HOODIES, wags and muffin tops have entered the English language, according to the ninth edition of the Collins English Dictionary launched last Monday.
The new version provided a snapshot of the way the English language has produced new words to describe the modern world.
A hoodie is “a young person who wears a hooded sweatshirt, regarded by some as a potential hooligan,” according to the new dictionary. Ever since British Conservative Party leader David Cameron told people to “hug a hoodie”, the phrase has become commonplace.
Wags is a term for the pampered wives and girlfriends of football players accompanying the England football team at the 2006 World Cup. Muffin top means “the fold of fat around the midriff, which spills over the top of tight-fitting pants”.
The dictionary also includes the term “size-zero”, a fashion phrase for a very small dress, and “pro-ana,” which is the chosen label of those who consider anorexia to be a valid lifestyle choice.
Me-media, a term to describe personal Internet services such as MySpace, YouTube and Facebook, slips into the dictionary while “brainfood”, which describes foods thought to benefit brain function, squeezes in.
A Collins spokesperson said that many of the words “will undoubtedly sink back into obscurity being bound up with today’s ephemera, but others will take root.”
The use of English is monitored for the dictionary via a 2.5 billion-word database from websites, magazines, books, journals, newspapers and broadcast transcripts. The dictionary is available in print, online, as a desktop application and as a program designed for cell phones.
