lexicography news stories on Newser

Web Dictionary Plans to Outdo Print Cousins

Nick McMaster — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 17:32:10 CDT

Ever stumbled across an unfamiliar word and wondered not only what it means, but what it looks and sounds like? Or what other words it appears alongside most often, and how many times it’s been used in print this year? The revolutionary new dictionary Wordnik, set to go online this...

Meh, Add It to the Dictionary

Jason Farago — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 10:07:11 CST

The 30th-anniversary edition of the authoritative Collins English Dictionary will include a new entry suggested by readers: the interjection "meh." An expression of indifference or boredom, it’s believed to have originated in North America. Its spelling was codified on an episode of The Simpsons , the Telegraph reports, in which an...

Winning Word of 2007: 'W00t'

Lucas Laursen — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 10:47:03 CST

W00t is Merriam-Webster’s word of the year. The term is the victory cry of computer hackers and gamers, who also heatedly argue its origins. Merriam-Webster cites the explanation that gamers coined it as an alphanumeric acronym for “We Owned Other Team.” Contentious hackers claim it was code for when they...