Dictionary

wikiality en · NOUN

Pronunciation

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Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Polynesian *witi Hawaiian wiki Hawaiian wikiwiki Proto-Indo-European *webʰ-der. Proto-Germanic *webaną Proto-Germanic *wabją Old English webb Middle English web English web English WikiWikiWebclip. English wiki Proto-Indo-European *h₁én Ancient Greek ἐν (en) Ancient Greek ἐν- (en-) Proto-Indo-European *kʷelh₁-redup. Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *kʷékʷlos Proto-Hellenic *kʷókʷlos Proto-Hellenic *kúklos Ancient Greek κύκλος (kúklos) Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Ancient Greek -ῐος (-ĭos) Ancient Greek ἐγκύκλῐος (enkúklĭos) Proto-Indo-European *peh₂w-der. Proto-Hellenic *pā́wits Ancient Greek παῖς (paîs) Pre-Greekder.? Proto-Hellenic *-eús Ancient Greek -εύς (-eús) Ancient Greek -εύω (-eúō) Ancient Greek παιδεύω (paideúō) Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-i-eh₂ Proto-Hellenic *-íā Ancient Greek -ία (-ía) Ancient Greek παιδείᾱ (paideíā) Ancient Greek ἐγκύκλιος παιδείᾱ (enkúklios paideíā)bor. New Latin encyclopaedīalbor. English encyclopedia blend English Wikipedia Proto-Indo-European *(H)reh₁-der. Proto-Indo-European *(H)reh₁ís Proto-Italic *reis Classical Latin rēs Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Proto-Indo-European *-is Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālis Latin reālis Proto-Indo-European *-teh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-ts Proto-Indo-European *-teh₂ts Proto-Italic *-tāts Latin -tās Medieval Latin reālitāslbor. French réalitéder. English reality blend English wikiality Blend of Wikipedia + reality, coined by American comedian and writer Stephen Colbert on 31 July 2006 on his show The Colbert Report.

Meanings

1. (derogatory, uncountable, usually) The supposed reality described by Wikipedia articles, whose content is established by majority consensus.
   • Back in 2006, comedian Stephen Colbert did a bit about Wikipedia, saying it was the harbinger of a distorted form of reality called “Wikiality” […] Fast forward to 2025 and it seems that Wikipedia might be the antidote to “alternative facts”, with lessons not just for the web, but for society more broadly. [2025 October 27, David Shariatmadari, “‘People thought I was a communist doing this as a non-profit’: is Wikipedia’s Jimmy Wales the last decent tech baron?”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
   • Most important, here, Colbert calls attention to the Bush administration's cooption of wikiality: its continuous campaign to manipulate public perception. 2009, Jonathan Gray, Jeffrey P. Jones, Ethan Thompson, Satire TV: politics and comedy in the post-network era, NYU Press, →ISBN:
   • A group of undergraduates and alumni combated the backlash of "wikiality" and put their own spin on the facts about Cornell in an article about the University on the Web site Wikipedia. 2006 September 20, Felicia Daniels, “Wikipedia selects Cornell U. page as 'Featured Article'”, in University Wire:
   • Yet, this is the wikiality("truth based on consensus rather than fact") of the world, I'm sorry, of America, today 2007 January 5, Matt Martin, “Are we best we can be?”, in The Lantern:

Forms

Relateds

truthiness

wikipedia: The Colbert Report