These are new words or phrases that have caught my eye. My definition of a new word is one which is not in the Macquarie Dictionary online.
Some words seem to have more significance than others in terms of reflecting changes in the Australian culture, so I will give each word a Zeitgeist rating (ZG) within a range of 1-10.
If you disagree with the rating that I give, please argue your case in the comment field provided.
I would love you to contact me if you have made any new word discoveries of your own.
Inside baseball refers to esoteric knowledge known only to experts in the field.
ZG: 6
There is a need to distinguish between ordinary knowledge and expert knowledge. This flags the world of the specialist quite neatly so it may stick around. It is certainly on the rise at the moment.
Read MoreThis lily pad has been handed to us from the US where they developed a strategy for developing small bases on islands scattered throughout the Pacific. Lots of lily pads in the big pond.
ZG: 4
A bit of military jargon but if a lily pad comes to pass in Darwin it will start to mean something for us all.
Read MoreMicrolot coffee is made from beans with enhanced flavour found in small patches or microdots.
ZG: 5
Yes I know we love our coffee and will all get to taste and approve the microdot coffee but it is a low-frequency item.
Read MoreA micro lot is a piece of land for sale which is only 80 square metres in size.
ZG: 8
This is yet another solution to the problem that no one can afford to buy a house, particularly young people or single people. This tiny house at least gets you started in the property market.
Read MoreThis is an Italian white wine grape variety with a long history. It was thought to be in the wine made by the Romans and called Apianum (loved by the bees).
ZG: 6
It took us a little while to get over the shock of not being able to use established names like champagne, claret, hock, moselle, etc., but once we recovered, we took to the world of varietal wines with gusto.
Read MoreThe concept of setting up a coffice in your local coffee shop with your laptop beside you and a cup of coffee in hand has been developing over the last decade.
ZG: 8
Almost any coffee shop will be home to a number of coffice workers these days.
Read MoreAnother vegetable we have acquired from China, which produces leaves rather like lettuce leaves, and a stem which can be sliced and used like a celery stem.
ZG: 6
This does seem to be a useful addition to our range of greens, one that I will watch out for in my local market.
Read MoreModern monetary theory (also known as MMT) says that, with a monetary sovereign government, that is, one that has its own currency, the goal should be to balance the economy rather than the budget.
ZG: 7
I think that we will hear a lot more about MMT in the future as we search for economic strategies that work for people.
Read MoreSpigarello is a new vegetable in our market, a form of kale with soft, buttery leaves.
ZG: 5
Presumably with climate change we can expect this kind of shift to new produce to occur more frequently.
Read MoreThe recent wild weather has produced an unusual phenomenon called thundersnow.
ZG: 7
We are all fascinated by the weather, particularly by something exciting and unusual like this. I wish I had seen it myself.
Read MoreThe recent concerns about the increased strength of the drug MDMA that was turning up in Australia introduced me to terms like double droppingand triple dropping. This is basically taking two or three pills at once
ZG : 6
While drug-taking is not for everyone, the prevalence of it among young people has risen to alarmingly high levels. These words are part of the general discussion that is taking place at the moment.
Read MoreThis phobia, sometimes spelled fatphobia, is, very simply, the fear of being fat.
ZG: 8
With the increase in the number of obese people, and the increase in the complexity of how to treat obesity, I would expect fat phobia to be on the rise.
Read MoreThis is the practice of seeking out travel destinations not frequented by the majority of tourists in the hope of having some real cultural exchange between the travellers and the locals.
ZG: 8
I think there is a real sense that people are bored with the packaged tourism on offer and have a vague disquiet about zooming around the world while being sheltered from any engagement with the locals. It seems rude somehow.
Read MoreElite has become a synonym for ‘excellent’ but sounds so much classier.
ZG: 9
This extension of meaning, from the person to the activity that such a person can carry out, is now entrenched in sports jargon.
Read MoreCheese tea is the latest tea-drinking craze from Asia since we were introduced to bubble tea from Taiwan.
ZG: 6
The flavour of the month, so to speak. Do I dare to give it a go!
Read MoreA form of football which focuses on passing rather than on running at speed. It retains the advantages of a team sport while being a low-impact and safe form of physical exercise.
ZG: 8
Given the popularity of football and the increasing numbers of older people in society, I can see that this sport may be quite successful.
Read MoreIt would seem that 2015 was the year in which silo art made its first appearance in Australia.
ZG: 9
These artworks are proliferating and hugely visible. The silos used to be an image of rural Australia, along with the old windmill pump, but covered in street art they are now an interesting blend of the city and the bush.
Read MoreA shoutcaster is someone who is a commentator on a video game.
ZG: 5
A little specaiised but now very much part of the jargon of gaming. It would all seem rather dull without the commentators to liven things up.
Read MoreA method of shearing sheep which draws from martial arts and yoga practices, to provide physical and mental training for the shearers and to teach them how to work with sheep rather than fighting them.
ZG: 7
A niche area of activity but a very traditional one producing this extraordinary blend of shearing and ju-jitsu.
Read MoreWe have had a number of shocks administered to the hip-pocket nerve which we have named in general bill shock. Now there is toll shock, with the variante toll shock.
ZG: 6
The point of these shocks is that they are unexpected, or else expected but dramatically inflated. We probably have a few more of them to endure.
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