Merriam-Webster's Words of the Week - Oct. 1
The words that defined the week ending October 1st, 2021
’Wanting’
An adjectival use of wanting was prominently seen last week, after the New York Times used it in the headline of an article.
They Investigate Police Killings. Their Record Is Wanting.
— (headline) The New York Times 25 Sept. 2021
In addition to functioning as the present participle of the verb want, wanting may also be a preposition or an adjective. When used as a preposition it has the meanings of “without” or “minus.” As an adjective it typically carries such meanings as “absent,” “deficient,” or “not being up to standards or expectations.”
’Finsta’
Finsta had a moment in the sun last week, after a United States Senator displayed a profound lack of understanding of the word in a televised hearing.
Sen. Blumenthal asks Facebook "Will you commit to ending Finsta?"
— Eric Morrow (@morroweric) September 30, 2021
Facebook's safety chief has to explain that Finsta is slang for a fake account. pic.twitter.com/jMYy5AIZjY
We do not currently provide a definition for finsta, but it is among the recent words we are watching. Finsta is short for Finstagram, or “fake Instagram,” referring to an account made so that a user can post images and interact with other accounts in a more private way, usually reserving the account’s followers to close friends.
’Genius’
The MacArthur Foundation announced last week the names of the people upon whom it would bestow for the year the title of fellow (“a member of an incorporated literary or scientific society”), a word which everyone else turns into genius.
Yes, we know they're technically called "MacArthur fellows." We also know that the MacArthur Foundation doesn't love that the term "genius" has stuck around for so long. (The term is "both too narrow and too broad," it says.) But when we're talking about people researching pediatric brain cancer treatments or championing voting rights for incarcerated citizens or crafting mind-expanding documentaries, the term fits well enough as any other.
— Andrew Limbong, NPR, 28 Sept. 2021
When genius came into English use in the 14th century it initially had the meaning of “an attendant spirit of a person or place.” When used in this sense (or with such meanings as “a person who influences another for good or bad” or “jinni”) the word is pluralized as genii. In common use the word most often has the meaning of “a very smart or talented person : a person who has a level of talent or intelligence that is very rare or remarkable.” This sense is pluralized as geniuses.
’Culmination’
Culmination spiked in lookups after Jake Sherman appeared to attribute an unconventional meaning to the word, in an exchange with Nancy Pelosi.
.@JakeSherman: "You said this is the culmination of your time in Congress. Are you trying to -- culmination means the end of an experience."
— CSPAN (@cspan) September 30, 2021
.@SpeakerPelosi: "Get out of here...So this is, it's so much and that's why I said that, yeah." pic.twitter.com/E0GfyFfGuk
Culminate, a verb, means “to reach its highest altitude” (said of a celestial body), “to rise to or form a summit,” or “to reach the highest or a climactic or decisive point.” Culmination, a noun, is defined as “the action of culminating" or “climax.” While a culmination may often occur at the end of an experience, it is not synonymous with such an event.
’Railroad’
Bill Cosby was once more in the news, after he averred that R. Kelly had been railroaded in his recent conviction for racketeering and sex trafficking.
Bill Cosby sparks outrage after saying R. Kelly was ‘railroaded’ in trial
— (headline) the Grio, 30 Sept. 2021
The word railroad began being used as a verb in the early 19th century (meaning “to build railroads in”), and within a few decades took on the extended meaning used by Cosby: “to convict and send especially to prison with undue haste and usually by the use of false charges or insufficient evidence.”
’Shutdown’
The United States government appears to have once again narrowly avoided a shutdown. If you are unhappy that this word will not be dominating the news cycles for at least several more months you may turn to our article on the history of the word here.
Our Antedating of the Week
Our antedating of the week is tea party, which came into use with the meaning of “an afternoon social gathering at which tea is served.” Our earliest written record for this sense had previously come in 1778, but recent findings show that we have been engaging in tea-parties since at least 1774.
At a tea-party, a few evenings since, where the company were warmly engaged in conversation, the lady of the house forgetting to put the tea into the pot, filled it with water, and poured it out; when a lady in company immediately informed her, “Perhaps, madam, you think you have been making tea, but you have only been making water.”
— The Scots Magazine (Edinburgh, Sc.), May 1774
