Twitter Reacts To Kim Jong Un Calling Donald Trump ‘Dotard’

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un retaliated to President Donald Trump terming him “Rocket Man” during the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday by calling him a “dotard” in an official statement released Thursday.

"I am now thinking hard about what response he could have expected when he allowed such eccentric words to trip off his tongue," Kim said in the statement released by the state Korean Central News Agency, Time reported. "I will surely and definitely tame the mentally deranged U.S. dotard with fire."

Following Kim’s use of the not-so-commonly-used word, searches for the term skyrocketed online, as most people were unaware of its usage it but keen to find out what Kim’s latest attack meant.

Merriam Webster tweeted saying that search for the specific term was “high as a kite.”

According to Merriam Webster, the term “dotard” refers to "a person in his or her dotage" (a state or period of senile decay marked by decline of mental poise and alertness). The term comes from the Middle English word “doten” (meaning "to dote"), which initially meant "imbecile" when people in the 14th century began using it.

Around 10:30 p.m. EDT, “#Dotard” was trending at the second spot on Twitter as people came up with memes and hilarious posts to make fun of the childish rivalry and name-calling going on between the two leaders.

Some Twitter users insinuated that the POTUS ought to be ashamed of the fact that Kim, whose mother tongue is not English, had a better vocabulary. Others seemed to be impressed by the fact that a single phrase from the leader’s mouth was enough to prompt a worldwide search on an ancient term that is hardly in use.

Apart from calling Trump a “dotard,” Kim also called him a “frightened dog” that “barks louder.” “Far from making remarks of any persuasive power that can be viewed to be helpful to defusing tension, he made unprecedented rude nonsense one has never heard from any of his predecessors,” he added, NBC News reported.

The “unprecedented rude nonsense” that Kim referred to was a speech that Trump gave at the U.N. General Assembly, where he threatened to “totally destroy” North Korea. "The United States has great strength and patience, but if it is forced to defend itself and its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea. 'Rocket Man' is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime," said Trump.

Trump had earlier mentioned the term “Rocket Man” in a tweet, mocking the “long gas lines” forming at North Korean gas stations due to a shortage of gasoline in the country.

"I spoke with President Moon [Jae-in] of South Korea last night," Trump wrote. "Asked him how Rocket Man is doing. Long gas lines forming in North Korea. Too bad!"

But name-calling may not be the only tactic in Kim's arsenal to get back at Trump for his recent insults. According to Yonhap News, North Korea may conduct a hydrogen bomb test in the Pacific in the near future as a retaliatory measure.

"It could be the most powerful detonation of an H-bomb in the Pacific," North Korea's Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho told reporters. "We have no idea about what actions could be taken as it will be ordered by leader Kim Jong-un."