March 2009

Report from the Open Dictionary

Our editors aren't the only ones on the lookout for new words; our readers add words to Merriam-Webster's Open Dictionary every day. When you notice a new word — on the radio, in a book or magazine, or online — and find that it's not found in any dictionary, it's probably a good candidate. Here are several recent submissions.

bio break (noun) : a short break during a long meeting : a bathroom break
<Alright, let's take a ten minute bio break and then continue this discussion.>

jjimjilbang (noun) : a Korean gender-segregated public bath house where hot tubs, showers, saunas, and often sleeping rooms and restaurants are available to the public
<The communal nature of the jjimjilbang also suits many South Koreans; until recent decades, most people lived with their extended families. — Choe Sang-Hun, New York Times, 10/4/2008>

unfriending (noun) : the act of removing a person from a list of friends on a social networking site (such as Facebook)
<Of course, not all unfriendings are equal. There seem to be several varieties, ranging from the completely impersonal to the utterly vindictive. — Douglas Quenqua, New York Times, 1/28/09>

zombie bank (noun) : a bank that has a negative net worth but continues to operate because of depositor's insurance or other governmental intervention
<But they're zombie banks, unable to supply the credit the economy needs. — Paul Krugman, New York Times, 2/22/09>

Some new words catch on, some don't. It usually takes a few years for a word to enter the language and be used by many people in many different places. The Open Dictionary is the place to record new or specialized words or old words with new meanings. We welcome your contributions — simply click here to add a word or to see what's new in the world of words.


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