October 2007

New Word Watch

Merriam-Webster editors are giving the following words serious consideration for entry in a Merriam-Webster dictionary:

*  game face noun : a look of intense determination in the face of a game player

*  malware noun [malicious + -ware (as in software)] : software designed to interfere with a computer's normal functioning

*  mondegreen noun : [from the mishearing in a Scottish ballad of "laid him on the green" as "Lady Mondegreen"] : a word or phrase that results from a mishearing of something said or sung <"very close veins" is a mondegreen of "varicose veins">

Do you have a suggestion for a word we should be watching for? E-mail us at comments@word.com, and we'll tell you what we have on that word so far.