Wacky Retirement-Related Words You Won't Find in Webster's

This is a guest post by Jan Cullinane, author of AARP's The Single Woman's Guide to Retirement.

Retirement is changing, and choice is the new normal. Continue to work? Start a new career? Relocate? Stay? Have adult kids live with you?

Women and men approach this transition in different ways, so it's not surprising that new retirement lingo has blossomed. Here is a baker's dozen of words/acronyms you won't find in an ordinary dictionary.

Related to Relocation:

Fanby ( find a new backyard) - People looking to relocate. Some are "serial relocators," perhaps moving outside of the United States, followed by relocation to an active-adult community, and finally residing in a CCRC (continuing care retirement community).

Ruppies ( retired urban professionals) - Having lived in the 'burbs, Ruppies are moving to cities to enjoy the amenities this kind of living can offer.

Splitter - Those who split their time between two (or more) homes. About six percent of us own a second home, according to the U.S. Census.

Related to Children:

Kidult - People between the ages of 18 and 25, often financially and psychologically dependent on their parents. They're caught in the transition between childhood and adulthood, also known as "adultolescence."

Kippers ( kids in parents' pockets eroding retirement savings)  - Remember to save for your own retirement first, since the kids have more time than we do to save for the future.

Skier ( spending the kids' inheritance) - Travel, luxury cars, multiple homes, eating at expensive restaurants. Skiers are going to enjoy burning through their money before they die. It gives the word skiing a whole different meaning.

Related to Marital Status:

Freemales - A growing number of women worldwide who are single by choice. Delete "spinster," "old maid," and "crazy cat-lady" from your vocabulary NOW.

Gray Divorce - Divorce among those 50 and older (think Rhea Perlman and Danny DeVito). The National Center for Family and Marriage Research at Bowling State University reports that the divorce rate in this age group has doubled over the last decade, and now makes up 25% of all divorces.

LATs ( living apart together) - Couples in committed relationships who maintain separate residences. LATs are often mature, divorced women who don't want to uproot their lives because of children or a job. LATs are in contrast to LTAs ( living together apart) - no longer a couple but remain in the same household because of finances, children, or the perception of social stigma.

Related to Working:

Jhobby - Turning a hobby into a paycheck. For example, my friend Janet designed jewelry for her friends and family for special occasions. Now she sells her exquisite creations to boutiques. Annie, a shopping addict, has parlayed her passion into a part-time job as a secret shopper.

Returnment - Going back to work after retiring from a primary career.

So, now you're up to speed on the new retirement lingo. If I could only use some of these terms in "Words with Friends"!

Best-selling author Jan Cullinane is the author of The Single Woman's Guide to Retirement. She has been featured on TV, on the radio, and in many newspapers and magazines. She is a speaker and consultant on retirement lifestyle issues whose clients include Ford Motor Company, Deloitte & Touche LLP, the federal government, and the Smithsonian Institution.

 

Dictionary photo via iStock

 

Also of Interest

• Saving for Retirement - What's a Woman to Do?
• Average 401(k) Balances for 55-Plus: $255,000
• Join AARP: Savings, resources and news for your well-being

 

See the  AARP home page for deals, savings tips, trivia and more