535 New Words and Definitions Added to Merriam-Webster.com

Springfield, MA, April 29, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today more than 535 new words and meanings have been added to Merriam-Webster.com, the dictionary helping millions of people understand and use language better. From aerosolization to zonkey, the update includes COVID-19-related words as well as terms relating to a variety of fields and endeavors, and ranging from the technical to the conversational.

More on How a Word Gets Into the Dictionary, plus an Infographic

“A dictionary’s mission is to give accurate information about the current vocabulary of a language,” says Peter Sokolowski, Editor at Large for Merriam-Webster. “Usually, it takes at least several years for new words to become dictionary entries—they must be used by many people and in a variety of publications over time. This update includes plenty of terms that follow this pattern. But today, because vocabulary connected to the pandemic is both essential and frequently heard, we have also added many words that most of us had never encountered until just weeks ago. These words join others related to the pandemic, including self-quarantine, social distancing, and COVID-19 itself, which were added to the dictionary in a special update last month.”

Among today's new words is immune surveillance, referring to “any monitoring process of the immune system that detects and destroys foreign substances, cells, or tissues.” A temporal thermometer, also known as a forehead thermometer, can be used to screen and track symptoms of COVID-19, and the abbreviation WFH, meaning ”working from home,” reflects a new reality for many.  Physical distancing, a synonym of social distancing, is defined as “the practice of maintaining a greater than usual physical space between oneself and other people or of avoiding direct contact with people or objects in public places during the outbreak of a contagious disease in order to minimize exposure and reduce the transmission of infection.”

New technology terms include deep web and dark web, which refer to sets of web pages that are unseen by many; the former are not indexed by search engines, and the latter cannot—by design—be indexed.  A new sense of stovepipe, defined as “an isolated and narrow channel of communication,” is often used in references to the inner workings of the government.

Other notable additions include the synonymous zedonk and zonkey (“a hybrid between a zebra and a donkey”), the informal sense of thirsty, defined as “feeling or showing a strong desire for attention, approval, or publicity (as on social media),” and truthiness, a word popularized by The Late Show host Stephen Colbert.

See a larger selection of new words added—and their definitions—here.

About Merriam-Webster Inc.
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Meghan Lunghi
Merriam-Webster Inc.
4137343134 x8152
[email protected]