“When the editors of the Sunday New York Times book review needed to find a word to describe a drop in nominations for last year’s best books, they turned to a new verb,” writes Kate Kelly in today’s Wall Street Journal.

” ‘This year the process nasdaqed,’ the editors wrote in their December story, noting that nominations for the year had tumbled 20%.

“About a month earlier, Adam Schefter, a sportswriter for the Denver Post, had a similar thought. Looking for a word to convey the plight of hapless Denver Broncos quarterback Brian Griese, Mr. Schefter wrote that ‘his quarterback rating has Nasdaqed.’ “

“The term ‘just popped into my head,’ says Mr. Schefter, who also is president of the Pro Football Writers of America and keeps a file on phrases he might use in future stories. ‘Obviously, as my portfolio reflects, [Nasdaq] was not performing the way any of us would have liked.’ “

“It’s yet another fallout from the Internet bust. The Nasdaq Stock Market, the once-hip home of Amazon.com Inc., Yahoo Inc. and countless other fallen Web stars, has deteriorated in the eyes of many writers into a synonym for ‘loser.’ “

“In recent months, Nasdaq has sprouted up dozens of times in newspapers across the country, describing everything from bad sports teams to troubled TV ratings. Last month, a San Jose Mercury News editorial about Gary Condit, the scandal-plagued California congressman, declared: ‘Nasdaq is higher than his poll numbers.’ “

“For image-makers at the world’s largest stock market, Nasdaq’s arrival in the lexicon of trash-talk takes a bad situation and makes it worse. Despite a healthy rally since the September terrorist attacks, the Nasdaq Composite Index was down more than 21% last year and is off 61% from its March 2000 high.”