Gigil: word for ‘cute aggression’ among new Oxford English Dictionary entries

Gigil is a ‘feeling so intense that it gives us the irresistible urge to tightly clench our hands, grit our teeth, and pinch or squeeze whomever or whatever it is we find so adorable’. Photograph: Sally Anscombe/Getty Images

Have you ever held a puppy that was so unbelievably fluffy and adorable you didn’t know how to convey the strong urge to squeeze its head without sounding like a maniac? Well, now there’s a word for it: gigil.

Gigil (pronounced ghee-gill) is one of the new words that have made it into the Oxford English Dictionary (OED).