Oxford English Dictionary adds 600 new words

The Oxford English Dictionary has added over 600 new words, phrases and senses in its latest quarterly update.

Explaining how a word qualifies for take-in, OED said that it “requires several independent examples of the word being used, and also with the evidence that the word has been in use for a reasonable amount of time.” Moreover, words such as ‘woke’, ‘thing’ or ‘post-truth’ has acquired new definitions with the changing times.

“By the mid-20th century, ‘woke’ had been extended figuratively to refer to being ‘aware’ or ‘well informed’ in a political or cultural sense,” the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) said. The use of ‘woke’ by supporters of the Black Lives Matter movement — an international activist movement that campaigns against racism toward black people — and in particular the phrase ‘stay woke’, are thought to have introduced the word to a broader audience, especially on social media.

Besides, over 50 new words and 30 new senses related to tennis were added. ‘Tennis mom’ and ‘tennis dad’, for example, are now used to describe parents who actively support their child’s participation in the sport. The dictionary has also got a new end. Zyzzyva, a tropical weevil native to South America, is the new last in place of zythum, a kind of malt beer brewed in ancient Egypt.

Meanwhile, the word ‘thing’ has a new sense defined as ‘a genuine or established phenomenon or practice used in questions conveying surprise or incredulity, such as ‘How can that be a thing?’ said OED, adding that the usage has been traced back to an early episode of TV series, The West Wing.