A neologism (/niːˈɒlədʒɪzəm/; from Greek νέο- (néo-), meaning "new", and λόγος (lógos), meaning "speech, utterance") is a newly coined term, word, or phrase, that may be in the process of entering common use, but has not yet been accepted into mainstream language. Neologisms are often directly attributable to a specific person, publication, period, or event. Νεολεξία (Greek: a "new word", or the act of creating a new word) is a synonym for it. The term neologism is first attested in English in 1772, borrowed from French néologisme (1734). [Wikipedia]
1. Examples of Social Networking and Technology Neologisms.
- Google: To use an online search engine as the basis for looking up information on the World Wide Web.
- Noob: Someone who is new to an online community or game.
- Troll: An individual who posts inflammatory, rude, and obnoxious comments to an online community.
2. Examples of Popular Culture Neologisms.
- BFF: Stands for best friends forever. Used to state how close you are to another individual.
- Chilax: To calm down or relax, it is a slang term used when someone is starting to get uptight about something that is happening.
- Staycation: A vacation at home or in the immediate local area.
3. Trademarks That are Genericized. [These are sometimes also referred to as generonyms (a neologism in itself).
- Aspirin, Hoover, Laundromat, Band-aid, Kleenex, Frisbee, Tipex, Xerox, Tupperware, Escalator, Granola, Zipper