The Top 10 Everything of 2008

G.O.P. vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin adopted this moniker during her acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in September. The phrase was meant to convey her status as a working parent who understood everyday problems. It also echoed a much-discussed 1996 voter demographic: "soccer moms." After Palin called herself "just your average hockey mom" in her speech, she added another line that had not been included in the prepared version given in advance to the media: "You know, they say the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull? Lipstick." Later, Obama ridiculed Senator John McCain's claim to be a candidate of change as "just calling the same thing something different." He continued: "You know, you can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig." Some Republicans saw that as a crude attack on Palin, which Obama's campaign denied.

TIME parses the top buzzwords of 2008: