"Wokewashing" to "hittefit": Voting opens for Van Dale's word of the year
From today until December 18, Netherlands residents can vote for the Van Dale Word of the Year 2023. The ten nominees cover failures by government services, inflation, climate change, social justice, and social media.
Here are the ten nominees, in bold in Dutch, followed by a brief definition in English.
Bestuurschaamte - shame a person feels because of damage caused by the failure of an administrative body they belong to or are responsible for. Stems from major government scandals like the Groningen gas file and the benefits scandal.
Graaiflatie - translates to “grabflation,” but stems from the English “greedflation.” Inflation fueled by companies’ excessive price increases to raise their profits.
Hittefit - translates to “heat fit.” It means being prepared for a heatwave and physically able to withstand high temperatures.
Nepobaby - shortened from the English nepotism baby. It refers to someone who is said to owe their job to their famous parents, particularly in the entertainment and creative sector.
Sportsfluencer - a combination of sports and influencer. It refers to famous athletes and former athletes who advertise sports and other items on social media.
TikTokjustitie - vigilantism by publicly exposing an alleged perpetrator of a crime on TikTok or another social media platform.
Treitertaks - translates to “bullying tax.” It refers to a tax measure perceived as unjust or unfair by the person who has to pay it.
Vreugdebier - translates to “joy beer.” It refers to glasses of beer that football supporters throw onto the field from the stands because they are happy with a goal.
Wokewashing - refers to using people who promote values like diversity and inclusivity to conceal abuse. It derives from English terms like “whitewashing.”
X’en - a verb meaning to post on the social media platform X. Like tweeting was for Twitter before Elon Musk changed the platform’s name.
Netherlands residents can vote for their favorite word of the year here until 5:00 p.m. on December 18. The winner will be announced the next day.
