Snowflake
Someone who believes strongly in their own uniqueness, and struggles to take criticism.
Used in the novel and film Fight Club, and made popular as part of term “generation snowflake” after the 2015 confrontation between students and staff at Yale University.
Hangry
Becoming so hungry that you get angry.
Used as far back as the 1950s, but didn’t become popular until the 21st century. Now used in mainstream advertising as well as everyday speech.
Hippotherapy
A type of occupational therapy based on horse riding.
Named after the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates, and in use since the 1960s, but only gained popularity during 2010s.
G.O.A.T
The acronym for Greatest Of All Time.
The terms was attributed to “The Greatest” Muhammad Ali in the 1990’s. By 2000 LL Cool J named hos album G.O.A.T due to its popularity. Since then, athletes and rappers have used the acronym for themselves or their fans crown them with the title.
Bingeable
Used to describe TV series that is likely to be binge-watched – that is, all episodes watched over a day or two.
First appeared in 2013, with the growing popularity of TV streaming services.
Zoodles
Strips of zucchini (also called courgette) shaped like noodles.
Used from the 1990s but increasingly popular in the 2010s as a healthy eating alternative.
Shook
Describes the intense emotions of fear, shock or amazement at someone or something.
The term was heavily used it the 90s to describe a fear of someone, then somehow made a comeback in 2016 with a new, broader meaning.
Biohacking
The practice of making a body work better by optimizing it using hacker principles, including technological interventions such as microchips and health activities like taking supplements.
First used in the 1980s, but popularised in the 2010s as biohacking technologies become more popular.
Douchey
Someone who is annoying, offensive or dislikable.
First used as an insult in 1951, it really only became popular in the 2000s.
Noob
A person who is inexperienced in a particular activity.
Originally used as late twentieth-century United States Armed Forces jargon, it’s now often used in online gaming.
Peoplekind
A gender-neutral alternative to the term mankind.
Popularised by a Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau in 2018, but used occasionally since the 1980s.
Sprog
An informal term for a baby or a child.
Likely originated as Royal Air Force slang for recruit in WW2, it was also used in an episode of Black Adder.
Mansplaining
A man explaining something to a woman in a patronizing manner, often without relevant knowledge or experience.
Popularised during the 2010s in writing and social media.
Buzzy
Something that generates a lot of enthusiasm or excitement.
First used to convey the pleasant feeling of intoxication in 1935, it morphed into this new meaning in the 200s.
Glamping
A mixture of words glamorous and camping. It’s a type of camping that is more comfy and lavish than traditional camping.
Glamping is particularly popular with 21st-century tourists. But the concept of luxurious tent-living goes way back as early as the 16th century.
Stan
The combination of words stalker and fan. A devoted fan who goes to great lengths to obsess over the idol.
The term was based on the name of the central character “Stan” in the Eminem song.
Zaddy
An exceptionally attractive, appealing and fashionable guy with swag and sex appeal.
The words became popular after the release of Ty Dolla $ign’s single “Zaddy”, in August 2016.
Swole
The state of being muscular, and to have a well-defined physique.
Back in the 1900’s, swole was used as another term of swelled or swollen. In 1998, it was identified as a synonym of muscular.
Lit
Something (usually an event or situation) that is intense, fun or exciting.
For over a century, it was used to be slang for drunk or intoxicated.
Noob is almost certainly a form of ‘newbie’, which has been around for at least the last twenty years and ‘newbie’ did not originate with the US military, although noob may have. (It’s so commonly used I think it would be hard to determine it’s origin.)
Thank you so much! Good to know!