The word which gained even more popularity after on Sunday night has been listed as a verb with its definition given as «dance to popular music in a sexually provocative manner involving thrusting hip movements and a low, squatting stance.» Examples are given as: «Just wait till they catch their daughters twerking to this song» and «Twerk it girl, work it girl.»
New Word Alert: 'Twerk' Added to Oxford Dictionaries Online
Its official, 'twerk' has caused so much ruckus in pop culture that it has been given the Oxford seal of approval as a valid, English word. So the next time you think of refraining from using the word under 'formal' circumstances, by all means go right ahead, for Oxford is with you.
Twerk joins a list of words which have been added to the Oxford dictionary owing from their influence on social media and pop culture. It would be recalled that a few years ago, 'bootylicious' a word made famous by pop singer, Beyonce was added to the Oxford English dictionary (the elder, more official Oxford publication) paving way for the many additions from pop culture which have been made to the Oxford dictionary in more recent times.
Other words and their meanings which have been added to the Oxford Dictionaries Online include:
Selfie: «A photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website.»
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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.»
Bitcoin: «A digital currency in which transactions can be performed without the need for a central bank.»
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.»
Emoji: «A small digital image or icon used to express an idea or emotion in electronic communication.»
FOMO: «Fear of missing out: Anxiety that an exciting or interesting event may currently be happening elsewhere, often aroused by posts seen on a social media website.»
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Click and collect: «A shopping facility whereby a customer can buy or order goods from a store’s website and collect them from a local branch.»
Geek chic: «The dress, appearance, and culture associated with computing and technology enthusiasts, regarded as stylish or fashionable.»
Hackerspace: «A place in which people with an interest in computing or technology can gather to work on projects while sharing ideas, equipment, and knowledge.»
Internet of things: «A proposed development of the Internet in which everyday objects have network connectivity, allowing them to send and receive data.»
MOOC: «A course of study made available over the Internet without charge to a very large number of people.»
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Phablet: «A smartphone having a screen which is intermediate in size between that of a typical smartphone and a tablet computer.»
Srsly: «Short for ‘seriously.’»
TL;DR: «‘Too long didn’t read’: Used as a dismissive response to a lengthy online post, or to introduce a summary of a lengthy post.»
So if you had your way, which Nigerian slang would you like to see added to the Oxford dictionary?
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