The portmanteau is a clever linguistic trick that forms a new word by combining two others, like “breakfast” and “lunch” melded into “brunch.” (“Lupper,” as a Janeane Garofalo character on Seinfeld proposed for “lunch” and “supper,” never did catch on.)

Political portmanteaus were among the buzzwords that sprang up during the 2024 election season. Others were clever twists on existing phrases; not quite portmanteaus, but close. Most were engaging the first 50 or 60 times but then just felt like hackery.

Here are my five top political buzzwords of 2024. And by “top,” I mean my top choices for expressions I hope never to hear again:

• Lawfare: Combining “law” and “warfare,” it accuses one party of using the legal system to bring down their opponent.

• Nauseously Optimistic: A play on “cautiously optimistic,” it was coined by someone in the Kamala Harris campaign to describe hope for victory mixed with a sick certainty of possible failure.

• Permission Structure: An argument that enables an opponent to come to your side without feeling they’ve betrayed their core values. “I understand you’re personally opposed to abortion, but are you willing to let the government make that decision for you or your family?”

• Sanewashing: Take “brainwashing,” replace “brain” with “sane,” and you get this word for making the crazy look normal.

• Woke: Originally meant as a command to be alert to injustice and oppression, it’s been perverted by conservatives to shout down anyone suggesting change. Unfortunately, I don’t see this being retired any time soon.

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