Here’s How Words Get Added to the Dictionary
What’s the deal with new words? Where do they come from and how do they go from obscure to official? First, new words have to circulate in culture to make it into the dictionary. They have to be used and understood. Words have a much better chance of getting added to the dictionary if you see them in print or hear them in conversation. It’s actually a full-time job to scour popular communication to figure out what new words are surfacing in our vernacular. According to Merriam-Webster, America’s oldest dictionary first published in 1806, “dictionary editors read actively, looking for changes in the language.” Inspired to try reading the whole dictionary? Here’s how long it would take you . What’s a lexicographer and what do they do? Are you a logophile, aka someone with a passion for words? If so, being a professional lexicographer may be the ideal job for you. Lexicographers get to decide which words make it into the dictionary, and they do so by reading widely across industries and