Tuesday, November 18, 2014
And the word of the year is?
Those of us preoccupied by representations regarding the prevalence of electronic cigarettes will be heartened (or maybe not) by the conclusion of the Oxford English Dictionary that the word of the year is 'Vape'.
Apparently, use of the word, defined as to “inhale and exhale the vapour produced by an electronic cigarette or similar device”, has more than doubled over the course of the year to win.
The Independent says that the shortlist, which included contenders such as bae, slacktivism and indyref, is compiled by scanning around 150 million words of English in use every month. They have specialist software to identify new or emerging usage. Lexicographers then select a shortlist from which the winner is chosen.
The winning word needs to “reflect the ethos, mood or preoccupations of that particular year and to have lasting potential as a word of cultural significance”.
Well as far as the Welsh Health Minister is concerned it certainly does reflect his preoccupation. He wants to ban vaping in public even though there is no evidence to show that there is any health impact on non-users. I wonder if the OED know.
Apparently, use of the word, defined as to “inhale and exhale the vapour produced by an electronic cigarette or similar device”, has more than doubled over the course of the year to win.
The Independent says that the shortlist, which included contenders such as bae, slacktivism and indyref, is compiled by scanning around 150 million words of English in use every month. They have specialist software to identify new or emerging usage. Lexicographers then select a shortlist from which the winner is chosen.
The winning word needs to “reflect the ethos, mood or preoccupations of that particular year and to have lasting potential as a word of cultural significance”.
Well as far as the Welsh Health Minister is concerned it certainly does reflect his preoccupation. He wants to ban vaping in public even though there is no evidence to show that there is any health impact on non-users. I wonder if the OED know.
