Listicle — what is it?

Listicle

While listening to a podcast recently, the word listicle was used.  This word is not familiar to me, so I thought I would investigate and share with the readers of WordsByBob.com.

It appears that the definition of listicle is–an article on the Internet presented in the form of a numbered or bullet-pointed list.

One definition states that a listicle is an article made up of a series of facts, tips, quotations or examples.

In journalism and blogging, a listicle is a short-form of writing that uses a list as its thematic structure, but is fleshed out with sufficient copy to be published as an article.  Examples include “10 ways to do….”, or “The six best ……”.

The above examples are of ranked listicles.  A judgment is made on their order of importance. (Think David Letterman’s Top Ten List)

Other listicles include thematic where no value is assigned.  Closely related to thematic listicles is the random listicle.  In this list, the reader decides on a ranking, if any.

Listicle is a portmanteau derived from list and article.