Merriam-Webster Word of the Day - Yuppify

WORD OF THE DAY February 16, 2018

yuppify    verb | YUP-uh-fye     Definition   : to make appealing to yuppies; also : to infuse with the qualities or values of yuppies   Scroll down for more about yuppify       WORD GAMES AND QUIZZES: WEEKLY CHALLENGE   Namesakes Word Quiz   When names become words and then we ask you about them.     PLAY NOW     Nailed this quiz? We have plenty more to try!  TAKE ME THERE     Plus:   SEE WHAT LOOKUPS ARE TRENDING NOW!         Did You Know?   Yuppie and yuppify are products of the 1980s, but they owe a debt to predecessors from decades prior. Hippie (referring to a long-haired, unconventionally dressed young person who rejects societal mores; from hip, meaning "cool") first appeared in print in the 1950s. Yippie (naming a politically active hippie; from Youth International Party) followed hippie a decade later. Gentrification and gentrify (both of which have to do with the effects of influxes of relatively affluent people into deteriorating neighborhoods; from gentry) then evolved. Yuppie (pointing out a young well-paid professional who lives and works in or near an urban area; probably from young urban professional, influenced by hippie and yippie) hit the press in the early 1980s, bringing along yuppify and yuppification (patterned after gentrify and gentrification).     Examples of YUPPIFY   My sister rents an expensive apartment in a neighborhood that was recently yuppified.   "In those days, Surry Hills was a working-class suburb, and while its northern edges have been yuppified, the southern end around Cleveland Street maintains a vestige of the old feel." — Ean Higgins, The Australian, 31 July 2017   Test Your Vocabulary   Unscramble the letters to create a British English verb that means "to rebuild": EERDIYF.   VIEW THE ANSWER           MERCH     Merriam-Webster Swag!   Show off your smarts with M-W gear   CHECK OUT OUR SELECTION

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