New words – 31 October 2022

a bathtub with red and yellow petals floating in the water
courtneyk / iStock / Getty Images Plus

spiritual bath noun [C]
UK /ˌspɪr.ɪ.tʃu.əl ˈbɑːθ/ US /ˌspɪr.ə.tʃu.əl ˈbæθ/
a ritual that involves having a bath to encourage wellbeing, with oils, herbs, flowers etc. added to the water and in a relaxing environment, for example with candles and soft music

A souped up version of the bubble bath, spiritual baths are an art form. Replete with petals, candles, various elixirs and some seriously aesthetically pleasing decor, they’re designed to be blissfully drawn out, contemplative, great for your mental health and truly indulgent.
[glamourmagazine.co.uk, 22 August 2022]

wearapy noun [U]
UK /ˈweərə.pi/ US /ˈwerə.pi/
the activity of wearing particular clothes as a form of therapy, with the clothes chosen to make the wearer feel happy or comforted etc.

While you can use fashion to boost your mood and make you feel powerful, Forbes-Bell also wants us to consider the emotional importance of what we wear – something she calls “wearapy”. “It’s about understanding the emotional significance and attachment your clothes have,” she explains. “Within that, it’s asking you to understand when you’re putting something on, not just thinking, does this look good? But also, how does this make me feel?”
[independent.co.uk, 15 September 2022]

scream pot noun [C]
UK /ˈskriːm ˌpɒt/ US /ˈskriːm ˌpɑːt/
a type of clay pot that you can scream into as a way of releasing negative emotions such as anger and frustration

Golkar started making his scream pots in 2011, seeking both to expand his practice with clay – and an outlet for his own repressed emotions. “It’s really difficult to pinpoint what the origins of those frustrations were,” he says, “but suffice to say, they must have been piling up for a while.”
[theguardian.com, 23 September 2022]

About new words

One thought on “New words – 31 October 2022

  1. Turns out quite a few people support the addition of spiritual bathing to the dictionary.

    I know we already forest bath quite a lot.

    Wearapy seems to fit another gap in the language too.

    Forbes-Bell has clearly been observing something.

    We do have lots of emotional significance and attachment to our clothes.

    Scream pots have been in the language – and in the art world – quite a while.

    When I was a ceramicist we made lots of pinch pots with our fingers.

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