Brotoxnoun [U] UK /ˈbrəʊ.tɒks/ US /ˈbroʊ.tɑːks/ a humorous word for Botox when the procedure is given to a man
The rise of so-called Brotox is being reported in the UK, where the male grooming industry is worth an estimated £500 million a year. Celebrities aren’t immune from this trend. Plastic surgeons say that more and more male stars appeared to be “jumping on the Brotox bandwagon”. [theweek.com, 12 August 2023]
perception driftnoun [U] UK /pəˈsep.ʃᵊn ˌdrɪft/ US /pɚˈsep.ʃᵊn ˌdrɪft/ someone’s inability to remember how their natural face looks after they have had a number of cosmetic procedures such as Botox
The term perception drift was first coined by a dermatologist and cosmetic surgeon. It happens when people get a series of procedures or tweakments and forget how they originally/naturally looked prior to aesthetic changes. Perception drift is when a person’s perception of change following an aesthetic treatment is skewed or inaccurate. In most cases, other people notice these changes, but not the ones who underwent the procedure. [cutislaserclinics.com, 28 April 2023]
prejuvenationnoun [U]
/priːˌdʒuː.vᵊnˈeɪ.ʃᵊn/ the act or process of using cosmetic procedures on someone who is still young to prevent them from looking older later
In the world of aesthetics, a new trend has turned into a lifestyle: prejuvenation. Younger patients are more interested in skincare and aesthetics than ever, suggesting that aesthetic enhancements shouldn’t be limited to corrective procedures. Prejuvenation refers to seeking preventative aesthetic procedures that postpone visible signs of aging instead of correcting problems after they occur. [novaplasticsurgery.com, 27 June 2023]
V2Hnoun [U]
/ˌviː.tuːˈeɪtʃ/ abbreviation for vehicle-to-home: a system that allows electric vehicles to transfer the energy stored in their batteries back into the electrical system of a home
The idea is that electric vehicles, when not in use, often have surplus energy stored in their batteries. Rather than letting this energy go to waste, V2H systems enable the vehicle’s stored energy to be fed back into the home’s power grid, powering household appliances and systems. With V2H, EV owners can potentially save on their electricity bills and make more efficient use of their renewable energy resources, while also providing a backup power source for their homes. [electriccarguide.co.uk, 19 October 2023]
bidirectional chargingnoun [U] UK /ˌbaɪ.daɪˈrek.ʃᵊn.ᵊl ˈtʃɑː.dʒɪŋ/ US /ˌbaɪ.dɪˈrek.ʃᵊn.ᵊl ˈtʃɑːr.dʒɪŋ/ a system that allows the electricity put into the battery of an electric vehicle to be transferred out of the vehicle and used to provide electrical power for something else
One of the most talked about features in the EV world works only when your car is parked: Bidirectional charging allows owners to turn their vehicles into four-wheeled batteries, sending power back to their homes, appliances and even to the utility grid. Currently, bidirectional charging is available in only a handful of cars. But its popularity is growing: GM announced that the technology will come standard in all its electric vehicles by model year 2026. [cnet.com, 4 September 2023]
charge ragenoun [U] UK /ˈtʃɑːdʒ ˌreɪdʒ/ US /ˈtʃɑːrdʒ ˌreɪdʒ/ anger or violence between a driver who is charging their electric vehicle and other drivers who are waiting in a queue to do so
Electric vehicle owners furiously arguing with each other over charging points because there aren’t enough of them available are having to get up in the dead of night to power up their motors. Such is the “charge rage” that marshals are being brought in to police frustrated drivers at motorway service stations. [dailymail.co.uk, 3 October 2023]
conversational commercenoun [U] UK /ˌkɒn.vəˈseɪ.ʃən.əl ˈkɒm.ɜːs/ US /ˌkɑːn.vɚˈseɪ.ʃən.əl ˈkɑː.mɝːs/ the use of chatbots and other machine learning technology to make people feel they are talking to a real person when they buy things, ask for advice etc. online
With conversational commerce, customers can get quick answers to important questions, easily purchase items without having to navigate through entire websites, and receive helpful suggestions based on their previously collected customer data, including personalized product recommendations. [bloomreach.com, 24 August 2023]
immaculate disinflationnoun [U]
/ɪˌmæk.jə.lət dɪs.ɪnˈfleɪ.ʃᵊn/ the situation where inflation falls but this does not lead to a rise in unemployment, which would usually be expected
Economists added yet another term to their lexicon in recent months: immaculate disinflation. While there’s no official definition of immaculate disinflation, the phrase is being used to describe a scenario where inflation cools without causing a spike in unemployment … President Joe Biden’s top economic adviser, Jared Bernstein, expressed skepticism about the term. “I wouldn’t call this disinflation immaculate,” he said. [edition.cnn.com, 6 September 2023]
hyperphysical retailnoun [U] UK /haɪ.pəˌfɪz.ɪ.kᵊl ˈriː.teɪl/ US /haɪ.pɚˌfɪz.ɪ.kᵊl ˈriː.teɪl/ the activity of making a shop more visually appealing and creating interesting experiences for the people who go there
With consumers’ growing appetite for engaging shopping experiences, brick-and-mortar stores now have to find more imaginative ways to compete. That’s why some brands are reinventing their retail spaces to make them so spectacular that visiting them is an emotional experience. Adding sensory and emotional attractions to a shop is a new trend called “hyperphysical retail”. [medium.com, 29 September 2023]
AGInoun [U]
/ˌeɪ.dʒiːˈaɪ/ ABBREVIATION FOR artificial general intelligence: a type of artificial intelligence that some people believe will be developed in the future, with the ability to learn to solve any kind of problem as well as, or better than, a human being
He defines AGI as AI systems that can solve any cognitive or human task in ways that are not limited to how they are trained. In theory, AGI, he says, can help scientists develop cures for diseases, discover new forms of renewable energy, and help “solve some of humanity’s greatest mysteries.” [businessinsider.com, 27 May 2023]
Poltergeist attacknoun [C] UK /ˈpɒl.tə.ɡaɪst əˌtæk/ US / ˈpoʊl.t̬ɚ.ɡaɪst əˌtæk/ a way of using high-frequency sounds to cause the machine learning algorithms used by self-driving cars to make mistakes in identifying people, objects and other vehicles, which could cause accidents
Poltergeist attacks diverge from traditional cyber threats, such as hacking or jamming. They create deceptive visual realities, similar to optical illusions, for machines employing machine learning for decision-making processes. [techtimes.com, 26 September 2023]
superalignment noun [U] UK /ˌsuː.pə.rəˈlaɪn.mənt/ US /ˌsuː.pɚ.əˈlaɪn.mənt/ the study of how to control superintelligent AIs that may be built in the future so that they act in ways that are useful and not harmful to human beings
OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever and head of alignment Jan Leike wrote a blog post on the concept of superalignment, suggesting that the power of a superintelligent AI could lead to the disempowerment of humanity or even human extinction. “Currently, we don’t have a solution for steering or controlling a potentially superintelligent AI, and preventing it from going rogue,” the pair wrote. [techmonitor.ai, 6 July 2023]
groundverb [T]
/ɡraʊnd/ to give an AI model facts about the real world so that it will produce information that is more accurate and useful
As we start to see more applications built upon foundational AI models — we will also see an increase in the use of external datasets, articles, networks and databases to “ground” the model to factual data and relevant user context. [medium.com, March 2022]
ghost worknoun [U] UK /ˈɡəʊst ˌwɜːk/ US /ˈɡoʊst ˌwɝːk/ work done by a human being, usually online and for low pay, to do a task that most people believe is done automatically by a computer
“Ghost work” is anthropologist Mary L. Gray’s term for the invisible labor that powers our technology platforms. When Gray, a senior researcher at Microsoft Research, first arrived at the company, she learned that building artificial intelligence requires people to manage and clean up data to feed to the training algorithms. [theverge.com, 13 May 2019]
voice cloningnoun [U] UK /ˈvɔɪs ˌkləʊ.nɪŋ/ US /ˈvɔɪs ˌkloʊ.nɪŋ/ the use of artificial intelligence to make recordings that sound like the voice of a specific person
… it looks like the system harnesses the power of voice cloning, which has grown in popularity in recent years. The technology works by taking samples of your voice; a computer model is then trained to generate speech in your voice based on whatever text input it applied. [ukpcmag.com, 25 September 2023]
RLHFnoun [U]
/ˌɑː.rel.eɪtʃˈef/ ABBREVIATION FOR reinforcement learning from human feedback: a technique that improves the performance of an AI by getting human beings to provide information about how good the results it currently produces are
Reinforcement Learning From Human Feedback (RLHF) is an advanced approach to training AI systems that combines reinforcement learning with human feedback. It is a way to create a more robust learning process by incorporating the wisdom and experience of human trainers in the model training process. [unite.ai, 29 March 2023]
September Surgenoun [C] UK /sepˌtem.bə ˈsɜːdʒ/ US /sepˌtem.bɚ ˈsɝːdʒ/ an increase in job vacancies that is said to happen in September every year
Dust off your resume, rewrite your cover letters and start posting on LinkedIn. That’s the advice we’re hearing for recruiters as we head into the fall and enter the “September Surge,” a time when it might be easier to land a job. But we know 2023 has been full of layoffs and economic uncertainty. So will the fall be any different? Is the September Surge real? [worklife.news, 28 August 2023]
burn-onnoun [U] UK /ˈbɜːn.ɒn/ US /ˈbɝːn.ɑːn/ a feeling of stress and exhaustion experienced by someone who has been working too hard for a long period but continues to be good at their job and appears to be enjoying it
Feeling overworked but not yet burned out? Often the problem is “burn-on,” an under-researched phenomenon whose sufferers desperately struggle to keep up and meet their own expectations — with dangerous consequences for their health … While those suffering from burn-out come to the clinic having already been brought to a standstill by depression, people with burn-on have often worked late into the night the evening before. [worldcrunch.com, 3 December 2022]
loud labourernoun [C] UK /ˌlaʊd ˈleɪ.bᵊr.əʳ/ US /ˌlaʊd ˈleɪ.bɚ.ɚ/ someone who likes to tell colleagues about how busy and successful they are at work, when often this is not actually the case
It’s highly likely that at some point in your career, you’ve encountered a “loud labourer”. These are the people who love to toot their own horn. They’re constantly banging on about all the great stuff they’ve done … so much so that they hardly have time to actually complete their work. But that doesn’t matter, because to a loud labourer, work is not about productivity, but the appearance of it. [worklife.news, 28 August 2023]
sad beigeadjective
/ˌsæd ˈbeɪʒ/ a way of describing the trend of dressing babies and young children in pale brown and other neutral shades because these colours are thought by the parents to be more tasteful and stylish than bright colours
What is “sad beige,” and why do some parents love it so much? The muted palette is hot now: influencers’ Instagram grids are full of photos of children wearing shades ranging from ivory to tan. There’s even a backlash against the so-called “sad beige” trend from people who believe children need a little more color in their lives. [today.com, 18 January 2023]
traumedynoun [U] UK /ˈtrɔː.m.ə.di/ US / ˈtrɑː.mə.di/ a type of comedy that involves someone talking about past traumatic events in their life in a funny way
Standup has certainly taken a sharp turn towards inner trauma in recent years, giving rise to the dismissive portmanteau term “traumedy” to describe the comedic habit of processing disturbing experiences live on stage. And the 2023 Edinburgh fringe now looks like the peak of the trend. [theguardian.com, 20 August 2023]
crying make-upnoun [U]
/ˈkraɪ.ɪŋ ˌmeɪk.ʌp/ a style of make-up that makes the wearer look as though they are, or have recently been, crying
“Crying make-up” is taking over TikTok, but has the “sad girl aesthetic” finally gone too far? Noor Mubarak, a psychological wellbeing practitioner, agrees that the crying make-up trend can be problematic. “For those who are struggling with feelings of despair and tearfulness, it can feel trivialising to see people trying to look like they are struggling for aesthetic purposes.” [glamourmagazine.co.uk, 28 October 2022]
screen apnoeanoun [U]
/ˈskriːn ˌæp.ni.ə/ the situation where someone stops breathing properly when they are looking at the screen of their mobile phone or similar device
The lack of movement that comes from sitting in front of a screen might also be a contributor to screen apnoea, says Dr David Spiegel. Disrupted breathing is the result of “a combination of not just what you’re doing but what you’re not doing,” he says, adding that he noticed screen apnoea among patients who worked high-stress jobs for long hours without getting much exercise or sleep. [smh.com.au, 29 August 2023]
soft trollnoun [C] UK /ˌsɒft ˈtrəʊl/ US /ˌsɑːft ˈtroʊl/ a person who criticizes or makes nasty comments about someone on the internet but only to other people and not directly to the person in question
Have you ever hate-followed fake friends or acquaintances, revelled in online spats or screenshotted someone’s post to bitch about in your group chat? You could be a soft troll. [stylist.co.uk, 28 August 2023]
rage farmingnoun [U] UK /ˈreɪdʒ ˌfɑː.mɪŋ/ US /ˈreɪdʒ ˌfɑːr.mɪŋ/ the activity of posting content on social media that aims to make the reader angry and then share the content with other users
A term which has recently entered common parlance is “rage farming” – a manipulative tactic by bloggers or journalists to elicit outrage with the goal of increasing internet traffic, online engagement, revenue and support. Imagine that one individual who, when they appear on your timeline or tv screen, creates an instantaneous feeling of deep, unbridled anger. It seems this reaction is not just unproblematic for such individuals but eminently desirable. [sluggerotoole.com, 18 January 2023]
beige flagnoun [C]
/ˌbeɪʒ ˈflæg/ a sign that someone you have started a romantic relationship with is a little strange or boring but not enough for you to end the relationship
According to the TikTok users who have latched on to the term in the past month, a beige flag is an odd trait in a romantic prospect that is not quite a deal breaker, but not exactly a plus, either. As one user put it, a beige flag makes a potential partner or a partner pause and say “Huh?” for a few seconds before carrying on with the relationship. [nytimes.com, 7 June 2023] See alsored flag
ghostlightingnoun [U] UK /ˈgəʊst.laɪ.tɪŋ/ US /ˈgoʊst.laɪ.t̬ɪŋ/ the act of ending a relationship with someone by suddenly stopping all communication with them, then trying to make them believe that this did not actually happen and they must have imagined it
Ghostlighting mixes together ghosting – which is where a potential love interest disappears without an explanation – with the more sinister gaslighting, which is an emotional abuse or manipulation tool where a person purposefully tries to twist information to make their partner feel as though they are in the wrong. [www.mirror.co.uk, 25 June 2023] See alsoghosting, gaslighting
groundhoggingnoun [U] UK /ˈgraʊnd.hɒg.ɪŋ/ US /ˈgraʊnd.hɑːg.ɪŋ/ the act of dating the same type of person again and again, even though it never ends in a successful relationship
In dating, groundhogging means you date the same person repeatedly, which never works out for you. Think back on your relationships. Do they all tend to start and end the same way? Do your past significant others have a lot in common? If you answered yes, groundhogging could very well be to blame for your relationship woes. [marriage.com, 14 March 2023] See also Groundhog Day
power skillsnoun [plural] UK /ˈpaʊə ˌskɪlz/ US /ˈpaʊ.ɚ ˌskɪlz/ a set of abilities that are essential for doing your job well but are not specific to any one job
Those who have strong communication, organisational and interpersonal skills find they can adapt quickly to new roles and flourish in busy workplaces. For too long these qualities have been known as soft skills, but increasingly voices in the recruitment sphere are referring to them as power skills because of the impact they have on the workplace. [feweek.co.uk, 14 August 2023]
resenteeismnoun [U] UK /re.zənˈtiː.ɪ.zᵊm/ US /re.zənˈtiː.ɪ.zᵊm/ staying in a job that makes you very unhappy because it provides security or you have no other job to go to
Unlike quiet quitting, where workers refuse to take on extra tasks, workers with resenteeism can’t help but have a moody, negative attitude. As Jason Lalljee notes, “What makes resenteeism different from normal 9-to-5 blues, in theory, is that you’re more open with your dissatisfaction at work.” I believe that if leaders don’t take action, resenteeism can spread among staff members, sabotaging team morale. [fastcompany.com, 21 April 2023]
shift shocknoun [C] UK /ˈʃɪft ˌʃɒk/ US /ˈʃɪft ˌʃɑːk/ a feeling of surprise and disappointment when you start a new job and discover that it, or the company, is not as good as you expected
Shift shock can come as a result of different working hours to the ones you thought you would have (perhaps you were told in your interview you’d “probably” be working 9-5, Monday to Friday, but were advised to be flexible to meet business needs… then you got started and learned you’d be working every weekend), having unexpected responsibilities on your to-do list or discovering that a company’s culture isn’t as lovely as it appeared. [stylist.co.uk, March 2023]
girl dinnernoun [C] UK /ˈgɜːl ˌdɪn.ər/ US /ˈgɝːl ˌdɪn.ɚ/ a simple meal a woman makes for herself, usually consisting of small amounts of different foods, none of which need preparation or cooking
You’re home by yourself and therefore can eat whatever you want for dinner, without having to consider the food preferences or nutrition needs of others. You grab a bag of popcorn, some bread, some cheese and a hunk of chocolate, and settle into the couch for a night of snacking and watching TV. Is there anything more glorious? Welcome to “girl dinner.” [nytimes.com, 18 July 2023]
lazy girl jobnoun [C] UK /ˈleɪ.zi gɜːl ˌdʒɒb/ US /ˈleɪ.zi gɝːl ˌdʒɑːb/ a job that is well paid, does not demand long hours or too much effort, and can often be done remotely
“A lazy girl job is basically something you can just quiet quit,” she says in the two-and-a-half minute video. “There’s lots of jobs out there where you could make, like, 60 to 80 K and not do that much work and be remote.” As an example, she zeroes in on non-technical roles, where she feels the hours fall within a 9-to-5 schedule, and believes the pay is enough to allow for some financial freedom. [www.bbc.com, 26 July 2023]
tomato girlnoun [C] UK /təˈmɑː.təʊ ˌgɜːl/ US / təˈmeɪ.t̬oʊ ˌgɝːl/ a style for young women based on looking healthy, relaxed and typically feminine, said to be inspired by how they would dress and behave when on holiday in a sunny Mediterranean country
Contrary to the name, being a tomato girl has nothing to do with enjoying the fruit or tomato sauce, but instead centers around everything that could come to mind when thinking of tomatoes: lounging in the Italian summer weather, drinking spritz cocktails and also wearing breezy outfits that incorporate a red-themed color palette. [wwd.com, 29 June 2023]
