“Surreal” was the word of the year last year.
Feminism’s roots date to 14th-century English. Sokolowski had to look no further than his company’s founder, Noah Webster, for the first dictionary reference, in 1841. “It was a very new word at that time,” Sokolowski said. “His definition is not the definition that you and I would understand today. His definition was ‘the qualities of females,’ so, basically, feminism to Noah Webster meant femaleness.”
On the flip side, the most disliked word use is “whatever.” Every year the Marist Institute for Public Opinion (MIPO) — a survey research center — conducts a poll, and for nine straight years, Americans say “whatever” is the most annoying word or phrase used in casual conversation.