What's new in the dictionary

A. As reported this week (ending 21 July 2001) Oxford University Press has announced the new words included in the Oxford Compact English Dictionary. A total of 67 new words have gone in, and they reflect the changing technology of communications and the fashions in speech today.

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Q. So, what have we got

A. 'Combat trousers' (they've been around since the 1970s, however) and 'WAP phones' (a slightly more recent invention) are two, and it's the first mainstream dictionary to include text message abbreviations as well as the verb 'to text'.

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Q. And

A.

For the fashion conscious (forget the combat strides):

fashionists - people who look forward to fashion shows

shrug - a close fitting woman's cardigan

carpenter trousers - multi-pocketed trousers with loops for tools

buzz-cut - today's version of the crew-cut

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IT:

meatspace - physical world, as opposed to virtual

screenager - Internet- or computer-addicted teenager

sticky - website attracting long or repeated visits from users

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Ways to describe people:

yah - an upper-class person

minger - unattractive or unpleasant person

ned - hooligan

numpty - stupid or ineffectual person

chowhound - greedy person

ladette - you know...

tweenagers and tweenies - children who try to appear older than they are

adultescents - the opposite

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General:

microscooters - often ridden by adultescents

must-have - said by adultescents, also buzzy

crimpers - purveyors of buzz-cuts and number ones (in for the first time, though hardly a new one)

mobeys - mobile phones

gaydar - ability of one gay person to recognise another

lookism - discrimination on the grounds of how a person looks and the clothes they wear

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Q. How do the editors decide what goes in

A. The compilers monitor television, radio, newspapers and magazines to establish which words have become part of the English language and are used in every day conversations.

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Q. Does anything ever get taken out

A. Yes, not all words have stood the test of time and the fashion world seems particularly badly affected. There are no longer inclusions for 'directoires' (long knickers) and 'hug-me-tight' (1860s woman's close-fitting jacket).

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Q. When will the dictionary be published

14 August 2001. There's a website at http://www.askoxford.com

for those who want to know more.

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Q. What about the next edition

A. The following words are being monitored by the editors to see if they warrant inclusion next time:

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alt.country/alt-country - a style of music incorporating elements of country and alternative music

bilderberger - a member of the Bilderberg Group, a secretive group of power brokers and financiers who are believed by some to have a highly influential role in dictating world politics

dot.gone/dot.bomb/dot.con - ways of describing failed internet businesses

ego surfing - the practice of looking up one's own name on the internet

goes up to 11/turn it up to 11 - an expression for increasing the volume/speed etc. to a level that is beyond the usual maximum, first coined in the spoof 'rockumentary' This Is Spinal Tap

gateway drug - a drug that is regarded as leading on to harder drugs

kite-surfing/kite-boarding/fly-surfing - an increasingly popular extreme sport popularised in Hawaii, a cross between windsurfing and kite flying

ringbang - a Caribbean form of music that is a blend of calypso and soca

talk to the hand (because the face isn't listening) - an expression used to indicate that the speaker does not want or intend to hear anything more that is said

water feature - a generic term describing garden features utilising water in some way

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For more on Phrases & Sayings click here

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By Simon Smith