[ADS-M] 2024 Word of the Year is "rawdog"

[Ben Zimmer]

https://americandialect.org/2024-word-of-the-year-is-rawdog/

The American Dialect Society, in its 35th annual words-of-the-year vote,
selected rawdog as the Word of the Year for 2024. More than three hundred
attendees took part in the deliberations and voting, in an event hosted in
conjunction with the Linguistic Society of America's annual meeting.

The verb "rawdog" is defined as "to undertake without usual protection,
preparation, or comfort." While the word originated as a vulgar slang term
referring to having sex without a condom, "rawdogging" ended up crossing
over into mainstream usage for a wide variety of activities, like the
travel trend in which a passenger sits through a flight without any
distractions.

Presiding at the Jan. 6 voting session were Ben Zimmer, chair of the ADS
New Words Committee, and Dr. Kelly Elizabeth Wright of the University of
Wisconsin-Madison, data czar of the New Words Committee. "'Rawdog' has
recently and rapidly burst its sexual bounds to reference engagement in any
activity without the typical preparation or in stone-cold sobriety." Dr.
Wright said. "In 2024 folks rawdogged flights, family dinners, and final
exams. As one nominator commented this evening, 'rawdog' is a great choice
for Word of the Year as we collectively rawdog the future of American
politics in 2025."

The full press release, including all winners, candidates, and vote tallies
for all candidates, is here:
https://americandialect.org/2024-word-of-the-year-press-release/
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