New words – 5 January 2015

hostilearch

hostile architecture noun architecture in public spaces designed to influence behaviour, for example spikes to deter homeless people from sleeping in a particular place

While not as obvious as the stainless steel anti-homeless spikes that appeared outside a London apartment block recently, the benches are part of a recent generation of urban architecture designed to influence public behaviour, known as hostile architecture.

[www.theguardian.com 13 June 2014]

gaybourhood noun an area where there are a lot of gay people, and which is seen as being welcoming to gay people

Exactly how gay are our suburbs? Is there any sense of there being a ‘gaybourhood’?

[www.samesame.com.au 09 April 2014]

ghost gazumping noun when selling a house, the practice of insisting on a higher price after the deal (and price) has been agreed, even though there are no rival bidders

However, there’s now a new twist to this – ‘ghost gazumping’ where sellers renegotiate after accepting an offer claiming they’ve had a higher bid when in fact there is no rival bidder.

[www.propertyreporter.co.uk 09 April 2014]

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6 thoughts on “New words – 5 January 2015

  1. Pingback: (EN) – New words: 5 January 2015 | Cambridge University Press | Glossarissimo!

  2. I think “gayborhood” is an unnecessary coinage. In the first place, in an age when it’s common to refer to the “LGBTQ [further letters to follow] Community,” the exclusive use of “gay” will offend many activists. More to the point, the neighborhoods in question attracted LGBTQ residents because of their diversity and tolerance, which existed for decades before public awareness of sexual minorities. Your word implies that the presence gay people changed — or perhaps perverted — the nature of these urban communities.

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