- Brotein is commonly used in colloquial American English by socially adept males who go to the gym daily to exercise and are into bodybuilding. It usually refers to protein supplements that one takes after exercising, but it can also refer to other sources of protein. Blending was an easy word-formation process for this term since bro rhymes with the first syllable in protein. Bro, is also used in informal English within this same community, and it has recently been the source of many neologisms formed through blending that are parallel to this example. Some include broatee and brocabulary. This term was probably coined because the speech community that included these adolescent males wanted to associate themselves with their protein powders, and no other word like this existed.
brotein
noun; blending and clipping
protein for an adolescent male
Etymology : formed by the blending of 'bro' [clipped form of 'brother' - from Old English brophor] and '-tein' [clipped form of 'protein' - from Greek proteios 'the first quality' - from protos 'first']
Source : roommate after exercising: "time for my brotein shake" (10/15/2008)
Last modified: 30 November 2008