Who commonly used words like “google,” “blogging,” or “facebook” five or ten years ago? I think it’s interesting to see words come in and go out of favor.
What about “WHAAA?” I’ve been hearing people say this more and more lately. It’s a stretched out “what” usually without much of the “t” at the end. People say it to express their shock or disbelief in something they’ve just heard, like a shorthand version of “What the ____?”
English is morhping all the time; so I’m sure “Whaaa?” has been growing in use for a while. I first remember noticing it last year in a funny mock interview between Zach Galifianakis and Sean Penn. It’s one of the “Between Two Ferns” fake interviews on YouTube in which Zach’s character asks a celebrity guest outlandish questions while the guest remains in character.
Afterwards, I started saying “Whaaa?” sometimes for effect to my girlfriend, sort of an inside joke. But then I noticed other people saying it in normal conversation. At first I thought they were kidding, but they weren’t.
Maybe it’s always been used this way and I never noticed it until I heard it really camped up in the mock interview. I feel like it’s something that’s somewhat new and catching on.
I guess there’s usually a kernel of truth in most jokes. And I’ve noticed that I say it now too. Whaaa?