{"id":6787,"date":"2018-09-06T13:00:05","date_gmt":"2018-09-06T17:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/?p=6787"},"modified":"2018-09-07T10:31:12","modified_gmt":"2018-09-07T14:31:12","slug":"old-dictionary-new-words","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/old-dictionary-new-words\/","title":{"rendered":"Old Dictionary, New Words"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_6788\" style=\"width: 1034px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter post-item__attachment\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6788\" class=\"size-large wp-image-6788\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2018\/09\/dictionary-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2018\/09\/dictionary-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2018\/09\/dictionary-350x233.jpg 350w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2018\/09\/dictionary-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2018\/09\/dictionary.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-6788\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo courtesy of Pixabay, CCO<\/p><\/div>\n<p>As you know, the English language is an evolving, ever-changing construct. The words we speak and write can change in meaning, become forgotten, or morph into something quite different. This is one of the reasons that language, and linguistics, is such a challenging discipline.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Merriam-Webster Dictionary<\/em><\/strong>, one of the leading resources for English in the United States, officially added 840 words in September 2018. While not all the words are new in other cultures, or among those of us who use slang and abbreviated terms, they are certainly new to the dictionary. The words now have a status that they did not possess before.<\/p>\n<p>This is important because slang often enters our lexicon but may never become so common that it enters the dictionary. The sheer number of words added this year indicates that English is rapidly growing. The broader scope of language, with digital access through social media sources like Twitter and Facebook, means an increased awareness and acceptance of terminology and vocabulary from all facets of our global society. Embrace the change, or be left behind.<\/p>\n<p>Words like <strong>iftar<\/strong>, the end-of-day meal eaten by Muslims to break the fast during Ramadan, were added. So was <strong>gochujang<\/strong>, a Korean chili paste now beloved by many American foodies. They also added <strong>guac<\/strong>, an abbreviation of guacamole. I\u2019m personally fond of <strong>mise en place<\/strong>, a French term for setting out your ingredients before the start of the cooking process. Once I learned this term my time spent cooking became much more efficient and productive. I love to cook!<\/p>\n<p>Here are some of the other words recently added, particularly those which I commonly use.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Adorbs<\/strong> \u2013 an abbreviation for adorable. \u201cThat video of the woman covered by kittens is positively adorbs!\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bingeable<\/strong> \u2013 An adjective for the type of television show that you sit and watch multiple episodes of at one time. \u201cIf you\u2019re looking for something bingeable, try that new thriller on Amazon.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Biohacking <\/strong>\u2013 An unconventional biological method, such as gene splicing, used to better someone\u2019s condition or lifestyle. \u201cThe clinic was able to add years of quality living to him through some experimental biohacking technique.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bougie <\/strong>\u2013 An abbreviation for the bourgeois, meaning someone who is preoccupied with wealth and status. \u201cThat guy she\u2019s dating is a real bougie, isn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Fave <\/strong>\u2013 An abbreviation of the word favorite. This is a slang term which has been in popular use since the 1930s! \u201cHe\u2019s my absolute fave singer!\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Fintech <\/strong>\u2013 Technology and businesses serving the digital and online financial communities. \u201cHis new job in fintech keeps him very busy.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Generation Z <\/strong>\u2013 Born in the 1990s or 2000s? You are Gen Z. \u201cOne of the nicest people I know identifies herself as Generation Z.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>GOAT\u00a0<\/strong>&#8211; An acronym for Greatest of All Time. It specifically applies to New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, but is now used in any context. &#8220;When it comes to NFL quarterbacks, the discussion is closed. Tom Brady is the GOAT.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li><strong>Hangry <\/strong>\u2013 If you are irritable because you haven\u2019t eaten, you\u2019re hangry. \u201cDon\u2019t even try talking to him right now, he\u2019s hangry.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Hophead <\/strong>\u2013 This old, outdated noun meaning a drug addict is finding new life as a word meaning a beer enthusiast. \u201cHe\u2019s such a hophead that he\u2019s starting his own brewpub.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Latinx <\/strong>\u2013 This is a gender-neutral word to identify someone of Latin American origin. \u201cMy co-worker is a Latinx.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Mocktail <\/strong>\u2013 This is another word that I\u2019ve heard for years. It refers to a drink which looks like a cocktail but contains no alcohol. \u201cGive me the keys, and order me a mocktail. I\u2019ll be the designated driver.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Rando <\/strong>\u2013 A disparaging term for a random person who just appears without any introduction or apparent reason. \u201cWe were having a quiet drink at the bar when this rando showed up and tried to buy us a drink.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>TL; DR <\/strong>\u2013 An abbreviation for the phrase <em>too long; didn\u2019t read<\/em>. \u201cHe sent me his blog for review, so I replied, TL; DR.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>And before you say that about this blog, I\u2019ll end it here. Do you have any words that you think belong in a dictionary? Let me know!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<img width=\"350\" height=\"233\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2018\/09\/dictionary-350x233.jpg\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2018\/09\/dictionary-350x233.jpg 350w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2018\/09\/dictionary-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2018\/09\/dictionary-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/31\/2018\/09\/dictionary.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><p>As you know, the English language is an evolving, ever-changing construct. The words we speak and write can change in meaning, become forgotten, or morph into something quite different. This is one of the reasons that language, and linguistics, is such a challenging discipline. Merriam-Webster Dictionary, one of the leading resources for English in the&hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"post-item__readmore\"><a class=\"btn btn--md\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/old-dictionary-new-words\/\">Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":138,"featured_media":6788,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[135139,135370],"tags":[386354,13],"class_list":["post-6787","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english-language","category-english-vocabulary","tag-american-culture","tag-vocabulary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6787","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/138"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6787"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6787\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6791,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6787\/revisions\/6791"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6788"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6787"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6787"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6787"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}