Oxford Dictionary Online adds pop words 'selfie', 'twerk' and 'phablet'

The English language is nothing if not an evolving pot of new words and terms. The Oxford Dictionary Online has been injected with a bunch of new words to reflect the ever-changing terms in pop culture today. From “selfie” to “bitcoin” and “phablet”, all of these commonly used terms have been officially inducted into the Oxford Dictionary.

Most notably, “twerking,” the word that hit popular imagination only days prior to this announcement has been added to the online dictionary, almost seeming like a last-minute entrant. Twerking became a buzzword after pop star Miley Cyrus included the vigorous and rather bizarre movement into her dance performance at MTV’s Video Music Awards. The definition, in a rather straight-faced manner reads, “Dance to popular music in a sexually provocative manner involving thrusting hip movements and a low, squatting stance.” We couldn’t have described it better.

Your duck-faced self-clicks are now officially called selfies (Image credit: Getty Images)

Also added to the dictionary is selfie, the act of photographing oneself with a webcam or a smartphone, and phablet, a smartphone that has a screen intermediate in size between that of a typical smartphone and a tablet computer. Ever-evolving technology will always find newer words and terms associated with it and it’s only obvious that the dictionary sit up and take notice.

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Check out some of the more technologically sound words added this time to Oxford Dictionary Online:

• hackerspace, meaning a place in which people with an interest in computing or technology can gather to work on projects while sharing ideas, equipment, and knowledge.
• emoji, a small digital image or icon used to express an idea or emotion in electronic communication.
• digital detox, a period of time during which a person refrains from using electronic devices such as smartphones or computers, regarded as an opportunity to reduce stress or focus on social interaction in the physical world.
• BYOD, abbreviation of ‘bring your own device’: the practice of allowing the employees of an organization to use their own computers, smartphones, or other devices for work purposes.
• bitcoin, a digital currency in which transactions can be performed without the need for a central bank.

One more interesting term added to the dictionary is TL;DR meaning “Too long, didn’t read”. It’s usually associated with a rather long post that one doesn’t have the time or energy to read through. It is also used as an introductory term to summarise a long post.