Merriam-Webster just added so many millennial-themed words to its online dictionary
No matter how much your stuffy high school English teacher might have fought to keep slang words out of the classroom, the reality is our language is constantly evolving, and dictionaries expand to keep up with the times. In its most recent update, Merriam-Webster added a ton of millennial-worthy words to its online dictionary—so excuse us while we ask for “guac” when we’re “hangry.”
According to Time, on September 4th, Merriam-Webster unveiled about 840 new words that it had added to its database. Thanks to these additions, words like “marg,” “bougie,” “adorbs,” “hangry,” “guac,” and “avo” are now dictionary-approved usages of the English language. Also included in the update were several tech terms, like “Instagramming,” “biohacking,” and “force quit.”
Of course, plenty of non-slang words made the list as well. “Latinx,” “self-harm,” and “tent city” were all added, demonstrating the importance of these issues in modern society. And words with foreign roots, like “gochujang” (a Korean chili paste) and “iftar” (the sun-down meal where Muslims break their fast during Ramadan) were also included.
Latinx is now in the @MerriamWebster Dictionary. 👀@latinorebels pic.twitter.com/tp5Il1WReD
— Jerónimo Saldaña 🐜 (@JeronimoSaldana) September 5, 2018
In a blog post announcing the new words, Merriam-Webster wrote that a dictionary should be a “glossary of life.” The post stated that words are introduced to the dictionary only after a large number of people have regularly used them.
"The dictionary’s job is to report that usage as it enters the general vocabulary," the post read. "For each reader, some of the new words inevitably seem already familiar, but others will be encountered for the first time in an announcement like this—which probably means we’re doing it just about right."
Folks, it's that time again.
🎉📖 We just added more than 800 new words to the dictionary! 🎉📖 https://t.co/NiCeFa8EZ9
— Merriam-Webster (@MerriamWebster) September 4, 2018
So the next time someone gives you grief for calling something “adorbs,” feel free to remind them that Merriam-Webster would approve.