Hi, everyone. Gosh, I’ve really been remiss in my updates. Let’s hope someone still reads this.

Today, a colleague passed along an article from Cracked called, “15 Words You Won’t Believe They Added to the Dictionary.” It’s funny, but it’s right; I don’t believe these have been added to the dictionary. I’d be fun to see words like “grrrl” and “prebuttal” show up, but I did my due diligence and, as far as I can tell, these have not yet been added to the OED.

See, the OED (Oxford English Dictionary) produces additions and revisions quarterly, so it’s easy to find out what’s been newly accepted as an official part of our language. These additions account for innovations in science and technology (”podcasting” in December 2008) or new additions to vernacular (”chill pill” in June 2007 which, by the way, is slang derived from slang). Thankfully, the OED publishes these additions on its Web site.

Don’t believe the hype; find out for yourself here. You can also track revisions, which is a pretty cool thing, since it means someone found an older instance or an additional meaning of an existing entry. And that’s some scrappy research work, folks, since some OED entries go back farther than the discovery of what’s now the United States.

By the way, for those of you seeking something fun to do on Thursday night, I encourage you to tune in to the Scripps National Spelling Bee (as I stifle yelps of delight). ABC. 8 p.m. EST. Happiness and joy. Let’s hope they’re streaming it on the Web. Sometimes I hate not having TV. In the meantime, you can follow the Bee on Twitter for updates. I sure am!

Goodnight, moon.

N