Digital platforms have become a powerful catalyst for language change. What is unique is that while linguistic innovations used to spread over decades or centuries, often with geographical limitations, they can now become global in a matter of months. This phenomenon demonstrates not just a change in vocabulary, but also an evolution in the mechanism of speech itself.
The words “skibidi,” “tradewife,” “delulu,” and “broligarchy,” which were first used on TikTok, have been added to the updated version of the Cambridge Dictionary, The Guardian reports.
The publication emphasized that these neologisms are not a temporary trend, but a phenomenon that is becoming entrenched in the language. Therefore, older generations and people who do not use TikTok will have to get used to the new words.
Younger generations, raised in the digital age, naturally pick up on this slang, while for older ones it can seem like a foreign language. This creates a need for “digital linguistic adaptation,” where understanding the context of a new word becomes as important as understanding its literal meaning.
To understand the world, you need to understand its language. The modern world speaks slang. My personal experience shows that the most effective way to bridge this gap is not to reject the new, but to try to understand its origin and function, often through communication with the youth who are the carriers of these changes. It can even be fun.
“Internet culture is changing the English language, and it's fascinating to watch that effect and capture it in the dictionary,” said Colin McIntosh, head of the lexicon program. He noted that only words that will remain relevant are included in the dictionary.
Colin McIntosh, as head of the lexical program, emphasizes the role of dictionaries as mirrors of language. What is unique here is the process by which linguists determine the “relevance” of a word. This is not the subjective decision of one person, but the result of careful analysis of large corpora of texts – multi-billion databases of real speech, including books, newspapers, online publications, and now social networks. It is the frequency of use, the stability of meaning, and the wide distribution of a word that indicate its “relevance” and viability. This resembles an evolutionary process, where the most adapted words survive.
According to the publication, the word “skibidi”, which is used to intensify expressions, can mean “cool” or “bad”. The word appeared after the spread of the animated series Skibidi Toilet. Although it is a common phenomenon in slang, for example, the English “sick” can mean both “sick” and “cool”.
“Tradwife” (short for traditional wife) is a term that emerged in 2020. It is not simply a “wife who takes care of the house”, but often a woman who consciously chooses a patriarchal lifestyle, abandoning career ambitions in favor of family, sometimes with criticism of feminism. The term reflects a broader discussion in society about women's roles, family values, and the influence of conservative ideas. The word “tradwife” causes a lot of controversy, as for some it is a choice that deserves respect, for others it is a step backwards in the issue of equality.
The word “delulu” (short for delusional) is unique in that it was often used with a touch of self-irony – a person admitted to being “delulu” about his unrealistic fantasies or hopes (“I am completely delulu”). This allowed him to express desires or expectations that bordered on delusion, but at the same time remained light and frivolous. Later, it became more widely used as a characteristic of other people.
“Being in a delirium” is not always a negative thing. It can also be a self-defense mechanism or a way to maintain optimism in difficult situations, even if it is a little detached from reality. It is, as they say, “believing in the impossible in order to make it possible,” albeit with a certain irony.
In turn, the word “broligarchy” (from bro – “friend” and oligarchy – “oligarchy”) refers to groups of wealthy men who are associated with the technology business and seek political influence.
The uniqueness of “broligarchy” lies in its satirical and critical nature. It combines the informal, casual address (“bro”), which is associated with a certain “masculine” culture (often referred to as “bro culture” in Silicon Valley), with the formal and serious term “oligarchy”, which means rule by a small group of elites. This neologism emphasizes the informal networks, often lack of transparency, and concentration of enormous power in the hands of a relatively small, predominantly male group in the tech industry, who influence the economy and politics while maintaining an image of “their guys”. This demonstrates how language can be a powerful tool for social commentary and criticism of existing power structures.
