December TOP TWENTY

The list of the most frequently looked-up words at the Merriam-Webster Online Web site in December clearly shows the effect of our announcement of the Merriam-Webster Words of the Year for 2006 early in the month, but with a few twists. Here's the list.

Words in the News: pugnacious

More than two years ago, former President Gerald R. Ford began a series of interviews with journalist Bob Woodward. One unintended consequence of those interviews was that last month a lot of people looked up the word pugnacious in their dictionaries. Get the scoop.

Happy Birthday: 1882

British author A.A. Milne, who was born on January 18, 1882, remains beloved for his tales of Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh. We can’t speak for either of them, but we think they might approve of some of the words that entered the language that year.

For a complete list of all 273 words that first appeared in print in 1882, select the Collegiate as your reference, click on Advanced Search, type 1882 into the Date field, and click on Search.

Word History of the Month: Googol

Now that the trademarked Google search engine has given us the lowercase verb to google, and that word has entered the Collegiate Dictionary, you might want to hear the tale of the original googol. No searching is necessary; we have it right here.

Report from the Open Dictionary

We've talked before about Merriam-Webster's Open Dictionary, a feature on Merriam-Webster Online that allows users to submit their coinages and recent new-word discoveries. In this month's newsletter, we share a few more of our favorite submissions.

Notable and Quotable: Francis Bacon

English philosopher Francis Bacon was born January 22, 1561. His influence lives on, as do his words, which are sprinkled throughout the Unabridged, primarily to illustrate senses now obsolete or archaic. We pulled out a few colorful examples.

It's easy to check on writers whose words are quoted in the dictionary. Choose your reference, then click on Advanced Search. Type the last name of the author in the Authors Quoted field, and click on Search.

From the Mail Server

Our editors kicked off the New Year by celebrating a decades-old question that still looms large; they also answered a query born in the day of mourning for President Gerald Ford. Finally, they looked at how the big picture turns up in businesses named -orama.

Language Links

Resolving to have a bit of fun with language in 2007? Try browsing these Web sites.

The Puzzle Corner

Ready to start off the new year with a word challenge? Check out this list of words and figure out what it is they have in common.