It's a New Language Frontier! Oxford Lexicographers Add 2,000 New Words, Phrases, and Senses to the New Oxford American Dictionary, 3e

NEW YORK, Sept. 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In the 1950s, the 21st century was a futuristic time romanticized by such sci-fi radio shows as 2000 Plus, which reinforced the association of space travel with the post-20th-century world. But by 1960, the Space Age was a reality. 'Astronaut' was suddenly an actual occupation, and our language soon swelled with cosmonauts, quasars, LRVs, space capsules, and a galaxy of other such terminology. From "Beam me up, Scotty" to "The Eagle has landed," it would seem that the outer-space culture branded as futuristic was here long before the year 2000.

Down to Earth

However, if the language new to the 21st century has a bent for any celestial body, it is planet Earth. The multitude of new words in the third edition of the New Oxford American Dictionary (NOAD, ISBN13: 9780195392883) can certainly attest to that. If yours is not a green-collar business, you may be subject to a green audit (and not by little green men from Mars). Carbon paper is yesterday, but not so carbon capture and storage, carbon credit, and carbon offsetting. If geoengineering based on carbon sequestration is beyond you, you could try hypermiling or add a light scoop to your workspace.

Some businesses need less workspace, thanks to homeshoring (or homesourcing), in which employees work from home. The youth in today's workforce is Generation Y. These Gen-Yers are the core constituents of social media, so employers may take measures to restrict social networking during business hours. (If your boss walks in on you texting your BFF, quickly type TTYL and get back to work! Your gal pal will understand, and she won't unfriend you.)

NOAD indeed bears the stamp of currency. The first edition was published prior to September 11, 2001, so it was not until the second edition that we introduced '9/11,' 'al-Qaeda,' etc., to the printed pages. In 2010, we continue to have the unfortunate job of updating the record of related language: the threat of agroterrorism, the controversy of waterboarding, and the increased presence of border patrols demand the inclusion of these terms in the third edition.

Crunched and squeezed

The language also continued to expand in the world of finance, even as our finances were shrinking. The squeeze of the 2008 credit crunch shed light on such practices as deleveraging and quantitative easing. Many of these 'new' words, like zombie bank, may have been around for several years, but it took recent events for them to ooze out of Wall Street and spill out onto Main Street.

New words may be typically topical, but they are not all about science, politics, and the economy. The 2,000 new words, phrases, and senses in the third edition of NOAD have emerged from, well, everywhere. Wherever language lives, Oxford is there to report on it. When guys in a bromance are at a soccer match wailing on their vuvuzelas, we're there. When kids run around in the dark with glow sticks, we're there. (Some kids run around doing crazier things . . . "Parkour!"). We know the LBD (little black dress) is still a classic, and although we hope it's never involved in a wardrobe malfunction, we are certain that many a woman in an LBD is sporting a tat, maybe even a tramp stamp.

Facts and figures

• The first edition of the New Oxford American Dictionary came out in 2001, and the second in 2005. The new edition contains nearly 100,000 headwords, including 11,000 proper names, and some 350,000 words, phrases, and definitions.
• New words in the third edition of the New Oxford American Dictionary are drawn from analysis of the two-billion-word Oxford English Corpus [http://oxforddictionaries.com/page/411] and from our worldwide Reading Programme [http://www.oed.com/about/reading.html], to ensure that the dictionary remains at the leading edge of language research.

Bennies

Customers who purchase a NOAD, 3rd edition, get six months' free access to the premium version of Oxford Dictionaries Online — which not only features the very latest words but also offers:

• audio pronunciations
• a huge, sense-linked thesaurus with over 600,000 synonyms and antonyms
• 1.9 million extra sense-linked examples
• a wealth of additional language resources including practical information on style, usage, grammar, spelling, and other tips for better writing
• sophisticated browsing by subject area, meaning, or part of speech
• personalization features so you can build your own dictionary and word lists

A Sampling of Additions to the 3rd Edition

New Words

agroterrorism n. terrorist acts intended to disrupt or damage a country's agriculture, esp. the use of a biological agent against crops or livestock.

– DERIVATIVES agroterrorist n.

ambush marketing n. the practice by which a rival company attempts to associate its products with an event that already has official sponsors.

Ardi the nickname of a partial female skeleton of a fossil hominid found in Ethiopia in 1994, about 4.4 million years old and 4 feet (1.2 m) in height. * Ardipithecus ramidus, family Hominidae. The species is believed to have been bipedal on the ground and quadrupedal when in trees.

BFF n. (pl. BFFs) informal a girl's best friend: my BFF's boyfriend is cheating on her.

– ORIGIN 1996: from the initial letters of best friend forever.

big media n. [treated as sing. or pl.] the main means of mass communication (i.e., television, radio, and the press), as opposed to blogs or other personal websites.

border patrol n. 1 a patrol sent to keep watch over an area along a country's border.

2 (Border Patrol) an agency within the US Department of Homeland Security responsible for preventing the entry of illegal aliens as well as terrorists and their weapons into the United States.

brand equity n. the commercial value that derives from consumer perception of the brand name of a particular product or service, rather than from the product or service itself.

bromance n. informal a close but nonsexual relationship between two men.

– ORIGIN early 21st cent.: blend of BROTHER and ROMANCE.

carbon capture and storage n. the process of trapping carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels or any other chemical or biological process and storing it in such a way that it is unable to affect the atmosphere.

carbon credit n. a permit that allows a country or organization to produce a certain amount of carbon emissions and that can be traded if the full allowance is not used.

carbon offsetting n. the counteracting of carbon dioxide emissions with an equivalent reduction of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

carbon sequestration n. a natural or artificial process by which carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere and held in solid or liquid form.

cloud computing n. the practice of using a network of remote servers hosted on the Internet to store, manage, and process data, rather than a local server or a personal computer.

credit crunch n. a sudden sharp reduction in the availability of money or credit from banks and other lenders: the beleaguered company has become the latest victim of the credit crunch.

defriend v. another term for UNFRIEND.

deleveraging n. Finance the process or practice of reducing the level of one's debt by rapidly selling one's assets.

– DERIVATIVES deleverage n. & v.

eggcorn n. a word or phrase that results from a mishearing or misinterpretation of another, an element of the original being substituted for one that sounds very similar or identical (e.g., tow the line instead of toe the line).

– ORIGIN early 21st cent.: with reference to a misinterpretation of ACORN.

end times plural n. (in some religious beliefs) the period leading up to Judgment Day: people in every age have wondered if the end times were going to occur during their lifetimes.

exit strategy n. a preplanned means of extricating oneself from a situation that is likely to become difficult or unpleasant.

gal pal n. informal a female friend.

Generation Y n. the generation born in the 1980s and 1990s, comprising primarily the children of the baby boomers and typically perceived as increasingly familiar with digital and electronic technology.

– DERIVATIVES Generation Yer n.

– ORIGIN 1990s: after GENERATION X.

Gen-Yer n. informal a member of Generation Y (born in the 1980s and 1990s). Also called MILLENNIAL.

glow stick n. a novelty item consisting of a plastic tube containing two chemicals that combine when the tube is bent, so producing a luminescent glow.

geoengineering n. the deliberate large-scale manipulation of an environmental process that affects the earth's climate, in an attempt to counteract the effects of global warming.

green audit n. an assessment of a business in terms of its impact on the environment.

green-collar adj. denoting or relating to employment concerned with products and services designed to improve the quality of the environment: green-collar jobs.

– ORIGIN on the pattern of WHITE-COLLAR and BLUE-COLLAR.

hashtag n. (on social networking websites such as Twitter) a hash or pound sign (#) used to identify a particular keyword or phrase in a posting.

hater n. a person who greatly dislikes a specified person or thing: a man hater | he's not a hater of modern music. * informal a negative or critical person: she found it difficult to cope with the haters.

hockey mom n. informal a mother who devotes a great deal of time and effort to supporting her children's participation in ice hockey.

homeshoring n. the practice of transferring employment that was previously carried out in a company's office or factory to employees' homes.

– ORIGIN early 21st cent.: on the pattern of OFFSHORING.

homesourcing n. another term for HOMESHORING.

– ORIGIN early 21st cent.: on the pattern of outsourcing (see OUTSOURCE).

hypermiling n. the practice of making adjustments to a vehicle or using driving techniques that will maximize the vehicle's fuel economy.

– DERIVATIVES hypermiler n.

Interweb n. humorous the Internet.

LBD n. (pl. LBDs) informal little black dress: you can't go wrong with an LBD for premieres or parties.

– ORIGIN abbreviation.

lipstick lesbian n. informal a lesbian who favors a glamorous, traditionally feminine style.

light scoop n. an architectural feature that captures natural light and draws it into parts of a building.

LMAO abbr. vulgar slang laughing my ass off.

megachurch n. a church with an unusually large congregation, typically one preaching a conservative or evangelical form of Christianity.

parkour (also parcour) n. the activity or sport of running through an area, typically in an urban environment, using acrobatic techniques to negotiate obstacles.

– ORIGIN early 21st cent.: French, alteration of parcours 'route, course.'

paywall n. (on a website) an arrangement whereby access is restricted to users who have paid to subscribe to the site.

quantitative easing n. Finance the introduction of new money into the money supply by a central bank.

robocall n. an automated telephone call that delivers a recorded message, typically on behalf of a political party or telemarketing company.

– ORIGIN_1990s: blend of ROBOT and CALL.

social media n. [treated as sing. or pl.] websites and applications used for social networking.

social networking n. the use of dedicated websites and applications to communicate informally with other users, or to find people with similar interests to oneself.

staycation n. informal a vacation spent in one's home country rather than abroad, or one spent at home and involving day trips to local attractions.

– ORIGIN early 21st cent.: blend of STAY(1) and VACATION.

steampunk n. a genre of science fiction that typically features steam-powered machinery rather than advanced technology.

tag cloud n. a visual depiction of the word content of a website, or of user-generated tags attached to online content, typically using color and font size to represent the prominence or frequency of the words or tags depicted.

Tat(3) n. informal a tattoo.

tramp stamp n. informal a tattoo on a woman's lower back.

truthiness n. informal the quality of seeming or being felt to be true, even if not necessarily true.

– ORIGIN early 19th cent. (in the sense 'truthfulness'): coined in the modern sense by US humorist Stephen Colbert (1964–).

TTYL abbr. informal talk to you later: Anyway, gotta run now! TTYL.

turducken n. a roast dish consisting of a boned chicken inside a boned duck, which is then placed inside a partially boned turkey.

– ORIGIN 1980s: blend of TURKEY, DUCK(1), and CHICKEN.  

unfriend v. [with obj.] informal remove (someone) from a list of friends or contacts on a social networking site: she broke up with her boyfriend, but she hasn't unfriended him.

vuvuzela n. S. African a long horn blown by fans at soccer matches.

– ORIGIN perhaps from Zulu.

wardrobe malfunction n. informal, humorous an instance of a person accidentally exposing an intimate part of their body as a result of an article of clothing slipping out of position.

waterboarding n. an interrogation technique simulating the experience of drowning, in which a person is strapped, face up, to a board that slopes downward at the head, while large quantities of water are poured over the face into the breathing passages.

webisode n. an episode, esp. from a television series, or short promotional film made for viewing online.

– ORIGIN 1990s: blend of WEB and EPISODE.

zombie bank n. informal a financial institution that is insolvent but that continues to operate through government support.

Old Words, New Senses

arc

(in a novel, play, or movie) the development or resolution of the narrative or principal theme.

boyfriend

denoting an item of clothing for a woman or girl that is designed to be loose-fitting or slightly oversized: a boyfriend cardigan.

carbon

carbon dioxide or other gaseous carbon compounds released into the atmosphere, associated with climate change.

channel

emulate or seem to be inspired by: Meg Ryan plays Avery as if she's channeling Nicole Kidman.

cougar

informal an older woman seeking a sexual relationship with a younger man.

curate

select acts to perform at (a music festival).

disruptive

innovative or groundbreaking: breaking a disruptive technology into the market is never easy.

ethical

avoiding activities or organizations that do harm to people or the environment: an expert on ethical investment.

flavor

a kind, variety, or sort: various flavors of firewall are evolving.

flyover

informal, derogatory denoting central regions of the US regarded as less significant than the East or West coasts: the flyover states.

friend

noun - a contact associated with a social networking website.

verb - add (someone) to a list of contacts associated with a social networking website.

grime

a form of dance music characterized by machinelike sounds and hip-hop vocals.

guerrilla

referring to actions or activities performed in an impromptu way, often without authorization: guerrilla theater.

hate

(hate on) informal express strong dislike for; criticize or abuse: I can't hate on them for trying something new.

heart

like very much; love: I totally heart this song.

inner

denoting a concealed or unacknowledged part of a person's personality: it's time to get in touch with your inner geek.

made man

a man who has been formally inducted as a full member of the Mafia.

meme

an image, video, phrase, etc., that is passed electronically from one Internet user to another.

moderate

monitor (an Internet message board or chat room) for inappropriate or offensive content.

nimrod

informal an inept person.

oligarch

(esp. in Russia) a very rich businessman with a great deal of political influence.

own

informal utterly defeat or humiliate: yeah right, she totally owned you, man.

pimp

informal make (something) more showy or impressive.

podium

(of a competitor) finish first, second, or third, so as to appear on a podium for an award.

poke

(on the social networking site Facebook) attract the attention of (another member of the site) by using the 'poke' facility.

puppy

informal a person or thing of a specified kind: patient bargain hunters can often find these puppies gathering dust at garage sales.

random

informal odd, unusual, or unexpected: I find it impossible to not laugh at such a random guy.

redact

censor or obscure (part of a text) for legal or security purposes.

render

covertly send (a foreign criminal or terrorist suspect) for interrogation abroad; subject to extraordinary rendition.

riff

perform a monologue or spoken improvisation on a particular subject: he also riffs on racism and the economy.

rock

informal wear (a garment) or affect (an attitude or style), esp. in a confident or flamboyant way: she was rocking a clingy little leopard-skin number.

short

Stock Exchange sell (stocks or other securities or commodities) in advance of acquiring them, with the aim of making a profit when the price falls.

silo

a system, process, department, etc., that operates in isolation from others: it's vital that team members step out of their silos and start working together.

soften

(of a market, currency, or commodity) fall in value: the share price has softened recently.

straightedge

(esp. among fans of hardcore punk music) having an ascetic or abstinent lifestyle: he's so straightedge that he won't even take Tylenol when he has a headache.

toxic

Finance

- denoting or relating to debt that has a high risk of default.

- denoting securities that are based on toxic debt and for which there is not a healthy or functioning market: the financial system has become clogged with toxic assets.

tweet

- a posting made on the social networking site Twitter: he started posting 'tweets' via his cell phone to let his parents know he was safe.

- make a posting on the social networking site Twitter.

vine

(vines) informal clothes: the hip got their vines at Wolmuth's on Market Street.

viral

an image, video, advertisement, etc., that is circulated rapidly on the Internet: the rise of virals in online marketing.

New Phrases

be all that informal be very attractive or good: he thinks he's all that — yeah, God's gift.

get one's arms around informal fully understand an issue or situation: doctors are having difficulty getting their arms around these new findings.

my bad informal used to acknowledge responsibility for a mistake: Sorry about the confusion. It's my bad.

the new black a color that is currently so popular that it rivals the traditional status of black as the most reliably fashionable color: brown is the new black this season.

a bridge too far a step or act that is regarded as being too drastic to take: having Botox would be a bridge too far.

like herding cats informal used to refer to a difficult or impossible task, typically an attempt to organize a group of people: controlling the members of this expedition is like herding cats.

claw something back (of a government) recover money disbursed in the form of an allowance or benefit, typically by taxation.

cop to accept or admit to: there are a lot of people who don't cop to their past.

frighten the horses [usu. with negative] do something likely to cause public outrage or offense: David's views would not have frightened the horses.

fall at the first hurdle meet with failure at a very early stage of an undertaking: the campaign could fall at the first hurdle if they fail to secure planning permission.

job something out assign separate elements of a piece of work to different companies, contractors, or workers: all the work done by the middleman can be jobbed out at a much lower cost.

less is more used to express the view that a minimalist approach to artistic or aesthetic matters is more effective.

what's not to like? informal used as a rhetorical expression of approval or satisfaction: cleaner air, cooler temperatures, and mountain views — what's not to like?

your mileage may vary informal your experience may be different: as with all holistic treatments, you have to keep doing them, and your mileage may vary.

share a moment informal experience a joint sensation of heightened emotion: Alan and Barbara shared a moment yesterday after the memorial service.

have skin in the game informal have a personal investment in an organization or undertaking, and therefore a vested interest in its success.

slice and dice divide a quantity of information up into smaller parts, esp. in order to analyze it more closely or in different ways: each network has analysis teams that slice and dice the exit poll information to find a conclusion.

talk the talk informal speak fluently or convincingly about something or in a way intended to please or impress others: we may not look like true rock jocks yet, but we talk the talk.

To speak with a NOAD lexicographer please contact Purdy at 212.726.6032, or [email protected]

SOURCE Oxford University Press