又中又英 | Slop | 褚简宁

　　Well-known dictionaries always decide their Word of the Year around this time. Choosing the Word of the Year involves a lot of research, including gathering millions of words from social media and news sites to identify new or old words that became popular during the year. Dictionary lexicographers and editors then decide which word becomes the Word of the Year. A lexicographer is a person whose job is to write dictionaries. Merriam-Webster chose slop as the Word of the Year for 2025. The word "slop" is not a new word. It's been used since the 1700s, but the meaning has evolved over the years.

　　The original meaning in the 1700s was soft mud. It then changed in the 1800s to food waste fed to pigs, which is called "pig slop". The meaning then became rubbish. Throughout the years, slop represented something people didn't want to touch, such as "slime" or wet mud. The word "slime" means a sticky liquid that is unpleasant to touch, like the outside of frogs or snails. A slimeball is a disgusting and dishonest person who pretends to be a friend. Merriam-Webster's new definition of slop is digital content of low quality which is mass-produced by artificial intelligence, or AI for short.

　　Merriam-Webster said the huge quantity of slop in 2025 included absurd videos, fake news that looked real, and cheesy propaganda. The word "cheesy" used this way means bad quality, such as a movie with bad acting and a predictable plot, or insincere, such as people giving you an insincere or not genuine smile. I am glad I can avoid slop by not using social media.

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　　知名的字典常在大约年末这个时候挑选它们的年度代表字。挑选年度字涉及大量的研究，包括从社交媒体和新闻网站搜集数以百万计的字，以识别那一年流行的新字或旧字。字典的 lexicographers和编辑们就会决定哪一个字成为年度代表字。A lexicographer就是词典编纂者。韦氏字典选了 slop为2025年度字。Slop并非新字，它自1700年代已有人开始使用，但其意思在这么多年来已然演变。 

　　它于1700年代的原初意思是柔软的泥泞，然后于1800年代就变成了"pig slop"，即喂给猪吃的猪馊，再后来其意思又变成了垃圾。这么多年来，slop代表了人们不想触碰的东西，例如"slime"或湿泥。"Slime"一字是指触摸时令人感到讨厌的黏液，例如青蛙或蜗牛的外侧。A slimeball就是一个令人恶心和假惺惺，跟你装好友的人。韦氏字典对slop的最新定义，是人工智能（简称AI）大量生成的低质数码内容。

　　韦氏字典说，2025年大量的AI馊水（slop）包括了荒唐怪诞的影片、像真的假新闻以及 cheesy宣传。Cheesy在这里的意思是劣质的，例如一出演员演技很烂、剧情又是意料之中的电影，又或解作不诚恳的，譬如有人给你一个虚伪或不真挚的笑容。我很高兴我没有使用社交媒体，就避开了许多AI馊水（slop）。              

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Michael Chugani褚简宁
中译：七刻