Sunday Rest: bantz. Word Not To Use Today

 Bantz is short for banter. The Oxford Dictionary tells us that bantz is playfully teasing or mocking remarks exchanged with another person or a group.

It's largely a male thing, and bantz is basically a means of establishing status. It's a bit like a cock crowing: it shows confidence in its own power without actually having to engage in battle.

(Non-male people* strive for status, too, but it's not generally often done by insulting people to their faces.)

Anyway, bantz. Some people will relish this kind of battle, some won't. Calling it bantz makes the fight sound cool and fun: the implication is that only someone inadequate wouldn't delight in it. Bantz comes perilously close to being a cover for aggression and bullying, and legitimising unkindness. 

Still, if that's what you need I can see the word is useful.

Word Not To Use Today: bantz. This word emerged in the early twenty-first century and is short for banter. The word banter appeared in the 1600s, but from where it came no one is sure.

*There's a blog post in the necessity for using a phrase like that. But I'm not sure I dare write it.