The Rock Reacts to Jabroni Getting Added to the Dictionary

09/02/2020 12:01 pm EDT

The pro wrestling world was treated to a surprise on Tuesday morning when Dictionary.com announced it was adding the word "jabroni" to its official list of words. Many fans credited Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson for the word's popularity, as he used it in many of his dozens of famous catchphrases. The website even tagged Johnson in the announcement on Twitter by writing, "Yes, we put jabroni in the dictionary. We assume @TheRock could smell us cooking up this update the whole time."

Johnson responded later in the day by writing, "Wow - very cool! Honored have a word actually make the dictionary. Making my all my teachers very proud. For the record, I may have made the word "Jabroni" (a noun, btw;) famous and part of culture, BUT the Iron Sheik made it famous in our wild wrestling locker rooms!"

The official definition for the noun is "1. Slang. a stupid, foolish, or contemptible person; loser."

A second definition pertaining to just pro wrestling was also included.

"Also called enhancement talent, jobber. Professional Wrestling. a wrestler whose purpose is to lose matches against headlining wrestlers in order to build up the status and fame of the headliners," it reads.

Johnson explained in a 2014 documentary The Shiek how he was inspired by the former WWF Champion to use the nickname.

"His impact on my career has really been profound," Johnson said in a documentary about the Iron Sheik. ... "Now the word jabroni is connected to me. When a lot of people think, 'oh, jabroni, oh, yeah, yeah, it's The Rock's word.' No, no, no, no. It's not my word. It's The Iron Sheik's word."

On the same day the word was added, Johnson celebrated receiving the helmets for all eight teams from the XFL, a league he now partially owns.

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