‘Mwahahaha’ and ‘lolz’ among (more) new words added to dictionary

You’re probably wondering what ‘vajazzle’ is doing in the dictionary. Us, too.

Ragan Insider Premium Content
Ragan Insider Content

Merriam-Webster, for instance, reaped a few doozies last week, including “F-bomb” and “sexting.” Now it’s time for the Oxford Online Dictionaries (which unveils a fresh batch of words every quarter). Among its inductees: “mwahahaha,” “lolz,” and “ridic.”

Why are those “words” in the dictionary? Because of research, apparently.

A press release from Online Dictionaries stated that research teams identified these terms as having become part of modern usage.

“The rich variety of new words from all manner of sources and levels of formality— popular culture, science, technology, politics, etc.—is striking in this update,” said Online Dictionaries chief Glynnis Keir in the press release. “All [of the words are] carefully researched from evidence of the part these words, phrases, and acronyms currently play in our language.”

To read the full story, log in.
Become a Ragan Insider member to read this article and all other archived content.
Sign up today

Already a member? Log in here.
Learn more about Ragan Insider.