Vol. 10 · Portmanteaus ·Contemporary (2000–) ·2012
Grexit
Greek exit
- Meaning
- The hypothesised Greek exit from the eurozone during the 2010s debt crisis.
- Source words
- Greek + exit
- Coined by
- Willem Buiter & Ebrahim Rahbari
- Year
- 2012
Background
Coined by the Citigroup economists in a February 2012 report. *Brexit* (June 2012) followed directly on the model of *Grexit*; the Greek exit never happened, but the construction it created produced *Frexit*, *Itexit*, and similar one-offs.
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.
Browse every portmanteau on the shelf — or cross over to the loanwords atlas.