Fittingly, it was the year where people questioned and studied the word “justice” the most. Internet users looked up this word 74 percent more times than they did in 2017, explaining why it was awarded Merriam-Webster’s word of 2018. Maybe the world will burn down but at least the people are informed.
Merriam-Webster uploaded a post explaining that the word “justice” was a huge part of this year, having an important spot in many of the country’s most important national debates.
This year’s news had many stories involving the division within the executive branch of government responsible for the enforcement of laws: the Department of Justice, sometimes referred to simply as “Justice.” Of course, the Mueller investigation itself is constantly in the news, and is being carried out through the Justice Department. Another big news story included yet another meaning of the word justice, as a synonym or title for “judge,” used frequently during the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings for the Supreme Court.”
“Justice” is a complex word that can have different understandings depending on the context in which it’s used. It can refer to something that is fair, to an administration of law, or it can also be a judge’s official title. Defintely a word worth Googling.
Runner ups to Merriam-Webster’s word of the year include “nationalism,” “pansexual,” “epiphany”, “lodestar,” and “feckless,” which are all really powerful and thought provoking words. Then there was also “laurel,” because for a hot second we were all obsessed with that Laurel and Yanny video. Hey, it’s not 2018 if there isn’t anything embarrassing on our-year end roundup lists.
