BUZZWORD COMPLIANT DICTIONARY
T

tacit knowledge: Simply put, it's "know-how." And the Holy Grail of today's "knowledge management" systems is to capture an employee's tacit knowledge so that know-how can be retained in case the employee bolts the company.

talking hairdo: A TV journalist concerned more with appearance than the substance of his or her reporting.

talking in real time: This is something that we don't seem to do much of these days. Hint: It's the opposite of phone tag.

take-away: The main point(s) to remember from a conversation, document, speech, meeting, etc. "It was a great meeting. Too bad there was no take-away."
Nominated by Kathy Willhoite

take-away tableware: Marketing terminology for plastic forks, knives and spoons. "Sorry sir, we don't have take-away tableware to go with your doggie bag.
Nominated by Tony Molinero

talk show host: In business, it’s someone who knows just enough to appear “in the know.” When he fails to meet goal, he blames someone else and moves on to another audience.
Nominated by Mark Metcalf

Targasm: Tingly sensation shoppers get when they find something really, really good at Target.
Nominated by Paula Johnson

targeted completion date: A comforting term that gives the impression a project will be finished by a certain date (but everyone involved knows there's no chance in hell of it happening). Targeted Completion Date T-shirt and coffee mug available

target-rich environment: Obvious military term recently used by Colin Powell to describe two military commanders testifying before a Congressional hearing on the same day.
Nominated by Lawrence Brenninkmeyer

Tarzan: To make a bold leap, grabbing a sometimes moving target from which to make another, similar leap. "As long as they're able to Tarzan through these financings from vine to vine, they're in good shape."
Nominated by Ethan Hirsh

task-saturated: To be overwhelmed with too many things to do at once. "Jack's task-saturated. He's got seven projects due Friday." Borrowed from the military where it generally refers to personnel in a crisis situation, such as a pilot trying to save a crippled aircraft.
Nominated by Janet LoFurno

taxi moms: Moms who spend most of their day shuttling kids from one lesson, practice, event, etc., to another. “While the mini-van targeted soccer moms, an ad from Hummer targets taxi moms.”

TCO: The Total Cost of Ownership, which includes not only a product's price but the salaries of the staff required to run and maintain it.
Nominated by Bill Burke

Techniban: A fundamentalist mindset, repressively opposed to ground-breaking technologies that could upset the status quo. Apparently coined by info warrior Richard Forno in a rant about politicians protecting the entertainment industry from new technology that would undermine its current business model.
Nominated by Mark Worden

techonomics: The new economic order. It’s the study of technology's impact on the economy.
Nominated by Dan Marchant

telepathetic: Description of a person whose predictions or guesses are more often wrong than right.
Nominated by Lynne Shapiro

telephonically communicated: To convey information or data by telephone. "The results of the retest were telephonically communicated to the CEO." A less buzzy alternative: "I called Jack."
Nominated by Linda Martin

teletrash: TV programs that target the least intelligent, least sophisticated audience., Obvious examples: "The Jerry Springer Show," "The Maury Povich Show," "Fear Factor," etc.
Nominated by J.M. Gaffney

templatized: Any work or job that's had the creativity sucked out of it and basically been reduced to filling in the blanks.
Nominated by Marko Bon

terrestrial radio: What most of us knew simply as "radio" before there was satellite radio, Internet radio, podcasts, etc.

terrorsymp: A person or organization that provides emotional or monetary support for terrorists – a terrorist sympathizer. "The war in Iraq may be over, but the search for terrorsymps has just begun."
Nominated by Mark Worden

texters: People who obsessively send text messages via cell phones. Of course, in that world it's spelled TXTRS.

text-off: A cell phone, text-messaging competition. Texters compete by seeing who can type in a standard 160-character message the fastest. We’re serious. The winner in this year’s world competition did it in 42.22 seconds.

textronics: The buzz name for the emerging "smart fabrics" arena, where nano-engineered electronics are woven into material (textiles). It won’t be long before you'll "command" your new pants to "stretch" to fit when you add a few pounds or change colors to match your handbag.

thanking you in advance: An annoying phrase that expresses less-than-sincere gratitude while assuming you will do what is being requested. Long considered an offensive cliché, it continues to proliferate, particularly in business correspondence.
Nominated by Marguerita Johnston

therapize: To give or receive therapy. "He's been medicated and therapized, but nothing seems to help." .
Nominated by Julie Power

therapeutic reboot: The practice of shutting down and restarting a computer as part of its regular maintenance. "Therapeutic reboots will keep your computer from crashing as often."
Nominated by Steve Waldner

the 10,000-foot view: Lofty synonym for "overview"  used to overkill proportions by the media. Example: The 10,000-foot view of the problem reveals the obvious. Also spotted: "the 33,000-foot view" and "the 40,000-foot view."
Nominated by John Hiatt

thin-brained: This one’s been around awhile, but appears to be a favorite of Microsoft’s Bill Gates. A not-so-polite way of calling you a mental midget.

thin client: An anorexic office computer. Stripped down, low-cost with limited capabilities, it carries only essential software, is devoid of extra features (such as CD-ROM drives) and relies heavily on a central server or the Internet to extend its effectiveness.

thinko: A cognitive error or mistake. Unlike a "typo," a thinko occurs solely in the brain and doesn't necessarily transfer to your fingers.
Nominated by Gary Meller

thin-slicing: To make a quick decision based on very little data (a thin slice). We used to call them first impressions.

thinspiration: Tips on how to survive as an anorexic/bulimic. This disturbing advice can be found on a growing number of pro-ana (pro-anorexic) and pro-mia (pro-bulimia) Web sites that promote these disorders as lifestyles, not as life-threatening disorders.
Nominated by Mark Worden

thought leadership: Sounds very Orwellian, but it’s not. It’s what occurs during a meeting when someone states the obvious before anyone else can get it out.
Nominated by Patrick Vagnier

thought parsing: To filter online blogs in a manner that allows you to see what others are thinking (or at least writing).

thread count: Originally a textile term indicating the quality of the fabric. The higher the thread count, the higher the quality. Now used to indicate perceived quality of nearly anything. "The consultant is expensive, but his/her work is high thread count."
Nominated by Mary Ronan Drew

threadmates: Fellow denizens of an online message board or discussion list, who share similar interests and opinions. "I can't wait to see what my threadmates on the Cruciverbalist list have to say about this."
Nominated by Paula Johnson

Three Finger Salute: Another name for Control-Alt-Delete, the command of last resort that allowed early PC users to restart their computers when they froze up. Its inventor, IBM’s David Bradley, retired last week (January 30, 2004).
Nominated by Jill Mazur

3G: In the wireless world, it means "third generation" system. That system, by the way, is UMTS -- Universal Mobile Telecommunications System. Now you know why they love to talk in acronyms.

thrifted: Removal of a product feature in order to save money. "The power liftgate on the van was thrifted." Also: To buy from a thrift store. "I thrifted my way to a new wardrobe."
Nominated by Jeff Sewell

throw it/them over the wall: A true product of business cubists. It’s the process of passing a problem from one department to another -- usually reserved for workplaces that house their workers in cubicles (cubes).
Nominated by Bob Garrett

thrown under the bus: When a co-worker drags your name through the mud. To be made a scapegoat. "Jackson got thrown under the bus by his own teammates."
Nominated by Scott Jenkins

ticker shock: That numbing feeling investors get as they watch the Dow Jones and NASDAQ averages plummet.
Nominated by Michael Morris

tick-tock: Moment-by-moment developments. Minutia. "We're trying to stay focused on the Big Picture, not the tick-tock." In journalism parlance, it's a story that recounts minute-by-minute the breathless details of a single event.
Nominated by Barbara Miller

tier zero: It's the ultimate preemptive strike -- a customer service program that's so proactive it anticipates the customer's every need. Tier zero frequently requires databases, e-mail and interactive Web FAQs. While it's a noble goal, it also sounds like another marketing scheme to sell fancy -- and expensive -- software.

timeboxing: A project management tool that forces you into a mindset of "I'm going to do the best possible job in this fixed amount of time" rather than "I'm going to do the best possible job no matter how long it takes."
Nominated by Sarah Stone

time frame: Term used to make it sound as if a job will be done at a future date (We'll do that in the June time frame), but more often signals that the job will never be completed at all.
Nominated by Andrew Lord

time suck: Any activity or thing that wastes time. Example: "Buzzwhack is such a time suck. I didn't do anything else at work all day."
Nominated by Steve Ikeda

time-to-market: An ancient term that literally meant how long it took a farmer to haul his goods for sale to the marketplace in town. Today it’s an obsession. Shortening the time it takes to dream up a new product, design it, produce it and deliver it for sale can be the difference between a hit product and an also-ran. Of course, there are plenty of vendors hawking products that can "improve your time to market."
Nominated by Todd Seal

time toilet: Any project, assignment, meeting, etc., that takes more time than expected -- effectively flushing away whole your day.
Nominated by Jonathan Vehar

tin kickers: Nickname for aviation disaster investigators, who are known for their ability to tease clues from mangled bits of metal. "We have no idea what caused the crash. It's up to the tin kickers now."
Nominated by Mark Worden

TiVOed: The art of capturing television programming using a TiVO digital video recorder. "I couldn't watch 'Survivor' last night, but I TiVOed it."
Nominated by Carolyn Neilson Brooks

togethering: Vacationing or traveling with a group, particularly your extended family -- which doesn’t sound much like a vacation to us.

toner phoner: A telemarketing scam in which the caller poses as a sales rep from your regular office supply company offering copier/printer supplies at cut-rate prices "if you buy now." Often the "supplies" never arrive, but your credit card is charged.
Nominated by Suzanne Pietrowski

topic tiling: The practice of projecting the topic or key points of a speech repeatedly onto a backdrop behind the speaker as if brilliant phrases such as "Corporate Responsibility" or "Strengthening the Economy" will keep you riveted to your seat.
Nominated by Joeth Barlas

tourists: People who use training classes as a way to get a vacation from their jobs. "We had 10 serious students in the class. The rest were just tourists."
Nominated by Chris Clarke

traction: What Firestone lacked, but other businesses now seem to have. Traction means to gain ground. Examples: "We’re getting traction in the B2B space." "The new sales campaign has traction."
Nominated by Mark Schaffer

tract mansions: A grouping of starter castles, each on a quarter acre lot, located next to a shopping center.
Nominated by Frank Elfring

traffic calming devices: Speed bumps, traffic islands, rumble strips, etc., that force drivers to slow down. Often used to keep drivers from speeding through quiet neighborhoods or to make selected streets less attractive as alternate routes.
Nominated by Elizabeth Shaw

transition: Transition is a great noun, but it's a questionable verb. The Random House Unabridged dictionary acknowledges it as a verb, but Webster's Revised Unabridged and others don't. So recognize that the next time you say -- "We will transition to the new software in the coming month" -- you're on thin ice. In any event, it is so overused it has become a buzzword. Even worse: Transitioning. "We’re transitioning to the new economic realities."
Nominated by David Vandershel

transparent, transparency: A favorite in business and government. It can mean open, visible, accessible, publicly accountable, etc. -- without privacy or secrets. "The computer age is moving society toward greater transparency." Not to be confused with the less admirable definition of transparent -- to have obvious selfish motives. Of course, we would never think of business and government in that manner.
Nominated by Tim Blankenhorn

treeware: Any paper-based printed material, such as newspapers, books, etc. In techie circles, it generally refers to documentation manuals.

Tribble: A computer virus or worm that does nothing directly destructive but slowly brings the system to a crawl by using large amounts of resources. Named for the cute little creatures from the original Star Trek that did nothing but eat and reproduce.
Nominated by Phil Spray

trickle-down ergonomics: The practice of stealing (or being given) an Aeron chair, desk, computer or workplace tools after you've been laid off.

Truck Factor: The number of people on your team who have to be hit by a truck before the project is in serious trouble.
Nominated by Michael Finnegan

truthiness: Something that has the ring of truth to it, that you may even want to be true, but has no real basis in fact. Made famous by TV personality Stephen Colbert.

tszuj: To tweak, finesse or make better. (pronounced zhoozh).  Another term from "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" that’s found its way into business lexicon. “If we tszuj distribution, we should be able to reduce costs.”
Nominated by Kaz C.

tunneling: Refers to top executives transferring assets and cash out of a corporation into their own private accounts, leaving the company primarily with liabilities and assets of little value. Thanks to Adelphia, Tyco and others for bringing this term to our attention.
Nominated by Richard Budd

turnkey: A product that is supplied, installed or purchased in a condition ready for immediate use, occupation, or operation. "Just turn the key and it works." This is not a new term, but the tech world likes to brag about providing turnkey solutions.
Nominated by Jennifer Shannon

tweel: Tired of flat tires? Help is on the way. Michelin is developing a tweel, a tire/wheel molded unit that needs no air. Why? To grab share in the growing Chinese market, where the roads make daily driving an adventure.
Nominated by Susan Lister

tween market: Retailers are hot after the booming "tween market," teen wannabes (8-to-12-year olds) trying to be "cool." A very brand-conscious crowd, they're ditching "kid" fashions for the more "mature" (and often sexy) attire of teens.
Nominated by Dave Roberts

12th man: A quaint American football term that describes the home-field advantage created by the intimidating presence of 65,000-plus crazed, towel-waving and frequently inebriated football fans.

12:00 Flasher: A person of limited technical know-how. Giveaway: His/her VCR incessantly blinks "12:00."
Nominated by Hurston Prescott

24/7: It was a football score until the Internet convinced everyone that you couldn't stay in business if you weren't open for business around the clock. Could this be the reason unemployment is so low?

twit filter: Most e-mail programs come with one. It lets you separate your e-mail by name, address, subject line, keywords, etc., so you can filter the "twits" from your favorite e-mail discussion list. Works well with spam, too.

two-comma: Denotes anything that costs $1,000,000 or more. "The new server configuration is a two-comma project."
Nominated by Ray Griffin

2K3: The cool way of saying 2003. While 2K1 and 2K2 struggled to make it into the mainstream, 2K3 is the hottest term since Y2K.

2-liter bottle: The opposite of six-pack abs. More commonly known among middle-aged men as a beer gut.
Nominated by Mark Metcalf

typerventilating: An instant messaging panic attack.

typosquatter: Someone who reserves a domain name one letter off in hopes of stealing orthographically-challenged customers.
Nominated by Laurel Sutton