From the sentencing of the president’s former attorney to the holiday season, there’s plenty going on to drive word searches on Dictionary.com. Here are some of the biggest search spikes of December 7–14, 2018!
Synergy
Searches for the meaning of synergy spiked 1,561% in response to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s use of the word in court filings. Mueller alleged that Michael Cohen, former attorney for President Donald Trump, offered a Russian national both “political synergy” and “synergy on a government level.”Synergy, by definition, “is the potential ability of individual organizations or groups to be more successful or productive as a result of a merger.”
"Synergy" searches have 📈 1,320% on https://t.co/OeJELgy3YL this weekend. https://t.co/wcWboXZCO6
— Dictionary.com (@Dictionarycom) December 9, 2018
Seething
CNN reporter Jim Acosta said Wednesday evening that the president was “seething” over the sentencing of Cohen, sending searches for the meaning of seething up 1,253%. When one is seething, they’re “in a state of agitation or excitement.”
Tetrarch
Advent is in full swing, and for some people, that means loading up on little bits of chocolate or discovering small trinkets every morning as they open their advent calendars. For others, advent is a special time of the year when they observe the events that lead up to Christmas Day on the religious calendar.
That leads us to tetrarch, a word that trended this week thanks to a passage from the Bible’s Book of Luke that was shared in many a church over the weekend. The traditional reading makes mention of Herod, the tetrarch of Galilee. In this instance, the term describes Herod as “a subordinate ruler.”
Ghosting
WATCH: He's Been Ghosted. Have You?
The Ghostbusters taught us not to be afraid of “no ghosts,” but it turns out employers have a very different fear: ghosting employees! No, these folks aren’t turning into spirits. They’re simply not showing up for work without warning their bosses, according to a Washington Post report that helped boost searches for the meaning of ghosting the week of December 7–14, 2018.
Referring to “the practice of suddenly ending all contact with a person without explanation,” ghosting has traditionally been used in relation to a romantic relationship, rather than a working one. But times change, and so does language!
Searches for "ghosting" are 🚀 on https://t.co/OeJELgy3YL. https://t.co/9PCsKrO82c https://t.co/DgvmmmSXAX
— Dictionary.com (@Dictionarycom) December 13, 2018
Smocking
A spelling error in one of President Trump’s tweets sent searches for smocking skyrocketing this week. The president referred to a smocking gun. Smocking is typically used to describe “embroidery stitches used to hold gathered cloth in even folds.”
Revamped
Butterfinger lovers, get ready! The candy bar’s maker, Ferrero, announced this week that the peanut-buttery favorite has been completely revamped, sending hungry fans scurrying for answers.
Searches for the meaning of revamped climbed sky high, but, alas, we can’t tell you what to expect from the new Butterfinger. All we can say is that revamped means “redone or revised.”
