Oxford English Dictionary Adds ‘Brencheese,’ ‘Spoiler Alert’

 

In June, the Oxford¹ English Dictionary, or OED added about 1,000 words and new definitions to its website. The changes are to help users understand a mix of terms, some dating back many centuries. The additions include words such as “brencheese” “deathshildy” and “hip-pop.”

The new entries are part of the company’s update to Oed.com, its searchable online dictionary for paid members. The OED makes changes to the website four times each year.

But the latest print version has been in process since the year 2000, and may not be ready for 10 more years. That information comes from Katherine Connor Martin, who heads the company’s dictionary operations in the United States.

Usually, the OED watches usage of a word for at least 10 years before deciding whether to add a new entry, new definition or word related to an existing entry, she said. This general rule, however, is sometimes not followed. That is what happened with “tweet,” a word that the OED added far before the 10-year mark.

Other times, the company adds words that are very old, but were not included in the dictionary in the past.

“It’s funny because we talk about new words, but many of the words we add are already obsolete². It’s just that they were never in the dictionary before,” Martin told the Associated Press.

That is the reality, she said, of a historical dictionary trying to put more than 1,000 years of English into books that already have over 855,000 entries. So, you get “brencheese,” a rarely used term for when bread and cheese are eaten together. The word dates back to the year 1665. The word “deathshildy” is from Old English. It means someone who is guilty of a serious crime and condemned³ to death.

The website defines the term “hip-pop” for music that combines parts of hip-hop and popular music. The OED discovered the term “hip-hip pop” was used in a 1985 story from a Pennsylvania newspaper. It noted⁴ that the term “hip-pop” appeared in a 1991 U.S. newspaper report about the rap artist M.C. Hammer.

The website has added several other terms related to modern culture. They include three popular terms: “binge-watching,” “spoiler alert” and “microaggression.”

Here are a few other new entries:

Imposter syndrome⁵

“Imposter syndrome” dates to 1982 when Vogue⁶ magazine published a story about women who suffered from “impostor phenomenon.” Psychologists use this expression usually when talking to patients about their employment and the workplace. “Imposter phenomenon” means the “inability to believe that one’s success is justified⁷ or has been achieved as a result of one’s own efforts or skills.”

The terms “imposter syndrome” and “imposter phenomenon” have the same meaning, with “imposter syndrome” currently the more popular of the two. The term dates to a psychotherapy story published in 1978.

Heteromantic, biromantic,

aromantic, homoromantic (adj.)

Changing ideas about human sexuality and relationships resulted in the words “heteromantic,” “biromantic,” “aromantic” and “homoromantic,” Martin noted. “People have begun to self-identify as asexual, but they may still have romantic feelings short of actual sex,” she said. Before, there was no word to describe this. A person who identifies as asexual does not desire sex but can still want a romantic relationship that does not involve sex. But, if they do not want sex or romance of any kind, they are both asexual and aromantic, Martin added.

Homophily (n.)

The word “homophily” is similar in meaning to the expressions “birds of a feather flock together” and “like attracts like.” The OED defines homophily as a way of behaving in which people seek those they believe to be most like themselves. It shows society’s growing resistance to having ties with people of dissimilar opinions. The dictionary found that “homophily” was first used in a 1953 article published in a sociological journal. The more general definition is “similarities between individuals or groups.”

I’m Bryan Lynn. And I’m Alice Bryant.

Words in This Story

dictionary – n. a reference book that lists words and gives information about theirs meanings, forms and pronunciations

update – v. to bring up-to-date

print – v. to use a machine to produce books, newspapers or magazines

obsolete – adj. no longer used because something newer exists

binge-watch – v. to watch more than one part of a television show or other program back-to-back

spoiler alert – n. a warning that an important detail of the plot development (about a film, TV show or book) will be revealed

microagression – n. a statement, action, or incident regarded as indirect or unplanned discrimination against members of a group such as a racial or ethnic⁸ minority

achieve – v. to successfully carry out

psychologist – n. an expert in the study of the mind and behavior

romantic – adj. of or relating to love between two people

1 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

2 obsolete   

adj.已废弃的，过时的

参考例句：

• These goods are obsolete and will not fetch much on the market.这些货品过时了，在市场上卖不了高价。
• They tried to hammer obsolete ideas into the young people's heads.他们竭力把陈旧思想灌输给青年。

3 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

4 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

5 syndrome   

n.综合病症；并存特性

参考例句：

• The Institute says that an unidentified virus is to blame for the syndrome. 该研究所表示,引起这种综合症的是一种尚未确认的病毒。
• Results indicated that 11 fetuses had Down syndrome. 结果表明有11个胎儿患有唐氏综合征。

6 Vogue   

n.时髦，时尚；adj.流行的

参考例句：

• Flowery carpets became the vogue.花卉地毯变成了时髦货。
• Short hair came back into vogue about ten years ago.大约十年前短发又开始流行起来了。

7 justified   

a.正当的，有理的

参考例句：

• She felt fully justified in asking for her money back. 她认为有充分的理由要求退款。
• The prisoner has certainly justified his claims by his actions. 那个囚犯确实已用自己的行动表明他的要求是正当的。

8 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。