Fleabay (eBay nickname)
eBay is an online auction site that was founded in 1995. One popular nickname for eBay has been "Fleabay" or "FleaBay" (flea market + eBay). The unflattering nickname compares…
New York City
Fleebagger (flee + teabagger/fleabagger)
In February 2011, Democratic Wisconsin lawmakers fled the state to prevent the legislature from obtaining a quorum and voting on bills to require concessions from the state's unionized…
Fleet Week
"Fleet Week" is when New York City becomes host to our sailors. The Frank Sinatra-Gene Kelly movie musical On the Town (1949) popularized sailors on leave in our wonderful town.…
Fletcher Henderson popularization of “the Big Apple” in the 1930s
In 1990, Harlem Assemblywoman Geraldine Daniels published a letter in the New York Times that stated that musician Fletcher Henderson (1879-1952) popularized "the Big Apple" in the 1930s.…
Flexian
"Flexian' (sometimes misspelled "flexion") was coined by Janine R. Wedel in her book, Shadow Elite: how the world's new power brokers undermine democracy, government, and…
Flexitarian
Entry in progress -- B.P. Wiktionary: FlexitarianEtymologyBlend of flexible and vegetarian. Adjectiveflexitarian (comparative more flexitarian, superlative most flexitarian)1. (of a person) Being a…
Flight to Quality
A "flight to quality" is when investors sell higher-risk investments and purchase lower-risk investments (with lower potential returns). In the past, a "flight to quality" has…
Flightilla (flight + flotilla)
The word "flightilla" (fly + flotilla) -- also spelled "flytilla" -- was popularized on July 6, 2011, following the failure of the "Freedom Flotilla II" to sail past…
Flightmare (flight + nightmare)
Entry in progress -- BP
Flip Tax
The "flip tax" is also called the "transfer tax." It started in the 1970s, with the co-op apartment boom. People who sold or "flipped" their co-ops would have to pay a…
Flip-Flop (Flip-Flopper)
A politician is called a "flip-flopper" when he or she "flip-flops" (changes position) on an issue. The terms come from the 19th century; an older term is…
Floasted (flavor + toasted)
"Floasted" (flavor + toasted) was popularized in a commercial for Quiznoz sandwich shops in September 2013. Reaction to the commercial and "floasted" became a popular subject on…
Floater Coffee (cream coffee)
A "floater coffee" is coffee with sugar, and with cream floating on top. Liquor may be added, such as Drambuie, Tia Maria, Jameson Irish Whiskey, Baileys Irish Cream, Disaronno,…
Floating Head (Douglas Manor swimmer)
Douglas Manor is part of Douglaston, Queens. The water in Douglas Manor is so dirty that only the heads of swimmers can be seen. Swimmers have been called the "floating heads." Wikipedia:…
Floccinaucinihilipilificationism
"Floccinaucinihilipilification" is one of the longest words in the English language. U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan (1927-2003), from New York, added the suffix "-ism" to…
Floor D’oeuvre (floor + hors d’oeuvre)
"Floor d’oeuvre" (floor + hors d’oeuvre) is a bit of food dropped on the floor, often to be eaten by a dog or a toddler. "#365newwords 106 floor d'oeuvres (noun) : food…
Flopcorn (unpopped corn kernel)
'Flopcorn" is an invented word for the unpopped kernels of popcorn. The word "flopcorn" dates to at least 1990 in a collection of "sniglets," described by…
Floperetta (flop + operetta)
"Floperetta" is a portmanteau of the words "flop" and "operetta." A failed musical is a "floperetta." The term was coined by syndicated gossip columnist…
Floribbean (Florida + Caribbean)
"Floribbean" is "Florida" + "Caribbean." National Airlines advertised "Floribbean" vacations in the 1960s. In the early 1990s, "Floribbean" became…
Florida Glare (fiction genre)
The New Yorker's Critic-at-Large Adam Gopnik wrote "In the Back Cabana: The rise and rise of Florida crime fiction" for the June 10, 2013 issue. Gopnik declared that the L.A. noir…