OK, I’ll admit it, I consume too much media. But on the bright side I don’t have to worry about running out of ideas for a column about words. Today I’m going to share my thoughts on some words that have been in the news recently, starting with “tariff.”

According to The New York Times reporter Ana Swanson, “A tariff is an extra surcharge put onto a good when it comes into the United States. It is the so-called importer of record — the companies responsible for importing that product — that physically pays tariffs to the federal government.” And that surcharge generally ends up being passed on to us, the consumers.

Since the announcement of President Trump’s proposed tariffs, I’ve heard the word “roiled” used to describe the economy and the stock market more than I’ve ever heard it used before – which is almost never. While the meaning of “roil” (to stir up, disturb, disorder) is easy to figure out from the context in which it’s used, it’s still nice to hear an unusual word used from time to time.

And speaking of roiling, many of the president’s nominees for his cabinet are also bringing to mind a few seldom-used words. We all remember when President Biden warned us about a possible oligarchy (government by the few), well now this latest crop of nominees is giving new life to words that include “kakistocracy,” which Merriam-Webster says comes from the Greek word “kakistos” (the superlative of “bad”) and means “government by the worst people.”

I also see “plutocracy” (from “ploutos,” Greek for “wealth”), or “rule by the wealthy” as another appropriate word to us under the circumstances. If nothing else, the new administration is providing us word wonks with plenty of material to research and ponder.

From the newspaper, I learned the New-York Historical Society recently dropped “Society” (and the hyphen) from its name because, according to the museum’s unnamed chief content officer, that particular word had “a bit of a highfalutin’ vibe”

“Society” has been around since early 16th-century England and has Latin and French roots. Back then it “meant a friendly association with others, soon acquiring the sense of a group or club,” writes The Washington Post’s Mark Lasswell. Makes me wonder if any of our local historical societies will soon be following suit.

(And since we’re on the subject of historical societies, this seems like a good time to share a thought on the difference between “historic” and “historical.” A friend once told me that if something can be called “famous” then it has to be “historic,” while the adjective “historical” means “having to do with history.” Sounds reasonable.)

The Post’s Lasswell also points out that “To take a spin through old city directories is to encounter, wistfully, page after page of societies large and small, people organizing themselves for human connection, no Redditors required.”

Call me old fashioned (OK, out of touch), but off I went again, down yet another rabbit hole, wondering, “Just exactly what is a Redditor?” It turns out that – according to Reddit.com itself – “Registered users (commonly referred to as ‘Redditors’) submit content to the site such as links, text posts, images, and videos, which are then voted up or down (‘upvoted’ or ‘downvoted’) by other members.”

I still think that I consume too much media, but at least I feel a wee bit informed.

Jim Witherell of Lewiston is a writer and lover of words whose work includes “L.L. Bean: The Man and His Company” and “Ed Muskie: Made in Maine.” He can be reached at [email protected].