Notiquence?

July 8, 2006 6:30 PM

Is there a word for when you hear a word for the first time only to again encounter the word (or pursuit, or username) many times in the days after you first here it?

If there is no word (other than simply noticing a consequence) I may suggest notiquence. Do you have a better word?

Some recent notiquences to illustrate

"Don't let's"
"Octupush"
"Welcome our new X overlords"

posted by takeyourmedicine to Writing & Language (15 answers total)

Not exactly the recency illusion, but close.

And your last one is a perfect example of a snowclone.
posted by sbutler at 6:36 PM on July 8, 2006

Best answer: We've discussed this a couple times before: Here and here, kind of.

Baader-Meinhof phenomenon remains my term of choice.
posted by GaelFC at 6:45 PM on July 8, 2006

I've always used scotoma, as mentioned here.
posted by danb at 6:57 PM on July 8, 2006

Carl Jung called this Synchronicity.
posted by SlyBevel at 7:20 PM on July 8, 2006

"ensorcelled." Twice in the past fucking week, never before in my life. Most recently, only moments ago.
posted by croutonsupafreak at 7:57 PM on July 8, 2006

Synchronicity is what I've always known it by too.
posted by voidcontext at 9:27 PM on July 8, 2006

Not as specific as "word, pursuit or username" but fans of Repo Man use the expression "Plate of Shrimp" to describe this.
posted by Rash at 9:56 PM on July 8, 2006

Actually, I think ensorcelled has been getting popular lately. I heard it just a couple of days ago.
posted by Afroblanco at 10:50 PM on July 8, 2006

I think it's the New Yorker. I read it there both times. The writers are enamored of "ensorcelled." Now the word will gain cache in certain hipster and literati circles.
posted by croutonsupafreak at 11:06 PM on July 8, 2006

"Coincedence".
posted by Dunwitty at 12:42 AM on July 9, 2006

Or "coincidence", if you care about spelling.
posted by Dunwitty at 12:43 AM on July 9, 2006 [1 favorite]

I had this happen with 'syndoche' recently. I learned what it was then saw someone get into an argument on mefi about it later. Heh.

I think 'notiquence' sounds ridiculous.
posted by Paris Hilton at 12:58 AM on July 9, 2006

I first noticed this after I bought a Mini; all of a sudden, there were Minis all over the place.

Wikipedia calls it "selective perception". But I like "Plate of shrimp"!
posted by flabdablet at 1:11 AM on July 9, 2006

I'm a little the same as the flabdablet -- bought a Hyundai Getz a little while back, now rarely leave the house without seeing ten of them.

2 main components to this (in my view):
a) Unfamiliarity with the actual object prior to my attention being drawn to it
b) Prevalence of said object due to fashion, etc. If it's a fashion wave, you will see more and more of them, and it's not necesarily all in your mind.
posted by Wolof at 5:09 AM on July 9, 2006

Paris Hilton - I had it happen with synecdoche, too - only, I was trying to remember the word by the definition (and how was I gonna ask Mefi to figure out what word I was talking about) and then that thread on David Foster Wallace and porn had "synecdoche" a couple times.
posted by notsnot at 7:15 AM on July 9, 2006