The argument rages on despite the fact that the winner has been declared–The New Oxford American Dictionary announced its Word of the Year this week and the winner was from the world of technology and new media rather than topics like Economy, Politics and Current Affairs, Environment or Novelty. The tech terms considered were:
• hashtag – a # [hash] sign added to a word or phrase that enables Twitter users to search for tweets (postings on the Twitter site) that contain similarly tagged items and view thematic sets
• intexticated – distracted because texting on a cellphone while driving a vehicle
• netbook – a small, very portable laptop computer with limited memory
• paywall – a way of blocking access to a part of a website which is only available to paying subscribers
• sexting – the sending of sexually explicit texts and pictures by cellphone
But the winner was…UNFRIEND.
unfriend – verb – To remove someone as a ‘friend’ on a social networking site such as Facebook.
As in, “I decided to unfriend my roommate on Facebook after we had a fight.”
“It has both currency and potential longevity,” notes Christine Lindberg, Senior Lexicographer for Oxford’s US dictionary program. “In the online social networking context, its meaning is understood, so its adoption as a modern verb form makes this an interesting choice for Word of the Year… “unfriend” is different from the norm. It assumes a verb sense of “friend” that is really not used (at least not since maybe the 17th century!). Unfriend has real lex-appeal.”
But if you read the comments section under the Oxford University Press blog posting, you’ll see plenty of debating, not only about unfriend versus defriend, but also about another controversial term. Check it out and join the discussion to help change the English language with internet speed!
Tags: Internet Speed