A Few Words About New Words

Language evolves as our culture changes.

Photo by “My Life Through A Lens” on Unsplash

Creative minds constantly make up new words. When the words accurately reflect how we experience life at that moment, they stick. The ones that persist over time become permanent parts of our lexicon.

This month the Merriam-Webster Dictionary added 533 new words or new meanings for old words. Here’s a few of the ones that stick out:

In the short-hand world of social media, it’s no big surprise that abbreviations are now acceptable in place of the original longer word.

Vacation is cut down to Vacay and a session becomes just a Sesh. You no longer will have to search for inspiration, when a little Inspo will work just as well.

We have finally been freed from the impossible awkwardness of using “he/she” when you don’t know the gender of the person you are referring to, a struggle that has been wracking writers for 600 years.

Now it’s ok to use They, when referring to one person when the pronoun is used for a person whose gender is identified as “nonbinary,” neither male nor female.

That fabulous solo entrepreneur you read about? They now can morph into a Solopreneur who is known for their Fabulosity. Cool.