There are few things as simple, yet as powerful, as a single word. One word can conjure up the strongest of emotions and memories. The word meadow evokes a peaceful image of a grassy field dotted with clover and thistle. Or if I say the word war, horrific scenes of bloody battlefields enter your mind. (“War, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing.” – Edwin Starr)
The fascinating thing about words and our vocabulary is that they’re continuously evolving. Have you ever heard of the word, crake? Unless you grew up in the same small town as me, probably not. It means “fun,” as in “That was such a crake last night!” or, as written in my high school yearbook, “Ellen- you’re a real crake.” High praise!
There came a point when the development/arrival of words started to outpace me. In the late 90’s, I was working in a children’s rehabilitation hospital when a teenage patient rolled up to me in his wheelchair and pointed at another boy hurrying down the hallway.
“Did you hear him, Ellen? He dissed me in front of everybody!”
PAUSE. “Um…what?”
“Dissed me! In front of everybody!”
“He dissed you. What does that even mean?!”
He rolled his eyes. “Dissed! As in disrespect?”
Where was I when this slang word began? Well, I’m not one to dis a new word, so I plopped that one into my lexicon.
The thing is, these slang words seem to have an expiration date.
It’s now 2023, and I was working with a group of middle schoolers who were playing an online educational game called, “Blooket.” One of the boys managed to steal his opponent’s entire bank of points and win the game.
“Wow,” I said. “You really dissed him.”
“I… what?”
“You know… You dissed him. By swiping all his points?”
“Um. We don’t say dis anymore, Mrs. R.”
“We don’t?”
“Nope.” He shook his head. “That’s sus.”
What? Sus? Well, up your nose with a rubber hose.