Vol. 10 · Portmanteaus ·Contemporary (2000–) ·1994
Chillax
chill relax
- Meaning
- To relax; to unwind.
- Source words
- chill + relax
- Coined by
- US teen slang
- Year
- 1994
Background
First widely recorded in 1994 California teen speech. Entered the OED in 2010 as a "North American slang" entry; has since drifted into general casual use.
Contemporary (2000–)
Faster coinage, faster canonisation. Brexit and podcast both reached the OED within a decade of first use — historically rapid. Social media has made visibility, not invention, the rate-limiting step.
Two words, one coinage.
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