Copyright © Françoise Herrmann
On January 10th, 2025, at the conclusion of the 35th Annual Word of the Year (WOTY) vote, the distinguished American Dialect Society (ADS), since1889, in conjunction with the Linguistic Society of America (LSA), since 1924, selected the term ‘rawdogging’ as the Word of the Year 2024. A term meaning: “to undertake something difficult without usual protection, preparation, or comfort”, that crossed over into mainstream usage from the original slang meaning “to have sex without a condom”. Thus, for example, the uses of the term ‘rawdog’ in the following sentences was selected as WOTY 2024 :
- Forgot my headphones and had to rawdog my treadmill run.- Raw dogged a 7-hour flight without phone, headphones or water (new personal best).- Raw dogged my everyday allergies and sinus sensitivities
Three hundred attendees, including linguists, lexicographers, etymologists, grammarians, historians, researchers, writers, editors, students, and independent scholars, were present to vote on the term ‘rawdog’, in a session jointly presided by Ben Zimmer, Wall Street Journal columnist and Chair of the ADS New Words Committee, and Dr. Kelly Elizabeth Wright, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the New Words Committee data czar. The joint statement issued at the end of the session was the following:
Rawdog has recently and rapidly burst its sexual bounds to refer to engagement in any activity without the typical preparation or in stonecold sobriety. In 2024 folks rawdogged flights, family dinners, and final exams. As one nominator commented this evening, rawdog is a great choice for Word of the Year as we collectively rawdog the future of American politics in 2025.
Selection of the ADS/LSA Word of the Year is a much-anticipated event, as the whole process of nominating, deliberating, and final voting, is informed by the longstanding expertise of its members.
References
American Dialect Society
https://americandialect.org/
American Linguistic Society
https://www.lsadc.org/
Zimmer, B. & Dr. K.A. Wright (Jan. 10, 2025). American Dialect Society Selects rawdog as 2024 Word of the Year. Press Release. American Dialect Society, Dept. of Linguistics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA.
https://americandialect.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2024-Word-of-the-Year-PRESS-RELEASE.pdf
American Dialect Society
https://americandialect.org/
American Linguistic Society
https://www.lsadc.org/
Zimmer, B. & Dr. K.A. Wright (Jan. 10, 2025). American Dialect Society Selects rawdog as 2024 Word of the Year. Press Release. American Dialect Society, Dept. of Linguistics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA.
https://americandialect.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2024-Word-of-the-Year-PRESS-RELEASE.pdf
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