The concerns and interests of the nation are reflected in the words and expressions that flit to the fore. Here are just a few of the terms that became prominent or first appeared last year.

anchor baby: a derogatory term for a child born in the United States to an immigrant. Since these children automatically qualify as American citizens, they can later act as a sponsor for other family members.

digiroid: a test photograph taken with a cheap digital camera before a more expensive or complicated one is used. From digital plus Polaroid.

frequent flier: a repeat offender; a recidivist; generally, a person who regularly or habitually uses or takes advantage of a service. From the airline industry term but now widely used in hospitals and by police officials.

Fox lips: lips colored and lined with makeup to seem more prominent, said of female anchors on Fox News.

God wink: something taken as evidence that a higher power is at work; a coincidence. Popularized by Squire Rushnell in his 2003 book, “When God Winks,” and in later books. A similar term is God breeze, a commonplace epiphany or revelation.

hubby-sitter: a man hired to keep a woman’s husband out of trouble.

Hummer house: an overly large single-family residence. Synonyms from earlier years are starter castle, faux chateau and McMansion.

Internet courage: boldness of character that comes from the anonymity and distance inherent in Internet communication.

jet people: asylum-seekers, refugees or immigrants who relocate by airplane. Constructed along the lines of boat people.

Johnny Jihad: a Muslim or Muslim combatant. Although this term dates to 1996 or earlier, its heaviest usage by far has occurred since 9/11 and the invasion of Iraq.

Katrina brain: forgetfulness, lack of concentration and failure to follow through on activities, characteristic of the post-traumatic stress of Hurricane Katrina.

never event: a serious or life-endangering medical error.

puppet mouth: a mouth framed by a deep fold running from below the nostrils to the mouth corners. Term used by cosmetic surgeons.

seven-thousand-mile screwdriver: micromanagement of a situation from afar. Lately used to describe the difficulties of managing the war in Iraq.

sneeze: a television advertisement shorter than 15 seconds.

spaghetti bowl: the interconnected and tangled economic relationships of a group of nations.

subzero: a size of clothing smaller than zero, same as size 00.

sudden jihad syndrome: an outburst of violence from a seemingly stable and normal Muslim.

vice mail: voice-mail messages disguised as confidential stock tips left on the wrong answering machine, a form of the pump-and-dump scam.

zeteophobia: a fear of career-planning. Coined by John Krumboltz, a Stanford University professor.

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