If You Ran the Dictionary
Merriam-Webster has been collecting words through its Open Dictionary for some time, and now Collins Dictionary is getting in the game.
Merriam-Webster includes "humble brag," "tanorexic," and "remail," and Collins includes "amazeballs," "YOLO," and "Tebowing."
Here's how words normally get in the dictionary. What do you think is the best way to handle the flood of new words (some great and some awful) that appear every year?
(The title of this post, "If You Ran the Dictionary," is a tribute to one of my favorite children's books, If I Ran the Zoo.)
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Mignon Fogarty is better known online as Grammar Girl and is the author of the new book Grammar Girl's 101 Troublesome Words You'll Master in No Time.
Merriam-Webster includes "humble brag," "tanorexic," and "remail," and Collins includes "amazeballs," "YOLO," and "Tebowing."
Here's how words normally get in the dictionary. What do you think is the best way to handle the flood of new words (some great and some awful) that appear every year?
(The title of this post, "If You Ran the Dictionary," is a tribute to one of my favorite children's books, If I Ran the Zoo.)
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Mignon Fogarty is better known online as Grammar Girl and is the author of the new book Grammar Girl's 101 Troublesome Words You'll Master in No Time.
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Good point, and very funny. I'd never seen the "You obviously like owls" meaning.
As an example: What is "YOLO", I've never ever heard, or seen anyone use it in the original sense. The tongue-in cheek spoof of it "You obviously like owls" seems to be much better known.
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