New entries in the OED

The Oxford English Dictionary is the foremost reference for lexicographers worldwide and is regarded as the ultimate reference for anything pertaining to the English language.

Try fitting all this on your Kindle

For the past 21 years a large group of language experts have been reviewing and compiling the 3rd edition of the great book, known as OED3. However, it appears that this great venture may not actually materialise in the traditional book format. OED3 will most likely be an e-book.

Each year the OED expands its entries to reflect popular usage and to legitimise what would otherwise be slang words. This years additions include the following 15 words and phrases.

• chillax - a contraction of the phrases 'chill out' and 'relax' which means both chill out and relax. Clever.
• turducken - a maneuver performed when the shit starts flying. Also the process of boning and stuffing 3 consecutive birds of increasing size. Turkey < Duck < Hen
• staycation - another intellectual word combo to describe doing absolutely nothing with your vacation time.
• vuvuzela - a long horn blown by fans at African soccer matches. The female version is called a vulvazela.
• buzzkill - death by vibrator.
• social media - a platform for distracting people from reality, also a way of conversing with someone in the same room when you are too lazy to talk to them.
• netbook - a smaller laptop with the brains of a pocket calculator.
• automagically - will you knock it off with combining existing words, it's so frustnoying.
• carbon capture and storage - I think this is what happened to Han Solo in the second (5th?) Star Wars movie.
• exit strategy - always knowing where the closest bathroom is after eating spicy food.
• overthink - seriously, is this a NEW addition?
• catastrophizing - GRRRRRR
• soft skills - personal attributes that enable someone to interact effectively and harmoniously with other people, It used to be known as brown-nosing.
• hikikomori - the abnormal avoidance of social contact, typically by adolescent males (in Japan). It translates as 'computer geek' in English.
• bromance - a close but non-sexual relationship between two men, neither of whom is Ryan Seacrest.