Tweetup Added To Oxford Dictionary Of English

As reported last week by the Daily Telegraph (U.K.) and other media outlets, Oxford University Press announced some significant and interesting additions, including "tweetup," to the just-released third edition of its Oxford Dictionary of English. The inclusion is yet another in a series of social media terms, such as "defriend," "tweet," and "microblogging," that have been added to the dictionary in the past 24 months as social media platforms have become more prominent and popular around the world.

Formerly named the New Oxford Dictionary of English, the Oxford Dictionary Of English is a single-volume English language dictionary first published in 1998 by Oxford University Press. This dictionary is not based on the lengthier and more comprehensive Oxford English Dictionary (OED), and therefore, should not be mistaken for a new or updated version of the OED. Instead it is a completely new dictionary which strives to represent, as faithfully as possible, the current usage of English words. At present, the Oxford Dictionary Of English is the largest single-volume English-language dictionary published by Oxford University Press.

According to the dictionary, "tweetup" has a very simple definition: a meeting arranged through Twitter.

Other newcomers this year include cheeseball (lacking taste or style); turducken (a roast dish consisting of a chicken inside a duck inside a turkey); vuvuzela, the long horn seen and heard throughout this year's FIFA World Cup in South Africa; wardrobe malfunction (when someone exposes an intimate part of their body after clothing slips); bromance (a close but non-sexual relationship between two men); and frenemy (a person that one is friendly with despite a fundamental dislike).

The implication? As technology and social media become more globally pervasive, we will continue to see words and phrases from these areas be more integrated into every-day conversation and writing, and ultimately become an ingrained part of language in the English-speaking world.