In Iowa: The year in words, at least what’s fit to print

There are some of you who would, no doubt, argue the best words to describe 2016 would not be appropriate for a family newspaper. I understand.

Maybe it's the election that has you, like old man Parker in 'A Christmas Story,” weaving 'a tapestry of obscenities” that still hangs over our Creative Corridor. Or perhaps you're stunned by all the staggering losses sustained during 2016, Prince, Bowie, Cohen, Ali and so many more. Maybe the word of the year should be 'memoriam.” Two weeks left, so hang on folks.

I'm afraid the usual suspects in the word-of-the-year game have precious little comfort to offer us.

Dictionary.com offers up 'xenophobia,” the 'fear or hatred of foreigners, people from different cultures or strangers.” Its list is based on users' word searches.

Oxford Dictionaries on both sides of the pond settled on 'post-truth” as the word of the year. It's an adjective 'relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.” Or maybe we're just making the English language great again.

In Germany, it's pronounced 'postfaktisch,” and it's also the word of the year.

So this year was defined by a term created to label the declining influence of factual knowledge. Or maybe 2016 was all about our fears and hatred.

Remember 2015, when the 'face with tears of joy” emoji was Oxford's word of the year? The good old days.

Other words that made Oxford's 2016 list included 'adulting,” as in acting like a responsible adult. This now needs a special label, apparently. Along with 'coulrophobia,” an 'extreme or irrational fear of clowns,” and 'hygge,” a Danish term meaning 'a quality of coziness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being.”

It was a veritable hygge of adulting until the creepy clowns showed up.

And yet, it could be even worse. Earlier this month, Merriam-Webster warned its online readers that 'fascism” was leading the race to become its word of the year. Many responded by searching the site for 'puppies,” hoping to overwhelm dark political impulses with a warm fuzzy. The final result will arrive any minute.

Closer to home, politics also dominated our wordiness. Proud, motivated Iowa 'deplorables” handed Donald Trump a big win here over Hillary Clinton, with hopes he would 'Lock her up!” State Republicans captured the elusive 'trifecta,” giving them control of the Iowa House, Senate and governor's office.

U.S. Rep. Steve King, who last year gave us 'deportables,” wowed ‘em at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland with his explanation of how no 'subgroups” did more for western civilization than good old white folks.

But it wasn't all election stuff.

In Marion, this was the dizzying year 'roundabouts” went from concept to concrete on Seventh Avenue. In Cedar Rapids, 'Go” became the new name of its convention and visitors' bureau, and 'snout house” made a late entry thanks to aesthetically minded city officials concerned about protruding garages.

This was the year we first heard of a 'boutique” casino, which Wild Rose Entertainment and developers are proposing to build in downtown Cedar Rapids. But our old friend 'cannibalization” may take a bite out of those plans.

Linn County joined Johnson County in passing a countywide increase in the minimum wage. Now Iowa has a 'hodgepodge” of wage rates lawmakers likely will feel the need to address. 'Local control” apparently has been deleted from the legislative lexicon.

But I'm going to make a more optimistic pick for 2016's top word.

I'm going with 'HESCO,” as in the temporary flood barriers named after the manufacturer that helped save Cedar Rapids in September from the swollen Cedar River's second-highest crest. They're a sand-filled symbol of our ability to prepare, respond and protect what we value.

Forget adulting. We may all need to do some personal HESCO-ing in 2017.

l Comments: (319) 398-8452; todd.dorman@thegazette.com