Wednesday 28 August 2013

Oxford Online Dictionary Adds Twerk, Phablet, Geek Chic

If you're of a certain vintage, you probably remember a time when high school English teachers would correct the use of slang in your homework or essays. But the internet age and the proliferation of text messaging are changing the way people communicate with one another, so its stands to some reason the dictionary keeps pace. The Oxford Dictionaries Online, the web version of that venerable keeper of the English lexicon, has just made some rather trendy additions.

Image Source: The City Slacker

Image Source: The City Slacker

According to the OxfordWords Blog, the organization has added 43 new terms to its online dictionary. Among the entrants are techie buzzwords like phablet, "a smartphone having a screen which is intermediate in size between that of a typical smartphone and a tablet computer." Samsung must be pleased about that addition.

Other notable terms and portmanteaus include emoji, geek chic, and jorts (those denim shorts so popular with moms and the cool kids at indie rock shows). Oxford also added the word derp, and somehow added its full pronunciation, herp derp, to the definition without even one hint of irony.

Be sure to check out the full list on the blog and then take some time to think about the future when we all just communicate in a series of grunts and twerks in front of a Kinect.

Matt Clark is a freelance writer covering the world of videogames, tech, and popular culture. Follow him on Twitter @ClarkMatt and MyIGN at Matt_Clark.


Source : ign[dot]com

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