Merriam-Webster announced Tuesday that it is adding more than 1,700 new entries to its unabridged dictionary. "WTF," "meme," "emoji," "clickbait," and "photobomb" got the most attention, but also included was "dark money," one of the most important terms to know if you're following the 2016 presidential race.
"Dark money (noun): money contributed to nonprofit organizations (especially those classified as social welfare organizations and business leagues) that is used to fund political campaigns without the disclosure of the donors' identities."
We'll be talking a lot about dark money in the months ahead, but there are a few other terms that are also helpful to know if you're going to understand the election and politics today. Here are nine political terms that, in our humble opinion, should also be added to the dictionary:
Bidenism (noun): A thing Joe Biden says that sounds especially folksy, or perhaps a little too familiar.
Example: Wow, Veep was sure was dropping some Bidenisms out there, wasn't he?
Conservatarian (noun or adjective): Someone who identifies as conservative and libertarian. "Libertarianish" is also acceptable.
Example: Rand Paul is more of a conservitarian than a conservative.
First Gentleman (noun): The informal title of the husband of a female president of the United States.
Example: Bill Clinton or Frank Fiorina could end up being the first First Gentleman.
Gyrocopter (noun): A flying machine that looks like a cross between a helicopter and a lawnmower. It's illegal to fly one onto the Capitol front lawn, but it's been done before.
Example: A Florida man flew a gyrocopter into Washington to protest the influence of money in politics.
Hillvetica (noun): The font used in Hillary Clinton's "H" campaign logo.
Example: James Carville wrote that memo in Hillvetica. It was almost as bad as Comic Sans.
Operation Chaos (noun): The act of voting or otherwise meddling in the primary of the opposite political party in order to prop up the weaker candidate or prolong the race. The term was coined in 2008 when Rush Limbaugh told people to vote for Hillary Clinton in states with open primaries in order to delay Barack Obama's securing the Democratic nomination.
Example: The conservative Club for Growth ran ads for liberal Rep. Alan Grayson in the Florida Democratic Senate primary because they would rather face him than Rep. Patrick Murphy (D). It's Operation Chaos all over again.
Pantsuit tee (noun): A shirt with a pantsuit printed on the front.
Example: Whoa your Hillary Clinton pantsuit tee is on fleek.
Primary (as a verb): To challenge a member of your party in a primary campaign.
Example: Eric Cantor got primaried so hard.
Troll (verb or noun): To purposefully and gratuitously annoy a person or a cause you disagree with.
Example: Carly Fiorina is trolling by holding a campaign event alongside Hillary Clinton's.
