Oxford Dictionary Just Added 1,000 More Popular Words

In recent years, the Oxford dictionary has started to feel a lot like an Apple event. Much like the popular computer and electronics company, Oxford’s events are highly anticipated before and heavily talked about after.

As the Inquisitr reported earlier this month, “selfie” was the word of 2013. At least, that is according to Oxford dictionary, which is seemingly starting to sound a little more like the Onion and less like Noah Webster’s dictionary.

Unlike the drab Webster’s dictionary, the Oxford dictionary is constantly updating to match the growing trend of new words and phrases. The most recent update, as Time magazine reports, is the largest the dictionary has seen.

So, what was included in these new words and phrases?

According to the Economic Times, “duckface,” “lolcat,” and “Obamacare” made the cut in what was described as the largest quarterly update for the online edition of the Oxford dictionary. Other important terms that have been added were “xlnt,” “man crush,” and “Hawt.” “Xlnt” was at least one of the words that needed a description.

Though Time magazine described it as a “symbol of our desire to skip tedious letters in today’s fast-paced conversation,” a quick Google search describes it as an acronym for “excellent.” If there were any grammar guru’s who were saying “hawt” is not a word, Oxford dictionary would suggest otherwise. Apparently, as Time magazine reported, it is an “informal way” to say the word “hot.”

In what seems to have been a long time coming, there are age-old and important words that apparently were not part of the dictionary prior to this update. “Cool beans,” “Chili Con Queso”, and “Crony Capitalism” were among these. The 90s, Tostito lovers, and Libertarians must certainly be rejoicing to hear this news.

Below is a larger sampling of the new 1,000 words added to the Oxford dictionary.

• al desko (adv. & adj.): while working at one’s desk in an office (with reference to the consumption of food or meals).
• IDC (abbrev.): (informal) I don’t care.
• misery index (n.): an informal measure of the state of an economy generated by adding together its rate of inflation and its rate of unemployment.
• permadeath, n.: (in video games) a situation in which a character cannot reappear after having been killed.
• Secret Santa (n.): an arrangement by which a group of friends or colleagues exchange Christmas presents anonymously, with each member of the group being assigned another member for whom to provide a small gift, typically costing no more than a set amount.
• shabby chic (n.): a style of interior decoration that uses furniture and soft furnishings that are or appear to be pleasingly old and slightly worn.
• tech wreck (n.): (informal) a collapse in the price of shares in high-tech industries.
• the ant’s pants (n.): (Austral. informal) an outstandingly good person or thing.
• WTAF (abbrev.): (vulgar slang) what the actual

So, what are your thoughts on the 1,000 that were just added to the Oxford dictionary?

Leave your thoughts below.

[Image Via Creative Commons]