Misnomer, Covfefe, Fake News - Words and Phrases Used By Donald Trump Which Created Confusion

Every politician’s speech is looked with much scrutiny and if it is Donald Trump, then people are all ears. Over time, listening to the American President’s speeches, one can easily notice a pattern of repeated words. Trump uses some words and phrases over and over in his speeches. Not just his speeches but even sometimes in his tweets. He uses a lot of adjectives and superlative phrases while he talks. Some of the most common words used by Trump are Great, Classy, Tremendous, A lot of money, millions and billions. But take a look at some of the other words used by Trump, which left the reader/listener confused for some point.

1. Misnomer: In response to heated quotes published by Steve Bannon, the former strategist in the White House, Trump again made a mistake of using the word ‘misnomer’ incorrectly. By definition, misnomer means ‘A use of a wrong or inappropriate name or designation. To quote Trump, “He called me a great man last night. He obviously changed his tune pretty quick…. I don’t talk to him. I don’t talk to him. That’s just a misnomer.” Trump’s usage suggested a misstatement or inaccuracy. So Trump’s usage of the word ‘misnomer’ became the actual definition itself. Post Trump’s statement, the searched for the word spiked high. Just like covfefe was widely searched, Google Trends reported the search results for misnomer went up to 1800%.
2. Covfefe: In May, Trump tweeted an incomplete sounding sentence ‘Despite the constant negative press covfefe. But what does covfefe mean? There is no such word like that and everyone who follows the President wanted to search the meaning of the new word. Many thought it would be just another typo and would be deleted. But when it was there till next morning, it caused more curiosity. Several tried to find out the meaning of the non-existing word which later turned into a joke. The next morning Trump just continued the joke by tweeting "Who can figure out the true meaning of 'covfefe' ??? Enjoy!"
3. Fake News: Fake news is one of Trump’s favourite phrases which he keeps using while he criticizes the media. In fact, he even claimed he has coined the term which actually has been in use since many odd years and was used also from 2005 for false reportage. Trump has time and again even wrote it in his twitter rants. The term means ‘false, often sensational, information disseminated under the guise of news reporting.’ But the usage of this phrase became so popular that it has been declared ‘Word of the year 2017’ by Collins, who publishes dictionaries.
4. Moron: Moron is an informal way of addressing a stupid person. Donald Trump has time and again used this word in his speeches for the media repeatedly. He has also called those who do not fit in the traditional ideas including the writer of popular show ‘Modern Family.’

   There was also a controversy when a video had surfaced in which secretary of state Rex Tillerson had apparently called Trump, a moron. Trump implied he is much smarter than Rex and they should compare IQ tests too.

5. Nambia: Trump seems to be in some hurry whenever he makes speeches. In September during a speech he referred to the nation ‘Nambia’ which again doesn’t exist. It could have been a combination of two African countries- Namibia and Zambia said some observers. Trump’s slurry speeches have many such mistakes which have been trolled on the social media many times.

These are just some of the words, Trump has used which have either stirred some problems or turned into a joke on social media. Well, could we say Trump needs to work on his words and definitions? He tends to use the similar words all the time. His some over complex words or incorrect usages can actually leave a lot of people confused.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 05, 2018 10:47 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).