These Are the 640 Words Merriam-Webster Just Added to the Dictionary
Merriam-Webster just added 640 new words to the English language dictionary for 2019.
New words include "stan," "EGOT," "buzzy," "snowflake," "unplug," and "top surgery."
The English language is ever-evolving, and no one knows that better than the team over at Merriam-Webster. These are the folks responsible for determining which words are actually worthy of earning a coveted spot in our country's most-respected dictionary.
This year, Merriam-Webster has decided that more than 640 new words should officially be added to our national dialect-and they haven't shied away from accepting commonly known words that some might refer to as "slang."
"We watch as words move from specialized contexts to more general use and we make citations for each word in order to draft our definitions," the publisher said. "This means, in other words, that we have the receipts (in a manner of speaking)."
Yes, that's the now-hip Merriam-Webster dropping a buzzword: "receipts," one of the newly added terms that they now also define as "plural, informal : PROOF : EVIDENCE."
The addition of this admittedly more informal language shouldn't come as a surprise. In 2018, "rando," "hangry," "mocktail," and "Instagramming" were added. And this year, there are some decidedly more progressive-and fun-additions. Here's how Merriam-Webster defines a few:
Buzzy: causing or characterized by a lot of speculative or excited talk or attention (that is, generating buzz).
On-brand: typical of a particular brand or public image or identity.
snowflake: Now used to mean both 'someone regarded or treated as unique or special' and “someone who is overly sensitive.”
Top surgery: a type of gender confirmation surgery in which a person's breasts are removed or augmented to match their gender identity.
unplug: to temporarily refrain from using electronic devices (such as computers or smartphones)
We don't know about you, but we welcome the new changes to our language. After all, what better way is there to signal human growth and acceptance than how we choose to communicate? So right now, we totally "stan" Merriam-Webster. (Yes, that's a new one, too.)
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