Happy New Year and good Netiquette IQ to all!
Countdown, countdown ‘pag may time: Top buzzwords of 2013
In 2013, hashtags and scandals twerked their way into our vocabularies. This year, the impact of social media on the way we converse was undeniable. Popular hashtags, such as #OOTD and #MedyoBadBoy, became part of our spoken language. Our growing online self-love also created a new word, the now ubiquitous “selfie.”
Scandals also sparked not only public outrage, but also trending topics and household words. "Pork" and "Napoles" gained infamy due to a much-talked-about scandal involving public funds. Even an unknowing beauty queen, Janine Tugonon, saw her name turn into a verb referring to a crass act.
Although the buzzword conversations were mostly online, traditional media still influenced our spoken language. Miley Cyrus' sizzling dance number, Ryzza Mae Dizon's innocent optimism and Michael V.'s cross-dressed antics—all seen frequently on TV—gave us new words and expressions this year.
Go into Throwback mode as we look back at the top 13 buzzwords of 2013:
13. Na-Janine
When beauty queen Janine Tugonon announced her breakup with her boyfriend on national TV last April, she entered into a long-term love affair with our vocabularies. Her name is now being used as a verb to refer to the act of publicly and candidly calling it quits with one's partner for another person, usually a more high-profile one.
Use in a sentence: "'Yung barkada ko naglalasing kasi na-Janine siya. Pinagpalit daw siya ng girlfriend niya sa dean noong college nila."
12. Wow. Big word!
Popularized by Sarah Geronimo in the movie "It Takes A Man and A Woman," this phrase is used as an instantaneous reaction to a loaded word, or a term that is just too highfalutin. This phrase must be delivered with utmost swagger, as if rebuking the person who uttered the "big word."
Use in a sentence: "Love? Wow. Big word!" or "Instantaneous? Wow. Big Word!"
11. #MedyoBadBoy
This phrase started out as a meme featuring the face of teen actor Daniel Padilla, and has since been used to refer to any petty violation of rules. The expression was so popular that a snack brand even used it in its ad campaign.
Use in a sentence: "#MedyoBadBoy ako dahil hindi ko shinake well before use 'yung gamot."
10. #OOTD
In 2013, Instagram turned into a lookbook through #OOTD, which stands for "outfit of the day." This hashtag empowered many model wannabes to show off who and what they're wearing to the world. This abbreviation is also now being used even in regular conversations to refer to someone's stylish getup.
Use in a sentence: "Lakas maka-OOTD 'yang backless blouse at pink leggings mo ha."
9. Cronut
This year, simple croissants and donuts just weren't enough to satisfy our sweet tooth. The cronut, an imported mashup of two well-loved pastries, got throngs of Filipinos lining up outside specialty bakeries.
Use in a sentence: "I wanted a cronut so bad that I would have sold my body for one."
8. Twerk
Each year is defined by a dance move, and in 2013, no other dance move was as popular as the provocative, booty-shaking twerk. This dance step created so much buzz after the now-nubile Miley Cyrus twerked her way to controversy at the MTV Video Music Awards last August.
Use in a sentence: "Everyone was twerking in the club last night so I had to twerk too."
7. Look up
Popular child star Ryzza Mae Dizon, known as "Aling Maliit" for her being adorably precocious, taught us this year not only a new pose for pictures, but also a way of looking at life. The expression "Look Up" encourages optimism in the face of problems, and trust in the Almighty—life lessons imparted to us by an eight-year-old kid.
Use in a sentence: "Marami mang problema ang kinaharap natin ngayon, dapat look up lang palagi."
6. Paki-explain!
This year, nothing on social media escaped the prying eyes of Donya Ina, the character of a comically inquisitive mother played by Michael V. on "Bubble Gang." Her trademark expression, "Paki-explain!," has been imitated by netizens in calling out online vanity or violations of netiquette. It is usually followed by "Labyu" to give a light tone to the criticism.
Use in a sentence: "Nag-post ka ng Facebook status tapos ikaw rin ang nag-like? Anong klaseng pagpapapansin 'yan? Paki-explain! Labyu."
5. Throwback
Thursday became a day of nostalgia on social media in 2013 through #ThrowbackThursday, or simply #TBT. This Internet theme day caused pictures from way back—some even black-and-white photos from the baul—to surface, and made Filipino netizens reminisce the good old times. The word "throwback" is also now used to describe anything that evokes nostalgia.
Use in a sentence: "Nakaka-throwback naman 'yang dala mong diskette."
4. Napoles
Controversial businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles, who allegedly engineered the P10-billion "pork barrel" scam, not only triggered a massive protest and a congressional inquiry this year. Her surname also became synonymous to scams and other questionable transactions that tend to drain one's money. Some netizens even use the term "Napoles-zoned" to refer to the state of receiving no substantial answer from someone, after the alleged pork barrel scam mastermind clammed up during a Senate inquiry last November.
Use in a sentence: "Ang bilis naman maubos ng sweldo ko. Para akong na-Napoles."
3. ‘Pag may time
If there was an award for the most overused expression every year, then "'pag may time" would be the runaway winner for 2013. The term, literally used to express what one does during his or her free time, has probably been attached to every single noun or verb imaginable. The use of this expression involves a certain formula: Repeat the noun or verb twice, attach "'pag may time" and then say the phrase in a relaxed, nonchalant manner.
Use in a sentence: "Palagi ka na lang nagtatrabaho. Relax relax din 'pag may time."
2. Pork
Filipinos will never look at pig meat the same way again. Although the term "pork barrel" or simply "pork" have been used for decades, it only became a household word this year due to a historic scam involving these politicians' discretionary funds. The scandal sparked widespread public outrage, thus giving Filipinos' favorite meat a malodorous connotation.
Use in a sentence: "Hindi pa rin nagagawa 'yung tulay malapit sa bahay namin. Baka binulsa na naman ni congressman 'yung pork niya."
1. Selfie
Now even the Pope has one. 2013 became the year when everyone took a selfie, or a self-portrait snapped with a smartphone and uploaded on social media sites. The word, one of the newest inclusions in the Oxford Dictionary, gave a clear picture of how narcissistic the world, empowered with new tools, became in 2013.
Use in a sentence: "Nakakaabala na sa Facebook feed ko 'yung mga selfie mo kaya in-unfriend na kita."
—KG/HS, GMA News
