The Emergence of Neologisms and New Linguistic Forms that Impact Communication on TikTok
Abstract
Nowadays, the development of technology is advancing rapidly, including in the field of communication. Social interaction has shifted to the digital sphere, with TikTok being one of the most popular social media platforms that allow users to interact without geographical restrictions. This development has triggered the emergence of neologisms and new linguistic features in social media interactions. Therefore, this study aims to explore the most common forms of neologism and linguistic forms that have emerged on the TikTok platforms and illuminate the impact of these phenomena on social discourse. It also highlights the role of social media as both a platform for expression and a driving force behind linguistic change. A qualitative approach with an observation method was applied in this research to deeply explore these issues. The findings reveal that the most common type of neologism is lexicographic, with a percentage of occurrence at 50%, while the use of emojis represents the most dominant new linguistic form on TikTok. These phenomena have impacted linguistic changes in social discourse, with the potential for new words to be added to modern dictionaries. Consequently, vocabulary continues to expand in line with the advancement of technology. In addition, this difference in language changes may lead to communication gaps among generations.
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References
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Bernatta, R. A. R., & Kartika, T. (2020). Fenomena Massa Dalam Mencari Informasi Viral Pada Media Sosial Instagram. Jurnal Sains Sosial Dan Humaniora, 4(2), 153–165. https://jurnalnasional.ump.ac.id/index.php/JSSH/article/download/7419/3647
Blake, B. (2019). English Vocabulary Today Into the 21st Century. Routledge.
Boulianne, S., & Theocharis, Y. (2018). Young People, Digital Media, and Engagement: A Meta-Analysis of Research. Social Science Computer Review, 38(2), 111–127. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894439318814190
Čilić, I. Š., & Plauc, J. I. (2021). Today’s usage of neologisms in social media communication. Društvene i Humanističke Studije, 6(14), 115–140.
Creswell, J. W. (2012). Education Research, Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research. USA: Person Education, Inc.
Crystal, D. (2006). Language and the internet (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Danesi, M. (2020). Language, Society and New Media: Sociolinguistics Today. Routledge.
Eisenstein, J., O’Connor, B., Smith, N. A., & Xing, E. P. (2014). Diffusion of lexical change in social media. PLoS ONE, 9(11), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0113114
Fauziah, M. R. N., Damayani, N. A., & Rohman, A. S. (2014). Perilaku Knowledge Sharing Multi Bahasa Pada Komunitas Fakta Bahasa. Jurnal Kajian Informasi Dan Perpustakaan, 2(2), 87. https://doi.org/10.24198/jkip.v2i2.11643
Hasyim, U. A., Sari, Y. A., & Puspita, N. (2020). Applying of Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition (CIRC) Strategy on Students’ Reading Comprehension. Semantic Scholar.
Heath, M. (2021). NO NEED TO YELL: A Prosodic Analysis of Writing in All Caps. University of Pennsylvania Working Papers in Linguistics, 27(1), 67–76.
Holmes, J. & W. N. (2022). An Introduction to Sociolinguistics.
Infante, A., & Mardikaningsih, R. (2022). The Potential of Social Media as a Means of Online Business Promotion. Journal of Social Science Studies (JOS3), 2(2), 45–49. https://doi.org/10.56348/jos3.v2i2.26
Janssen, M. (2006). Selection Criteria and Semi-Automatic Detection.
Jebaselvi, C., Mohanraj, K., Thangamani, A., & Ramesh Kumar, M. (2023). The Impact of Social Media on the Evolution of Language and Communication Trends. Shanlax International Journal of English, 12(1), 41–44. https://doi.org/10.34293/english.v12i1.6725
Kilmer, P. D. (2020). Neologisms Under the Influence of Social Media. Anglisticum Journal, 11(3), 369–373.
Klug, D., Kaufman, G., & Evans, M. (2023). How TikTok served as a platform for young people to share and cope with lived COVID-19 experiences. MedieKultur, 38(73), 152–170. https://doi.org/10.7146/mk.v38i73.128463
Klug, D., Qin, Y., Evans, M., & Kaufman, G. (2021). Trick and Please. A Mixed-Method Study on User Assumptions about the TikTok Algorithm. ACM International Conference Proceeding Series, 84–92. https://doi.org/10.1145/3447535.3462512
Kukiboyeva, M., & Rakhimova, N. (2024). The Peculiarities of Neologizms In Language And Speech. 4, 1–13.
Kurniadi, P., & Erwin, E. (2024). Language Development in the Digital Age , A Literature Review on the Influence of Technology on Human Communication. 1(01), 1–7.
Lisdawati, I. (2021). Language Style and Register Used by Famous Content Creators in Tiktok Application. IDEAS: Journal on English Language Teaching and Learning, Linguistics and Literature, 9(2), 187–198. https://doi.org/10.24256/ideas.v9i2.2192
Luhulima, C. C., Linuwih, E. R., Hutagaol, D. R., & Nofiyanti, N. (2024). Language Change on Social Media. International Journal of English and Applied Linguistics (IJEAL), 4(1), 81–87. https://doi.org/10.47709/ijeal.v4i1.3718
MacWhinney, B. (2005). The emergence of linguistic form in time. Connection Science, 17(3–4), 191–211. https://doi.org/10.1080/09540090500177687
Mae, S., Lape, S., Fernandez, E., & Simene, D. Q. (2024). # ATM : Exploring the Most Prevalent and Influential Slang Terms Among Generation Z Filipinos on Social Media Platforms. December. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.29026.85446
Mandalika, U. P. (2024). The Use of Language Variation in Social Media: A Review of Sociolinguistic Literature Ni Wayan Prami Wahyudiantari. 8(3), 2126–2130. https://doi.org/10.58258/jisip.v7i1.7259/http
Natsir, N., Aliah, N., Zulkhaeriyah, Z., Amiruddin, A., & Esmianti, F. (2023). the Impact of Language Changes Caused By Technology and Social Media. Language Literacy: Journal of Linguistics, Literature, and Language Teaching, 7(1), 115–124. https://doi.org/10.30743/ll.v7i1.7021
Olvera, C., Stebbins, G. T., Goetz, C. G., & Kompoliti, K. (2021). TikTok Tics: A Pandemic Within a Pandemic. Movement Disorders Clinical Practice, 8(8), 1200–1205. https://doi.org/10.1002/mdc3.13316
Page, R., Barton, D., Lee, C., Unger, J. W., & Zappavigna, M. (2022). Researching Language and Social Media: A Student Guide (2nd ed.). Routledge.
Pak, I., Teh, P. L., & Cheah, Y. N. (2018). Hidden sentiment behind letter repetition in online reviews. Journal of Telecommunication, Electronic and Computer Engineering, 10(3–2), 115–120.
Salwa, S., Andara, N., Syakira, S., & Aqilah, S. T. (2024). Penggunaan Bahasa Slang pada Postingan dan Kolom Komentar Media Sosial X di Era Gen Alpha.
Thelwall, M. (2009). MySpace comments. Online Information Review, 33(1), 58–76. https://doi.org/10.1108/14684520910944391
Uyuni, Y. R., Nuroh, N., & Amalia, N. (2018). Social Media Language Trends : A Study of Changes in the Meaning of Contemporary Arabic Words in the Digital Era. 2(1), 405–414. https://doi.org/10.32332/ijalt.v6i02.9925
Venter, E. (2017). Bridging the communication gap between Generation Y and the Baby Boomer generation. International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, 22(4), 497–507. https://doi.org/10.1080/02673843.2016.1267022
Zamyatkina, A. A., & Belova, N. A. (2022). Neologisms As a Reflection of Changes in the Social and Communicative System of the Modern English Language. Sovremennye Issledovaniya Sotsialnykh Problem, 14(4), 72–84. https://doi.org/10.12731/2077-1770-2022-14-4-72-84
Published
2025-08-13
How to Cite
YUDISTIRA, Renaldy Serby.
The Emergence of Neologisms and New Linguistic Forms that Impact Communication on TikTok.
e-Journal of Linguistics, [S.l.], v. 19, n. 2, p. 80--102, aug. 2025.
ISSN 2442-7586.
Available at: <https://ojs.unud.ac.id/index.php/eol/article/view/124029>. Date accessed: 18 oct. 2025.
doi: https://doi.org/10.24843/e-jl.2025.v19.i02.p08R1.
Section
Articles
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
