455 New Words Added to Dictionary
2021-11-07
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1So, do you think learning all 1,500 words in the VOA Learning English Word Book is hard?
2We have got news for you.
3American publisher Merriam-Webster announced it has added 455 new words to its dictionary for October 2021.
4The publisher said, "Just as the language never stops evolving, the dictionary never stops expanding."
5The 455 new words came from what the publisher called "extensive and established use."
6Merriam-Webster said the quick and informal nature of messaging, texting and tweeting online has increased during the pandemic.
7That, in turn, has given rise to a vocabulary filled with shortened forms of words and expressions.
8Listen to the conversation below to hear some of these new words in use:
9Person A: "Our social media professional just asked me what FTW is."
10Person B: "TBH, an expert in social media should really know the meaning of FTW, amirite?"
11FTW is an abbreviation for "for the win."
12It is often used to express approval or support on social media.
13TBH is short for "to be honest."
14And the word amirite is a shortened way to spell "am I right?"
15The COVID-19 pandemic that started in early 2020 gave us terms like contact tracing, flattening the curve, and social distancing.
16Even with record-setting vaccination programs, we know the pandemic is still not over.
17And new pandemic-related words have been added to our daily vocabulary.
18Here are some of those phrases that Merriam-Webster has added to its dictionary:
19breakthrough is often used to describe an infection occurring in someone who is fully vaccinated against an infectious disease like COVID-19
20super-spreader is an event or place at which a large number of people contract the same communicable disease
21long COVID is a condition that is marked by the presence of symptoms such as headache and shortness of breath that continue for weeks or months following a person's recovery from COVID-19
22And a vaccine passport is now required to enter many countries and places.
23This is a document providing proof of vaccination against infectious diseases (such as COVID-19)
24Digital technology has helped many of us continue with our daily lives during the pandemic.
25The use of technology has led to new ways to describe technology-related risks.
26When digital information in an image or audio recording cannot be read, it is called a bit rot.
27And zero-day is a term to describe weakness in computer systems that cybercriminals discover.
28From political events, we have whataboutism.
29This is "the act or practice of responding to an accusation of wrongdoing by claiming that an offense committed by another is similar or worse."
30And vote-a-rama describes the unusually large number of debates and votes that happen in one day in the United States Congress.
31Other new words come from foods and drinks.
32One such word is fluffernutter.
33This is a sandwich made with peanut butter and marshmallow between two pieces of white bead.
34Another is horchata - a cold drink made from ground rice or almonds, with spices like cinnamon or vanilla.
35Eating too many fluffernutters could give you a bit of a dad bod.
36The dictionary publisher describes a dad bod as the body of an average father, especially, it says, "one that is slightly overweight and not extremely muscular."
37In today's program, we have only had time to tell you about 16 of the 455 new words from Merriam-Webster.
38And this is not even the first time this year it has added hundreds of new words.
39Last January, the dictionary publisher added 520 new words.
40That is a lot of new vocabulary for you to study.
41I'm Ashley Thompson.
1So, do you think learning all 1,500 words in the VOA Learning English Word Book is hard? 2We have got news for you. 3American publisher Merriam-Webster announced it has added 455 new words to its dictionary for October 2021. 4The publisher said, "Just as the language never stops evolving, the dictionary never stops expanding." The 455 new words came from what the publisher called "extensive and established use." 5Merriam-Webster said the quick and informal nature of messaging, texting and tweeting online has increased during the pandemic. That, in turn, has given rise to a vocabulary filled with shortened forms of words and expressions. 6Listen to the conversation below to hear some of these new words in use: 7Person A: "Our social media professional just asked me what FTW is." 8Person B: "TBH, an expert in social media should really know the meaning of FTW, amirite?" 9FTW is an abbreviation for "for the win." It is often used to express approval or support on social media. TBH is short for "to be honest." And the word amirite is a shortened way to spell "am I right?" 10Coronavirus 11The COVID-19 pandemic that started in early 2020 gave us terms like contact tracing, flattening the curve, and social distancing. 12Even with record-setting vaccination programs, we know the pandemic is still not over. And new pandemic-related words have been added to our daily vocabulary. 13Here are some of those phrases that Merriam-Webster has added to its dictionary: 14breakthrough is often used to describe an infection occurring in someone who is fully vaccinated against an infectious disease like COVID-19 15super-spreader is an event or place at which a large number of people contract the same communicable disease 16long COVID is a condition that is marked by the presence of symptoms such as headache and shortness of breath that continue for weeks or months following a person's recovery from COVID-19 17And a vaccine passport is now required to enter many countries and places. This is a document providing proof of vaccination against infectious diseases (such as COVID-19) 18Tech, Science, Culture, etc... 19Digital technology has helped many of us continue with our daily lives during the pandemic. The use of technology has led to new ways to describe technology-related risks. When digital information in an image or audio recording cannot be read, it is called a bit rot. And zero-day is a term to describe weakness in computer systems that cybercriminals discover. 20From political events, we have whataboutism. This is "the act or practice of responding to an accusation of wrongdoing by claiming that an offense committed by another is similar or worse." And vote-a-rama describes the unusually large number of debates and votes that happen in one day in the United States Congress. 21Other new words come from foods and drinks. One such word is fluffernutter. This is a sandwich made with peanut butter and marshmallow between two pieces of white bead. Another is horchata - a cold drink made from ground rice or almonds, with spices like cinnamon or vanilla. 22Eating too many fluffernutters could give you a bit of a dad bod. The dictionary publisher describes a dad bod as the body of an average father, especially, it says, "one that is slightly overweight and not extremely muscular." 23In today's program, we have only had time to tell you about 16 of the 455 new words from Merriam-Webster. And this is not even the first time this year it has added hundreds of new words. Last January, the dictionary publisher added 520 new words. That is a lot of new vocabulary for you to study. 24I'm Ashley Thompson. 25Hai Do wrote this story for VOA Learning English with information from Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Ashley Thompson was the editor. 26______________________________________________________________ 27Words in This Story 28evolve - v. to change or develop slowly 29informal - adj. relaxed in tone and not suitable for serious speech or writing 30abbreviation - n. a shortened form of a word or name that is used in place of the full word or name 31respond - v. to do something as a reaction to something that has occurred 32sandwich - n. two pieces of bread with something in between 33marshmallow - n. a soft, white, sweet food made of sugar and eggs 34spice - n. a substance that is used in cooking to add flavor