Politics

The words that hadn’t been said in a State of the Union until Trump said them

Excerpts from President Trump’s February 2020 speech

And we will always protect your Medicare, and we will always protect your Social Security. Always. The American patient should never be

blindsided

by medical bills. That is why I signed an executive order requiring price transparency.

Three years ago, the barbarians of ISIS held over 20,000 square miles of territory in Iraq and Syria. Today, the ISIS territorial

caliphate

has been 100 percent destroyed, and the founder and leader of ISIS -- the bloodthirsty killer known as Al-Baghdadi -- is dead.

We are coordinating with the Chinese government and working closely together on the

coronavirus

outbreak in China. My administration will take all necessary steps to safeguard our citizens from this threat.

And that's why, last month, at my direction, the U.S. military executed a

gruesome

spree of deadly violence. He viciously shot one man going about his daily work.

We have launched ambitious new initiatives to substantially improve care for Americans with

kidney

disease, Alzheimer’s, and those struggling with mental health. And because Congress was

America is the place where anyone can rise. And here, on this land, on this soil, on this continent, the most incredible dreams come true. This nation is our canvas, and this country is our

masterpiece

We look at tomorrow and see unlimited frontiers just waiting to be explored.

We don't tear down crosses. We don’t ban symbols of faith. We don’t

muzzle

preachers and pastors. In America, we celebrate faith. We cherish religion. We lift our voices in prayer

Soleimani was the Iranian regime's most ruthless butcher, a monster who murdered or wounded thousands of American servicemembers in Iraq. As the world’s top terrorist, Soleiman

orchestrated

the deaths of countless men, women, and children. He directed the December assault

A few weeks ago, I signed a bill promoting Charles McGee to Brigadier General. And earlier today, I pinned the stars on his shoulders in the

Oval

Office. General McGee, our nation salutes you. Thank you, sir. From the pilgrims to the founders

I pinned the stars on his shoulders in the Oval Office. General McGee, our nation salutes you. Thank you, sir. From the

pilgrims

to the founders, from the soldiers at Valley Forge to the marchers at Selma

of science and medicine, laid down the railroads, dug out the canals, raised up the

skyscrapers

— and, ladies and gentlemen, our ancestors built the most exceptional

local authorities released him. Days later, the criminal alien went on a gruesome

spree

of deadly violence. He viciously shot one man going about his daily work. He approached

Their systems are totally out of control, costing taxpayers vast and

unaffordable

amounts of money. If forcing American taxpayers to provide unlimited free health care to illegal aliens sounds fair to you

pro-family, pro-growth, and, most of all, pro-American. Thank you. We are advancing with

unbridled

optimism and lifting our citizens of every race, color, religion, and creed very, very high

17 states to help more children, many of which have reduced or eliminated their

waitlists

altogether. And I sent the Congress a plan with a vision to further expand access to high-quality

And we will always protect your Medicare, and we will always protect your Social Security. Always. The American patient should never be

blindsided

by medical bills. That is why I signed an executive order requiring price transparency.

Three years ago, the barbarians of ISIS held over 20,000 square miles of territory in Iraq and Syria. Today, the ISIS territorial

caliphate

has been 100 percent destroyed, and the founder and leader of ISIS -- the bloodthirsty killer known as Al-Baghdadi -- is dead.

We are coordinating with the Chinese government and working closely together on the

coronavirus

outbreak in China. My administration will take all necessary steps to safeguard our citizens from this threat.

And that's why, last month, at my direction, the U.S. military executed a

gruesome

spree of deadly violence. He viciously shot one man going about his daily work.

We have launched ambitious new initiatives to substantially improve care for Americans with

kidney

disease, Alzheimer’s, and those struggling with mental health. And because Congress was

America is the place where anyone can rise. And here, on this land, on this soil, on this continent, the most incredible dreams come true. This nation is our canvas, and this country is our

masterpiece

We look at tomorrow and see unlimited frontiers just waiting to be explored.

We don't tear down crosses. We don’t ban symbols of faith. We don’t

muzzle

preachers and pastors. In America, we celebrate faith. We cherish religion. We lift our voices in prayer

Soleimani was the Iranian regime's most ruthless butcher, a monster who murdered or wounded thousands of American servicemembers in Iraq. As the world’s top terrorist, Soleiman

orchestrated

the deaths of countless men, women, and children. He directed the December assault

A few weeks ago, I signed a bill promoting Charles McGee to Brigadier General. And earlier today, I pinned the stars on his shoulders in the

Oval

Office. General McGee, our nation salutes you. Thank you, sir. From the pilgrims to the founders

I pinned the stars on his shoulders in the Oval Office. General McGee, our nation salutes you. Thank you, sir. From the

pilgrims

to the founders, from the soldiers at Valley Forge to the marchers at Selma

of science and medicine, laid down the railroads, dug out the canals, raised up the

skyscrapers

— and, ladies and gentlemen, our ancestors built the most exceptional

local authorities released him. Days later, the criminal alien went on a gruesome

spree

of deadly violence. He viciously shot one man going about his daily work. He approached

Their systems are totally out of control, costing taxpayers vast and

unaffordable

amounts of money. If forcing American taxpayers to provide unlimited free health care to illegal aliens sounds fair to you

pro-family, pro-growth, and, most of all, pro-American. Thank you. We are advancing with

unbridled

optimism and lifting our citizens of every race, color, religion, and creed very, very high

17 states to help more children, many of which have reduced or eliminated their

waitlists

altogether. And I sent the Congress a plan with a vision to further expand access to high-quality

And we will always protect your Medicare, and we will always protect your Social Security. Always. The American patient should never be

blindsided

by medical bills. That is why I signed an executive order requiring price transparency.

Three years ago, the barbarians of ISIS held over 20,000 square miles of territory in Iraq and Syria. Today, the ISIS territorial

caliphate

has been 100 percent destroyed, and the founder and leader of ISIS -- the bloodthirsty killer known as Al-Baghdadi -- is dead.

We are coordinating with the Chinese government and working closely together on the

coronavirus

outbreak in China. My administration will take all necessary steps to safeguard our citizens from this threat.

And that's why, last month, at my direction, the U.S. military executed a

gruesome

spree of deadly violence. He viciously shot one man going about his daily work.

We have launched ambitious new initiatives to substantially improve care for Americans with

kidney

disease, Alzheimer’s, and those struggling with mental health. And because Congress was

America is the place where anyone can rise. And here, on this land, on this soil, on this continent, the most incredible dreams come true. This nation is our canvas, and this country is our

masterpiece

We look at tomorrow and see unlimited frontiers just waiting to be explored.

We don't tear down crosses. We don’t ban symbols of faith. We don’t

muzzle

preachers and pastors. In America, we celebrate faith. We cherish religion. We lift our voices in prayer

Soleimani was the Iranian regime's most ruthless butcher, a monster who murdered or wounded thousands of American servicemembers in Iraq. As the world’s top terrorist, Soleiman

orchestrated

the deaths of countless men, women, and children. He directed the December assault

A few weeks ago, I signed a bill promoting Charles McGee to Brigadier General. And earlier today, I pinned the stars on his shoulders in the

Oval

Office. General McGee, our nation salutes you. Thank you, sir. From the pilgrims to the founders

I pinned the stars on his shoulders in the Oval Office. General McGee, our nation salutes you. Thank you, sir. From the

pilgrims

to the founders, from the soldiers at Valley Forge to the marchers at Selma

of science and medicine, laid down the railroads, dug out the canals, raised up the

skyscrapers

— and, ladies and gentlemen, our ancestors built the most exceptional

local authorities released him. Days later, the criminal alien went on a gruesome

spree

of deadly violence. He viciously shot one man going about his daily work. He approached

Their systems are totally out of control, costing taxpayers vast and

unaffordable

amounts of money. If forcing American taxpayers to provide unlimited free health care to illegal aliens sounds fair to you

pro-family, pro-growth, and, most of all, pro-American. Thank you. We are advancing with

unbridled

optimism and lifting our citizens of every race, color, religion, and creed very, very high

17 states to help more children, many of which have reduced or eliminated their

waitlists

altogether. And I sent the Congress a plan with a vision to further expand access to high-quality

As President Trump focused more sharply on his administration’s accomplishments, his third official State of the Union address added a few soaring words to its lexicon. He referred to the building of “skyscrapers” and to “unbridled” optimism, and reached to describe the whole country as a “masterpiece.” No president had used those words before in more than 200 such addresses to Congress dating back to 1790.

Yet Trump also managed a few new grisly words when talking about violence, most notably describing a “gruesome spree,” two words that had never made their way into an address.

[President Trump’s 2020 State of the Union address, annotated]

In order for a word to count, any word that shares the same root has to be new as well — no president had said “skyscraper” or “unbridle” before Tuesday night either. We’ve also removed names, places, contractions and acronyms.

Words that hadn’t been said in a State of the Union (or annual address) until this president said them

Every president adds some new words to the presidential lexicon. Below are the “new words” for the past 28 presidential addresses under Trump, Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton. In 2015, Obama became the first president to say “bisexual,” “lesbian” and “transgender.” In 2002, Bush introduced words such as “bioterrorism,” “caves,” “jihad” and “firefighter.”

President Trump Hover on a word to see how it was used

2017

Dethroned

Etched

Footprints

Imploding

Intel

ISIS

Lawn

Motorcycles

Obamacare

Quarterback

Softbank

Sophomore

Vile

Walmart

2018

Amputations

Booby

Cajun

Crutches

Legend

Mazda

Motto

Opioid

Paramedics

Respiration

Revving

Spine

Timelines

Tormentors

Toyota

Unaccustomed

2019

Bloodthirsty

Chilling

Fentanyl

Freeloading

Heartache

Hurtling

Kissing

Outspend

Rekindle

Sadistic

Screeched

SWAT

Womb

2020

Blindsided

Caliphate

Coronavirus

Gruesome

Kidney

Masterpiece

Muzzle

Neonatal

Orchestrated

Oval

Overseen

Pharmaceutical

Pilgrims

Skyscrapers

Spree

Takeover

Unaffordable

Unbridled

Waitlists

Warfighters

President Obama Hover on a word to see how it was used

2009

Agribusiness

Biofuels

Broadband

CEOs

Gutted

Laundry

Pandemic

Peels

Reimagined

Retooled

Sputters

2010

Bankrolled

Childcare

Cops

Honey

Meltdown

Numbing

Obesity

Offshore

Online

Outsized

Postpartisan

Relitigating

Schoolyard

Scorekeeper

Shuttered

Silly

Spectrum

Strapped

Supermajority

Swifter

Taunts

Workforce

2011

Biomedical

Bookkeeping

Click

Counterterrorism

Download

Driveways

Facebook

Google

Handheld

Hindu

Latino

Malpractice

Refighting

Reset

Roofers

Saltwater

Shingles

Stranglehold

Textbook

Turf

2012

Antifraud

Bashing

Billionaire

Counterfeit

Fiasco

Giveaways

Grandmother

Hike

Lightweight

Mercury

Outsource

Payday

Payoffs

Phony

Redesign

Robotics

Runaround

Siemens

Spun

Stairs

Startups

Trajectory

Versa

Watchdog

2013

Bang

Brinksmanship

Budged

Bump

Classmates

Eviction

Freak

Gals

Grueling

Gunman

IBM

Majorette

Outgunned

Rebounding

Ribbon

Scares

Scorecard

Scraping

Servicemembers

Sikh

Spikes

Sticker

Superstorm

Swipe

Wildfires

2014

Asthma

Barkeep

Bone

Caregivers

Centrifuges

Coma

Costco

Detainee

Dialed

Dishes

Dough

Insourcing

Malls

Microsoft

Mired

Pizza

Playbook

Pristine

Punch

Smartphones

Stadium

Typhoon

Unclogging

Underwater

Upside

Verizon

2015

Basest

Bisexual

Bluster

Bounce

Bustling

Checklist

Churning

Crisscross

Curve

CVS

eBay

Fake

Gaffes

Gotcha

Gutter

Hype

Incarceration

Instagram

ISIL

Lesbian

Microcosm

Newlyweds

Overjoyed

Prosthetics

Prouder

Reenergized

Remaking

Resurfaced

Screw

Scrimped

Showdowns

Spacecraft

Splurge

Stereotypes

Tesla

Transgender

Unstoppable

2016

Antsy

Boardrooms

Brochure

Headwinds

Marathon

Millennia

Moonshot

Partiers

Pickup

Quagmire

Recipe

Rooftops

Scapegoat

Streak

Unpatriotic

Vandalized

President Bush Hover on a word to see how it was used

2001

Brownfields

Dip

Grocery

Input

Overbearing

Profiling

Repaint

Retirees

Waitress

2002

Agile

Anthrax

Bioterrorism

Caves

Daddy

Diagrams

Firefighter

Firefighters

Flaunt

Hamas

Hezbollah

Jihad

Nonnegotiable

Splinter

Timebombs

Unelected

2003

Antiretroviral

Benchmark

Botulinum

Canister

Cataloged

Crate

Dripping

Ebola

Fingerprints

Fumes

Hydrogen

Mom

Mustard

Oxygen

Respiratory

Sarin

Scavenger

Screeners

Sensors

Shadowy

Uncovered

Vial

Virus

2004

Activist

Baathist

Biotechnology

Computerizing

Condescending

Crescent

Deck

Junk

Manhunt

Mastermind

Shortcuts

Shuffling

Steroids

Taliban

Thugs

Unwavering

2005

Adulthood

Asbestos

Ethanol

Grid

Incoherent

Reprocessing

2006

Complicit

Debris

Dots

Egregious

Hindsight

Multiparty

Nanotechnology

Roadside

Switchgrass

Treatable

Unravel

2007

Biodiesel

Chant

Chest

Diesel

Disney

Grooming

Hometown

Humvee

Islamist

Madam

Mosque

Muslim

Pot

Quartet

Regrouping

Scenario

Shia

Shoreless

Shrapnel

Spill

Sunni

Tallest

Transparency

Unkept

Worksite

2008

Bite

Caskets

Derail

Finery

Gavel

Homefront

Hotel

Jubilant

Kurds

Newfound

Nonpublic

Overwatch

Reprogram

President Clinton Hover on a word to see how it was used

1993

Aerospace

Cows

Gridlock

Jumpstarting

Lifelong

Nonviolent

Reinventing

Rethink

Storefronts

Underemployment

1994

Agonizing

Aneurysm

Blinking

Boss

Bricklayer's

Buck

Cerebral

Epic

Fraying

Garnish

Grassroots

Handshake

Lick

Limousines

Millimeter

Misread

Naysayers

Nuns

Perks

Pink

Seams

Semiautomatic

Sportsmen

Superhighway

Teleprompter

Trimmed

Wheelchair

1995

Antipregnancy

Ashtray

Bailout

Buddies

Bunch

Childbearing

Congresswoman

Copays

Cosigning

Crazy

Downsizing

Freeways

Grenades

Helium

Horrendous

Hugged

Ignite

Lapel

Longtime

Media

Mindless

Mohair

Reverend

Softball

Toys

Twilight

Typewriter

Unmarried

1996

Antiterrorism

Athletes

Childrearing

Fend

Hook

Movies

Peddle

Purple

Rogue

Rubble

Software

Synagogues

Upbringing

1997

Alzheimer's

Antidrug

Burger

Checkup

Curfews

Decoding

Fireworks

Flextime

Genetic

Greenhouse

HIV

Internet

Landmines

Mammograms

Mastectomy

Monsanto

Noncitizens

Ovarian

Respite

Script

Sprint

Waterfronts

1998

Anthem

Cafes

Cloning

Cohosted

Crimefighting

Cyberspace

Cystic

Deadbeat

Diabetes

Eulogized

Fibrosis

Fundraising

Groundbreaking

Hubs

Interconnected

Keyboard

Lethal

Parkinson's

Pathbreaking

Roadmap

Salmonella

Scribble

Snipers

Soot

Spangled

Surf

Symphony

Tattered

Toxins

Untargeted

1999

Arthritis

Baseball

Chemotherapy

Downpayment

Emphysema

Forebears

Gender

Headache

Heartbroken

Mountaintop

Mug

Outperform

Sixfold

Stalkers

Stave

Swearing

Tames

Trailers

Untapped

2000

Afterschool

Automakers

Boomers

Clapped

Claps

Coastlines

Defuse

Fatherhood

Gay

Grander

Hackers

Hottest

Lifeline

Mentors

Microchips

Molecular

Narcotraffickers

Palms

Punchline

Retina

Roadless

Showroom

Skier

Supercomputers

Superefficient

Teardrop

Therapies

Tithe

Uninsured

Unlivable

Unwed

Reuben Fischer-Baum

Reuben Fischer-Baum is an assignment editor on the graphics team of The Washington Post. He previously worked at FiveThirtyEight and Deadspin. He joined The Post in 2017.

Ted Mellnik

Ted Mellnik explores and analyzes data and maps for graphics, stories and interactives.

Kevin Schaul

Kevin Schaul is a senior graphics editor for The Washington Post. He covers national politics and public policy using data and visuals.

Harry Stevens contributed to this report.

About this story

Historical speech transcripts from the American Presidency Project. 2018 State of the Union transcript from White House press office. 2019 and 2020 transcripts from the Federal Document Clearing House. Some historical “joint addresses” were delivered as a written message, not a speech.

For our analysis, we identified words that shared the same root using a stemmer implementation from NaturalNode. There are some transcription errors and the stemming algorithm is imperfect, so it’s possible (likely, even!) that there are previously unused words that we’ve missed.

Originally published Jan. 30, 2018.

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