Are you a mumsplainer in need of a therapet?
Find out in our fascinating list of the new words coined this year
HAVE you been plogging? Or perhaps you like to sadfish from the comfort of your yarden. Here, ADAM JACOT DE BOINOD reveals the latest weird and wonderful words to enter the lexicon in 2019.
YARDEN: A small yard behind a house that has been turned into a garden.
PLOGGING: Picking up plastic litter while jogging.
BREATHARIAN: Someone who does not eat solid food and believes they can get all the nutrients they need from air by performing special breathing exercises.
HYPEBEAST: A young person obsessed with buying the latest expensive designer clothes.
MUMSPLAINER: A mother who gives unwanted advice or explains something about pregnancy or childbirth to someone – often a pregnant woman or new parent – who is already fully aware of the information being passed on.
DOGFISHING: A person, usually a man, who poses with a pooch on their dating profile.
PHAST: A self-imposed period of abstinence away from one’s smartphone.
SLASHIE: An individual who has several different jobs at the same time. From the use of the slash (/), eg writer/dog walker/barista.
SUPERAGER: Someone over the age of 65 whose memory and cognitive abilities are equivalent to those in their 20s.
BIRTH STRIKER: A woman who chooses not to have children because she is concerned about the size of the world’s population.
GROOMSMAID: Female friend of a man who is getting married, and who has special wedding duties.
THERAPET: An animal, usually a dog, which is specially trained to calm people with a tendency towards stress or anxiety, or to visit ill or elderly people.
ALGOCRACY: A social system in which people are governed by, and important decisions are made by, computer algorithms.
SHED EFFECT: The benefits to health and well-being associated with the men’s shed movement, an initiative that encourages men, especially those who are elderly or socially isolated, to forge new friendships and work together on traditionally male-focused activities such as DIY projects.
SOBER BAR: A bar in which no alcoholic drinks are served.
NAP BAR: An establishment – not a hotel – where you can pay to sleep for a short time during the day.
MICROFLAT: A very small apartment, usually in large cities where there is not enough housing for the resident population.
SADFISHING: The practice of writing about one’s unhappiness or emotional problems on social media, usually in a deliberately vague way, in order to attract attention and sympathetic responses.
FLAT WHITE ECONOMY: The wealth created through the large number of people using a coffee shop or cafe to work in.
MUMOIR: A book or piece of writing based on the writer’s personal experience of being a mother.
RAGE ROOM: An enclosed space where, for a fee, individuals can smash up objects to alleviate stress.
GREEN SCREEN: A large steel grid densely covered with ivy, thought to act as a barrier to air pollution. Erected most commonly in city gardens or parks.
BUDDYMOON: A honeymoon to which the newlywed couple’s friends are also invited.
HACKERAZZO: A person who hacks a celebrity’s personal computer.
SHOFFICE: A garden shed which is also used as an office.