Each week, we scan the latest headlines to spot words in action. From major news stories to pop culture buzz, this list highlights language as it’s unfolding. Stories about police officers dressing as superheroes, historians unveiling a 1,900-year-old tax evasion scheme, and salmon accidentally ingesting anti-anxiety drugs all contributed words to this list of vocabulary from the week’s news.
antitrust
adjective: opposing or intended to restrain trusts, monopolies, or other large combinations of business and capital, especially with a view to maintaining and promoting competition
From the headlines: The U.S. government’s antitrust trial against Meta, the parent company of Facebook, began on April 14. CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified before a federal judge, responding to allegations that the company acquired rival brands in order to reduce competition. An attorney for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) cited a 2012 email from Zuckerberg, written shortly before Meta’s acquisition of Instagram, which allegedly referred to “neutralizing a competitor” — a move the agency argues is in violation of antitrust laws designed to ensure fair market practices.
bilk
verb: to defraud; cheat
From the headlines: New details have emerged about two London men arrested in February by undercover British police officers dressed as Batman and Robin. The pair was caught running a street gambling scam that police say was designed to look like a game of chance but was rigged to ensure players couldn’t win. The men are accused of bilking unsuspecting tourists, a violation of U.K. laws that prohibit street gambling.
conductive
adjective: having the property or capability of transmitting energy through a material
From the headlines: In Panama’s forests, researchers found one tree that actually thrives on lightning: the almendro. While most trees are fried by a strike, the tall, highly conductive almendro channels the surge into the ground — often zapping nearby plants instead. Each hit toughens the tree, frying parasitic vines and thinning out the competition.
evasion
noun: an act or instance of violating tax laws by failing or refusing to pay all or part of one’s taxes
From the headlines: A newly deciphered 1,900-year-old papyrus reveals the twists of an ancient trial involving tax evasion. The paper scroll was found decades ago in the Judean desert, but historians only recently decoded it. Written in ancient Greek, the document details a convoluted crime that involved illegally buying and freeing enslaved people and falsifying documents in order to avoid paying taxes.
generative AI
noun: Computers. artificial intelligence designed to process prompts from users and respond with text, images, audio, or other output that is modeled on a training data set
From the headlines: Some critics are raising red flags about the new trend of people using generative AI to make action figures of themselves. They’re worried it could seriously harm both the environment and data privacy. AI tools use more electricity each year than 117 countries combined, as well as large amounts of water. On top of that, there are growing concerns about what happens to the data people share to make their mini-me figures, like their photos and personal info.
inimical
adjective: adverse in tendency or effect; unfavorable; harmful
From the headlines: Researchers found that when migrating Atlantic salmon were exposed to anti-anxiety drugs in streams and rivers, they were more antisocial, less fearful, and more prone to taking risks. While this behavior made the fish more likely to reach their destinations, it was ultimately inimical to their long-term health. The salmon were less likely to join a protective school of fish, making it easier for predators to target them.
Fun fact: Inimical shares a Latin root with enemy.
perennial
adjective: (of plants) having a life cycle lasting more than two years
From the headlines: For the first time in 11 years, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has adjusted its gardening zone map. The updated guide, which helps gardeners understand which perennial plants can thrive in a particular area, accounts for the planet’s warmer temperatures. Zones are calculated by the average coldest yearly temperature, which determines what plants can survive the winter and return in the spring, year after year.
reprise
verb: to execute a repetition of; repeat
From the headlines: Leslie Odom Jr. is set to reprise his Tony-winning role as Aaron Burr in Hamilton. Part of the original cast, Odom shared his final performance with Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda in 2016. Now, Odom Jr. is making a much-anticipated return to Broadway this September — for a limited time only.
terrestrial
adjective: Zoology. living on or in the ground; not aquatic, arboreal, or aerial
From the headlines: A new social media trend has people channeling their inner terrestrial giants by chomping raw leafy greens straight from the bag. Dubbed “Dinosaur Time” on TikTok, this feral nutrition hack skips the prep — just grab fistfuls of kale, chard, or spinach and devour greens like a dinosaur.
vicissitude
noun: a change or variation occurring in the course of something
From the headlines: Stock markets continued to swing up and down this week in reaction to new tariffs imposed by the U.S. and China, pauses on other tariffs, and fears of a worsening trade war. The market’s vicissitude is worrying some investors, including people who are saving for retirement and college. Economists say the fluctuations have led to concerns over a possible worldwide economic slowdown.
