A few minutes after midnight in Washington, D.C., President Trump tweeted a strange sentence fragment.
“Despite the constant negative press covfefe,” it read. That was it. It ended abruptly, as if someone stopped him, or he stopped himself, or perhaps he never meant to send it.
No, “covfefe” isn’t a typo, at least, not on the part of The Washington Post.
It’s a good guess that the word he was looking for was “coverage.” It came out “covfefe.” It was anybody’s guess what words were meant to follow. “Despite the constant negative press covfefe,” what?
Within five hours, it had been retweeted more than 115,000 times and “liked” more than 146,000 times — making it one of his most popular tweets in months.
Despite the constant negative press covfefe
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 31, 2017
Quickly, the “word” covfefe began trending. One company even appeared to have made a shirt with that odd combination of letters written across the front in bold, block letters.
“Don’t talk to me until I’ve had my #covfefe,” wrote one user.
“What’s even the point of CNN if they’re not going commercial-free with #covfefe coverage?” inquired another.
“The next time I go to Starbucks I’m gonna order a grande #covfefe,” wrote one thirsty user.
Make America #Covfefe Again #MACA pic.twitter.com/43OZ5CmCdE
— Diane N. Sevenay (@Diane_7A) May 31, 2017
The word “covfefe” does not appear in the Merriam-Webster dictionary. When searching for it on the company’s website, the dictionary suggests “coffee,” “coven,” “cover,” “covet,” “covey” and “cuvee.”
Clearly, it isn’t an English word. Some tweets employing “covfefe” offer the option to translate it from Norwegian, though that appears to be a glitch of some sort. “Covfefe” does not appear to be a Norwegian word, either.
Desperate for a definition, some Twitter users came up with a few, such as coffee or a synonym to “The Lion King’s” “hakuna matata.” (It means no worries, for the rest of your days. Some would say it’s a problem-free philosophy.)
The best part of waking up is #covfefe in your cup.
— Randy Rainbow (@RandyRainbow) May 31, 2017
#Covfefe: What a wonderful phrase
— Elnathan John (@elnathan_john) May 31, 2017
Covfefe! Aint no passing craze
It means no worries for the rest of ur days
Its our problem-free philosophy pic.twitter.com/wvdsj24kWh
Others suggested it might make a great band, or perhaps human, name.
Nine months from now there will be a flood of babies named #Covfefe.
— Zanti Misfit (@ZantiMisft) May 31, 2017
my band covfefe will be debuting at sxsw next year we have two keytarists pic.twitter.com/YkJdMIfhgO
— Gillian Brockell (@gbrockell) May 31, 2017
"Everybody has #covfefe now. I'm into the early stuff, like #bqwhatever" pic.twitter.com/frepi3E9un
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) May 31, 2017
Fusion even launched a poll asking others to weigh in on the strange word’s pronunciation.
Despite the constant negative press covfefe
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 31, 2017
the best and worst thing about #covfefe will be everyone trying to pronounce it in real life tomorrow
— Cespedes Family BBQ (@CespedesBBQ) May 31, 2017
Some, meanwhile, defended Trump, pointing out that accidentally sending a half-typed tweet is a human error.
Liberals are so perfect, they've never been in the middle of typing a tweet, and then been interrupted, and accidentally sent it #covfefe
— Mark Dice (@MarkDice) May 31, 2017
So many Twitter users weighed in on the apparent typo, it created two trending topics on Twitter and a Twitter moment.
The first trending topic was simply #covfefe. The other was “Rosebud,” which refers to the famous dying words of Charles Kane in the film “Citizen Kane.” Its meaning remains a mystery until the end of the movie.
Dayenu https://t.co/S4VCVpyAlO
— haunted covfefe (@zandywithaz) May 31, 2017
#covfefe is Citizen Trump's rosebud pic.twitter.com/fbbRnbRuU1
— ¡El Sooopèrr! ن (@SooperMexican) May 31, 2017
Orson Welles called. The answer to Rosebud is... #Covfefe
— Roof Beam Reader (@RoofBeamReader) May 31, 2017
“Citizen Kane” wasn’t the only film invoked.
"Leave the gun, take the #covfefe."
— Daniel Dae Kim (@danieldaekim) May 31, 2017
Put that covfefe down! #CovfefeIsForClosers #covfefe pic.twitter.com/UjfZRelzmt
— Matt Gray (@mattjgray) May 31, 2017
Finally figured out what Bill Murray whispered in Scarlett Johansson's ear at the end of "Lost in Translation" #covfefe pic.twitter.com/fDFJUYlEz8
— Jordan VanDina (@Shrimptooth) May 31, 2017
Some reimagined famous brand slogans, replacing brand names with it.
The first fast food chain to weigh in on this gets my business tomorrow. #Covfefe
— Max Parker (@GameGuyPGH) May 31, 2017
Maybe she's born with it, maybe it's #Covfefe.
— Katie Krause (@Katie_Krause) May 31, 2017
Easy. Breezy. Beautiful. #covfefe girl
— Marissa Farabaugh (@marissa31200) May 31, 2017
Switching to @GEICO could save you 15% or more on car covfefe. #covfefe
— gastt (@gasttfromtumblr) May 31, 2017
Other users, meanwhile, raced to tweet the best “covfefe” joke. Here are but a few.
what makes me saddest is that I know I'll never write anything funnier than #covfefe
— Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) May 31, 2017
Twitter is fast #covfefe pic.twitter.com/uWoRSSxz7t
— Geované M. (@geovanemorgan) May 31, 2017
Ask not what covfefe can do for you, but what you can do for #covfefe pic.twitter.com/pXD950PtXj
— Mike Gorman (@MikeGormanHFX) May 31, 2017
How to summon the #Covfefe pic.twitter.com/YJVdrIHOwi
— Kaleigh Kirby (@KayluvsPrada) May 31, 2017
Make America #Covfefe Again #MACA pic.twitter.com/FZlzJip2g3
— A (@annietheblank) May 31, 2017
If your covfefe lasts longer than four hours, call your doctor. #Covfefe pic.twitter.com/vZNr2C0Hvp
— Robot Joe Miller (@JoeMiller17) May 31, 2017
I overcooked the confefe! Oh nooooo! 😂We should have a contest to give it meaning!
— Jeff Lord (@realJeffreyLord) May 31, 2017
Spicer: Look the president has been very clear on #covfefe. I think the tweet speaks for itself. I'm not going to rehash every letter today.
— Claire Wisely (@Claire_Wisely) May 31, 2017
Just think: It took 1000s of yrs of civilization and progress before humankind was ready for "covfefe." Well worth the wait., I'd say.
— Paul Farhi (@farhip) May 31, 2017
I'm completely serious. From now on we should ONLY refer to him as "President Covfefe." #Covfefe
— Mike Birbiglia (@birbigs) May 31, 2017
You say "covfefe" I say "covfoffee" let's call the whole thing off!! 😜. no... really..#Covfefe
— Anna Camp (@TheRealAnnaCamp) May 31, 2017
People who missed the Twitter whirlwind tonight will be waking up to a brave new covfefe in the morning.
— Paul Farhi (@farhip) May 31, 2017
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