New terms and phrases you should use!
The English language is constantly evolving. Americans invent new terms and phrases regularly. Some of the phrases are slang terms, some industrial terms, and some are just general terms. I for one love to be at the forefront of these new terms and phrases. I love to hear new terms and phrases from different industries, be it technology, advertising, or what have you. Heck, I even like to learn the newest slangs the teens are saying. I find teen slang particularly extra snatched! Yes, young people, we know your lingo, and we’ve even found your finstas! No cap! But I digress.
I don’t just like to learn these new terms and phrases, I like to invent them as well. Some of my inventions are admittedly silly. A few of these phrases, however, fill a void in the English language. I’ve come up with terms for industries such as advertising, music, and coffee. There are also a few made-up slang terms just because they’re pleasant to say. After all, language should feel good when it rolls off the tongue.
So, without further adieu, here are some brand new terms and phrases you should use in your daily conversations.
Retrobrand/Retrobranding
Retrobranding is a simple concept. If you’ve ever seen a company use an old logo, commercial, trademark, or another branding for nostalgic reasons, that’s retrobranding. I came up with the term after Kroger-owned chain, Fred Meyer, started an ad campaign showcasing their old branding in local advertisements. One famous example of retrobranding is Hershey’s Kisses bell commercial aired every Christmas season. Another example of a retrobrand, Dorritos using their old 1970s logo on the taco-flavored chips. If you have the Burger King app on your phone, you’ll see they retrobrand their logo and the entire feel of the app.
Hang a lugie
Hang a lugie is a casual way to say “take a left.” Hang a lugie can also mean to go left around the block. The latter meaning is useful in situations where one needs to turn right but cannot (physical barrier, no right turn sign, and the like). So one can just hang a lugie around the block to get where they need to go. The origins of hang a lugie are unknown, just a phrase I started saying. The spelling, however, is intentional to differentiate the phrase from a “loogie.” You’re turning left, not spitting left!
Twinga Winga
Twinga Winga is the exact opposite of hang a lugie. Instead of to turn left, to twinga winga means to turn right. Likewise, instead of going left around the block, to twinga twinga means to turn right around the block. The etymology of twinga winga is fully random. Hang a lugie needed a counterpart, and twinga winga just feels fun to say.
First, Second, and Third-wave covers
On my music website AudioPerfecta.com, I often talk about first, second, and third wave covers. I’m currently writing a full article on these terms over at AudioPerfecta, but I will give the essential definitions here. First wave covers are, essentially covers that don’t analyze the song. The band is there to sing a song. They might add a bit of themselves, but they don’t interpret the meaning of the song. A great example is The Andrews Sisters version of “Rum and Coca-Cola.” The Andrews Sisters take a protest song and make it into a snazzy, jazzy melody.
A second wave cover is essentially the opposite of a first wave cover. The artist interprets the song and might even redefine the song. A few famous examples are Jimmi Hendrix’s cover of “All Along the Watchtower” or Johnny Cash’s cover of “Hurt.” Hendrix interprets the meaning but transforms the song with hard rock. Cash makes very few changes to “Hurt,” however he still transforms the song into one of the saddest songs ever recorded.
Third-wave covers are a little trickier to define. Third-wave covers often sound like first-wave covers, the difference is the artist realizes the meaning of the song. Sometimes the artist plays the song tongue in cheek, or just for laughs. Sometimes the artists play the song “in character” or use a totally different genre.
Some notable examples of third-wave covers: Weezer’s cover of Africa, Toto’s reaction cover of Hash Pipe, and pretty much every cover done by Ninja Sex Party. Some “in character” cover artists include Richard Cheese, who does covers in a lounge lizard style, Nouvelle Vague, a band that does Bossa Nova covers of 80s hits, and The Klingon Pop Warrior, who sings pop covers in Klingonese. A notable example of the genre-bending third-wave cover artist is Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, who performs popular hits in a punk style.
Global Coffee Movement
The Global Coffee Movement is what I believe third wave (and fourth wave) coffee should be called. The whole wave labeling of coffee is pretty American-centric. There’s nothing wrong with a coffee movement being centric to a certain part of the world, of course. With that in mind, third (and presumably fourth wave) coffee is all about the global community. It’s counter-intuitive to base the waves of a global movement on one geographical region. So, to fix the American-centric terminology, I propose we ditch the waves of coffee and just say the Global Coffee Movement.
For further information, see Third Wave Coffee and Beyond.
Kumquat
A kumquat is, of course, a small citrus fruit. However, a kumquat is also a slang term related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Simply put, a kumquat is a person who wears their mask under their nose. I chose to call this type of person a kumquat for two reasons. Firstly, a nose protruding out of a mask looks kind of like a kumquat. The two are roughly about the same size and are oftentimes even similar in shape. However, there’s the second reason I chose kumquat for this phenomenon. Kumquat sounds kind of dirty, the first syllable, being “kum” and the second syllable having a hard “qu” sound. The word sounds dirty, and if you’re wearing your mask under your nose, you’re a dirty, dirty person. The CDC agrees with me!
Don’t be a kumquat. Wear your mask properly.
What new terms and phrases have you invented?
I would love to hear about any new terms and phrases invented by you, my loyal readers. I want to know the meanings, the etymology, and the usage. If I have your permission, I might even use these terms and phrases in another article. Let me know in the comments if you have any you’re particularly proud of.
With that in mind, what else would you like to hear me write about? I realize I’ve neglected this site for the last year, but I want to get back into writing here regularly. If your idea is music-related, then you might consider sending it to audioperfecta.com, but other ideas are more than welcome here. I need some writing prompts!
Until later, may your days be on fleek, and full of fire. Are the kids still using those terms?
