Even words have defining moments

Hoodie. Left-click. Shout-out. Twentysomething. World Wide Web.

What do these words have in common? They all became an official part of the Merriam Webster dictionary the year I was born.

Although it might seem like words begin their lives by first appearing in the dictionary, the opposite is true. Words have to prove themselves before earning their place with the greats.

Before their dictionary debut, new words do exist and appear in conversations, books, and anywhere else words can be found. Before they end up in the dictionary, the words are out and about, roaming in the wild. But what do words need before they are captured as an official part of the language?

According to Merriam Webster, the answer is simple: usage. In order for a word to join the ranks of others in the dictionary, it must be used often enough to make the cut. The process for seeking and finding new words is not an easy task. First, the editors at Merriam Webster track new words by reading magazines, newspapers, and online publications. These editors mark new words and write notes about how they are used over an extended period of time. Then, these marked words are formed into “citations” that Merriam Webster keeps on file in its database (15.7 million citations and counting!).

A word’s final test occurs when a staff member called a “definer” combs through the citations and determines which words should be removed, edited, or added into the mix. These decisions are based on a variety of factors, such as how diverse the word usage is, how often it is used, or how necessary the word has become.

To find out which words were added the exact year you were born, check out Merriam Webster’s “Time Traveler” page: www.merriam-webster.com/time-traveler. The list of added words dates back to pre-12^thcentury times. For instance, common words like “ah,” “marshmallow,” and “love” were some of the first added to the official list (along with many an uncommon word, like “eftsoons”).

Below are the highlight reels for words added in each of the past ten decades:

1920s
Cola, concrete jungle, recycle, T-shirt, zucchini

1930s
bumper-to-bumper, Little League, Mickey Mouse, piece of cake, U-turn

1940s
Caesar salad, flash flood, hard sell, TV, welcome mat, vibes

1950s
bigfoot, BLT, scuba diver, shopping mall, test-drive

1960s
art deco, knee-slapper, mayo, mini, trendsetter

1970s
cargo pocket, eye candy, newbie, sticky note, string cheese

1980s
CD-ROM, high five, one-trick pony, stressed-out, ziplock

1990s
bestie, elliptical trainer, gift card, instant messaging, judgy

2000s
Bitcoin, carbon footprint, google, podcast, social media

2010s
bingeable, filter bubble, gamification, hot take, Instagram

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