which he wrote “consensual” in place of “consequential.” He retyped the quote (instead of copying and pasting it) because he needed to omit the parts that talked about his “missteps.”

sh!thole

Get ready for this . . . searches for sh!thole increased over 100,000% (compared to last week). Wow. Well, this huge spike can only be attributed to President Trump and his offhand remarks in an Oval Office meeting to discuss a bipartisan immigration deal.

He stated, “Why are we having all these people from sh!thole countries come here?”

The countries he was referring to? Haiti, El Salvador, and African countries to name a few . . . . Unbelievable.