Vol. 10 · Portmanteaus ·Late 20th century ·1983
Mathlete
math athlete
- Meaning
- A competitor in maths contests; informally, a maths whiz.
- Source words
- math + athlete
- Coined by
- MATHCOUNTS Foundation
- Year
- 1983
Background
The MATHCOUNTS competition for US middle-school students launched in 1983 and used *mathlete* as a branding term. The 2004 film *Mean Girls* mainstreamed the word to general audiences.
Late 20th century
Marketing, media, and the early internet. Infomercial, emoticon, workaholic — the coinages name phenomena of mass media and white-collar life. Several predate the decades they're associated with.
Two words, one coinage.
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