Wrestling Word "Kayfabe" Added to Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Professional wrestling has a vocabulary of its own. Like any business, wrestling has a series of insider terms that have permeated into greater pop culture. The biggest example of this would be the scripted sport's words for hero and villain, "babyface" and "heel," respectively, as both are used in everyday social media slang. Other words like "work" (scripted segment) and "shoot" (legitimate moment during a scripted segment) have slowly made their way to the general public as well. While few have had the staying power of "turning heel," another may be on its way to greater popularity thanks to a dictionary update.

"Kayfabe" Added to Merriam-Webster Dictionary

The dictionary has been worked into a shoot, brother.

As part of its new words in the month of September, Merriam-Webster has added "kayfabe" to its dictionary. Within wrestling, "kayfabe" is a term used for when professional wrestlers maintain their fictitious characters beyond the ring. 

The full definiton can be read below...

kayfabe noun 1 : the tacit agreement between professional wrestlers and their fans to pretend that overtly staged wrestling events, stories, characters, etc., are genuine; broadly : tacit agreement to behave as if something is real, sincere, or genuine when it is not 2 : the playacting involved in maintaining kayfabe

Wrestling Series "Heels" Cast Share Their Favorite Wrestling Words

Speaking to ComicBook.com earlier this summer, the cast of Heels shared which wrestling words they have begun integrating into their everyday jargon.

"Pop. Like, 'I really popped when my wife brought out the mint chocolate chip ice cream,'" leading man Stephen Amell joked. "'How're things with your wife right now?' 'It's okay. I got a little heat.'"

"Honestly, he took the word right out of my mouth, It's pop for me," co-star Alexander Ludwig said. "I'll be like, 'Oh, that got a big pop' and I'll be talking about a film I went to go screen or something."

"Most of the words I learned I can't repeat on camera," Trey Tucker, who plays Bobby Pin, joked. "And most of them came from Phil Brooks (CM Punk). No, I'm kidding. I think kayfabe was definitely one."

"I'll say heel," Mary McCormack, who plays Willie Day, revealed. "I don't think I say face very much or kayfabe. I don't think I use a lot of wrestling terminology in my real life. I should."