`Hypermiling' is word of the year

I don't know about this. I admit I am not up on the latest trends most of the time, but I have never heard of this word until I saw this word this morning. I also heard we voted for a new president? No I was kidding about that, but I have never heard Hypermiling before. Oh well you learn something new everyday.

New Oxford American Dictionary has named "hypermiling" as its word of the year for 2008:

“Hypermiling” was coined in 2004 by Wayne Gerdes, who runs this web site. “Hypermiling” or “to hypermile” is to attempt to maximize gas mileage by making fuel-conserving adjustments to one’s car and one’s driving techniques. Rather than aiming for good mileage or even great mileage, hypermilers seek to push their gas tanks to the limit and achieve hypermileage, exceeding EPA ratings for miles per gallon.

I don't buy it. I think it's a scrap of jargon to describe a fringe pursuit, not a word that real people really use all that much.

New York Times language maven William Safire doesn't like it, either. From New Oxford's list of also rans, he prefers "frugalista," a "person who leads a frugal lifestyle, but stays fashionable and healthy by swapping clothes, buying second-hand, growing own produce, etc."

I prefer "staycation," defined as "a vacation taken at or near one’s home, taking day trips, etc," since it came up quite a bit this summer in conversations and articles about high gas prices.

Other words that were under consideration:

* moofer
* topless meeting
* toxic debt
* carrot mob
* ecohacking
* hockey mom
* link bait
* luchador
* rewilding
* tweet
* wardrobe (as a verb)

There's still hope for them. Other groups or publications will soon name their words of the year, including the American Dialect Society, Webster's New World College Dictionary and Merriam-Webster.

In addition, Lake Superior State University will soon add to its "List of Words Banished from the Queen's English for Mis-Use, Over-Use and General Uselessness."

I'd put "hockey mom" on that list.

(Oxford's 2007 word of the year was "locavore." For 2006 it was "carbon neutral." For 2005, "podcast.")

Comments are open for your nominations.