Kayfabe is now part of the Merriam-Webster Dictionary

2 : the playacting involved in maintaining kayfabe While there's less emphasis on maintaining kayfabe these days, professional wrestling promotions still often try to blur the lines between reality and entertainment for the sake of storylines.

Unlike in the 1980s, when maintaining kayfabe was a priority, the WWE now explicitly tries to keep the entertainment product separate from the lives of the talent outside of the squared circle. This all started arguably back in the 1990s when the co-founder of the modern WWE compared professional wrestling to sitcoms and soap operas.

These days, pro wrestling fans have become aware of the line separating real life from entertainment. But, this doesn't make this inclusion of the word in the Merriam-Webster any less of an achievement.

Kayfabe joins other professional wrestling terms like "babyface" and "heel" with official definitions. In 2020, The Rock's favourite noun, Jabroni, was also added to the dictionary.

Last month's update to the Merriam-Webster dictionary saw the addition pop-culture terms like "Padawan", "speedrun", "nerf", "doomscroll", "edgelord", and "microtransaction."

Speaking of the WWE, fans still playing WWE 2K22 might want to upgrade. 2K is taking down the online servers for WWE 2K22 in January, incentivizing an upgrade to WWE 2K23. Between the latest entry's discounts, new features, and much-improved online matchmaking, it only makes sense to make the move.