Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Year

As each year comes to a close, the various dictionary companies present their “words of the year,” based on how often those words were looked up.

The 2018 Word of the Year for Merriam-Webster is JUSTICE. I wondered why this particular word was so frequently looked up, as it’s one most people would be familiar with. Merriam-Webster’s guess is because the Department of Justice was cited so often this past year because of Robert Mueller’s investigation into Trump’s dealings with the Russians. Now it remains to be seen whether justice will be served.

In case you were wondering (and even if you weren’t), here is what Wikipedia has to say about the Merriam brothers and Noah Webster:

• In 1828, George and Charles Merriam founded the company as G & C Merriam Co. in Springfield, Massachusetts. In 1843, after Noah Webster died, the company bought the rights to An American Dictionary of the English Language from Webster’s estate.

Merriam Dictionary’s Word of the Year

 SURREAL

bizarre: a surreal mix of fact and fantasy

Are we surprised? Interestingly, searches for this word peaked on November 9, the day after the presidential election.

And Oxford Dictionaries’ Word of 2014 Is…

VAPING. I don’t know what it’s like where you live, but here in Los Angeles, vaping rooms have become as ubiquitous as nail salons and sushi restaurants. In case vaping hasn’t reached your neighborhood yet, it refers to inhaling and exhaling electronic cigarettes. They still contain nicotine but apparently are not addictive like traditional cigarettes. Many people are using them to help wean themselves off the latter. One advantage is that if you vape (it is so hard for me to write that verb (I vape, you vape, she vapes—ICK), at least your hair and clothes won’t stink.

Whether vaping is safe has not been determined entirely. Just sayin’.

And the International Oxford Dictionaries Word of 2013 Is……..

Selfie!  Here’s the news flash from the website Mashable:

“Oxford Dictionaries announced “Selfie” as the international Word of the Year 2013, noting its frequency in the English language has increased by 17,000% since last year.

“According to Oxford Dictionaries, the word “selfie” first appeared in 2002, when it was used in an Australian online forum. It was popularized by social media during the years (it was used as a hashtag on Flickr in 2004), but it became widely adopted around 2012, when it started commonly being used in mainstream media.”

So get out your smartphone, make those duck lips, take your picture and upload it to your favorite social media sites.

(What is wrong with me? Why am I promoting this?)