Term poking fun at climate activists’ protest methods named Dutch Word of the Year

The new Dutch term klimaatklever was voted the 2022 Word of the Year. According to Van Dale, the dictionary publisher that runs the contest every year, a klimaatklever is “an activist who glues themself to an object of symbolic value to draw the public’s attention to the climate crisis.”

The new slang term is derived from the Dutch words for climate and klever, which can mean adhesive, sticker, or someone who clings. The editors-in-chief of the complete Dikke Van Dale dictionary announced the winner on Tuesday. A total of about 15,000 votes were cast in the contest, with voting completed on Monday.

Zevenvinker finished in second place. The term means someone who can put seven checkmarks on a list and, based on that, is automatically socially privileged. The list is comprised of the following attributes: man, white, straight, completed pre-university education, university education, Dutch-born, wealthy and from highly educated parents.

Energietoerisme, which literally translates to energy tourism, refers to the act of traveling to a warmer country in the winter to avoid the high energy prices in one’s home country.

For the first time three years, the list of candidates did not include any references to the coronavirus pandemic. The remaining seven potential dictionary additions include subjects which were frequently discussed this year, such as the war in Ukraine and corporate profits during inflation. It was the 16th annual Word of the Year contest by Van Dale.

Remaining Dutch Word of the Year entries

Boektokken - a TikTok video about a book

Bofbelasting - an additional tax levied on unexpectedly large corporate profits, especially if it is not the result of normal business operations but of geopolitical or social developments.

Emojibaby - a baby or child whose face is covered by an emoji on photos posted on social media to protect their privacy.

Needlespiking - drugging someone in a crowd by injecting them when they don’t suspect it.

Prijzenpijn - consumers suffering from higher prices, particularly due to inflation.

Spijtgezin - a family who regrets taking (Ukrainian) refugees into their home

Stopbonus - a bonus paid by the State to an entrepreneur to stop their heavily polluting company.