How fake news found its way into the dictionary
WHEN the nights are draw- ing in and the temperatures drop, it’s time to get cuffing.
If the phrase means nothing to you, consult the Collins dictionary, which has added “cuffing season” to its words of the year list. The word comes from handcuffing and is defined as “the period of autumn and winter when single people are likely to seek settled relationships rather than casual affairs”.
The trend originated in the US and was picked up by the New York Times in an article. Cuffing is seen as handy for Christmas and Valentine’s Day, dates of dread for singletons. But when spring arrives people can simply cast off their cuffing partner and play the field once more.
Collins’s new list features a dozen terms that have significantly increased in usage over the past 12 months.
They include “fidget spinner”, the hand-held toy that became a playground craze, and “Insta”, a shortening of the photo-sharing app Instagram. “Gender-fluid” – not identifying exclusively with one gender – is featured, along with “echo chamber”, now defined as “an environment, especially on a social media site, in which any opinion is greeted with approval because it will only be read or heard by people who hold similar views”.
But it was “fake news” that was awarded Word of the Year. Famously adopted by Donald Trump, it means “false, often sensational information put out under the guise of news reporting”.
A uniquely British word on the list is “Corbynmania”, the “fervent enthusiasm for Jeremy Corbyn”, illustrated by the chanting of his name at the Glastonbury festival.
Helen Newstead, head of language content at Collins, said: “With a new president in the US and a snap election in the UK it is perhaps no surprise that politics continues to electrify the language.
“Fake news, either as a statement of fact or as an accusation, has been inescapable this year, contributing to the undermining of society’s trust in news reporting.”
Another entry, “unicorn”, has had its definition extended for its ubiquity in children’s merchandise, as a type of iced cappuccino and to describe a new business valued at a billion dollars.