OXFORD, England, October 19 /PRNewswire/ -- This is one of the questions Countdown's Susie Dent asks in her new book larpers and shroomers: the language report, published on 19 October 2004 by Oxford University Press.
What is it that defines the language of the moment? Is it that curious word CHAV, virtually unknown until this year and used to describe loutish young people exhibiting COUNCIL ESTATE CHIC? Or is it the creeping of text and chat-room language into every aspect of our written life? Are our favourite TV programmes and SLEBS now directing our choice of words? Or are they all SHTUPID? Word on the SHTREET is that this is the latest trend in pronunciation. Grammar, too, is on the move-or are you SO not liking that?
A WORD A YEAR
However short its life, each word tells a tale about its environment. larpers and shroomers selects a single word born in each year of the 20th century and the opening years of the 21st. Each of them says something about the preoccupations of their time, including DEMOB in 1920, RACISM in 1935, BIG BROTHER in 1949, BEATNIK in 1958, MINISKIRT in 1965, TOY-BOY in 1981, HAVING IT LARGE in 1993, and SEXING UP for 2003. The dates of CHEESEBURGER or MOBILE PHONE may surprise.
BUBBLING UNDER: WORDS OF THE MOMENT
Only a tiny percentage of words will ever achieve permanence in the Oxford English Dictionary, but the waiting list of words is long. Among those words currently jockeying for recognition are FREEGANISM (a philosophy which promotes getting as much of one's food as possible from free sources), MOVIEOKE, (like karaoke, but when you act out scenes from a film), and RETROSEXUALS - men who spend as little time and money as possible on their appearance. How many of these will make it into a dictionary is anybody's guess, but whatever their chances, each of them reflects today's trends.
BIZ WORDS AND BUZZ WORDS
Business talk can be exciting too! Far from bland 'jargonics', how about some of these marvellously inventive phrases: PUTTING SKIN IN THE GAME (making a financial commitment to a company) and DROPPING YOUR PANTS (lowering the price of a product in order to close a sale). Work and play (or language play at least) do not always need to occupy separate spaces: MOOSE ON THE TABLE (an issue which everyone in a meeting knows is a problem but no one wants to address), and PRAWN-SANDWICH MAN (a corporate freeloader) are both terms in the modern business portfolio.
ARE YOU SHTUPID?
Are we less precise in our pronunciation nowadays? Have Thatcherism and therapy given way to FATCHERISM and FERAPY? Do you go to work on Tuesday or CHEWSDAY? Is LORA NORDER ('law and order') a friend of yours? Do your kids outrage you with their glottal stops? Susie Dent has been out on the street finding out if anyone still speaks the Queen's English.
Larpers and shroomers: the language report is the frontline account of today's English. It publishes on 19 October 2004, priced £9.99 in hardback.
English is the fastest-moving language in the world, and the largest. Around one third of the world's population uses English in their daily life and some 80% of the world's websites are in English. Tracking its course is a huge and important task, but Oxford University Press, with the largest language research programme in the world, is in prime position to undertake it.
A WORD A YEAR: 1904-2004 1904 hip 1955 boogie 1905 whizzo 1956 sexy 1906 teddy bear 1957 psychedelic 1907 egghead 1958 beatnik 1908 realpolitik 1959 cruise missile 1909 tiddly-om-pom-pom 1960 cyborg 1910 sacred cow 1961 awesome 1911 gene 1962 bossa nova 1912 blues 1963 peacenik 1913 celeb 1964 byte 1914 cheerio 1965 miniskirt 1915 civvy street 1966 acid 1916 U-boat 1967 love-in 1917 tailspin 1968 It-girl 1918 ceasefire 1969 microchip 1919 ad-lib 1970 hypermarket 1920 demob 1971 green 1921 pop 1972 Watergate 1922 wizard 1973 F-word 1923 hem-line 1974 punk 1924 lumpenproletariat 1975 detox 1925 avant garde 1976 Trekkie 1926 kitsch 1977 naff all 1927 sudden death 1978 trainers 1928 Big Apple 1979 karaoke 1929 sex 1980 power dressing 1930 drive-in 1981 toy-boy 1931 Mickey Mouse 1982 hip-hop 1932 bagel 1983 beatbox 1933 dumb down 1984 double-click 1934 pesticide 1985 OK yah 1935 racism 1986 mobile 1936 spliff 1987 virtual reality 1937 dunk 1988 gangsta 1938 cheeseburger 1989 latte 1939 Blitzkrieg 1990 applet 1940 Molotov cocktail 1991 hot-desking 1941 snafu 1992 URL 1942 buzz 1993 have it large 1943 pissed off 1994 Botox 1944 DNA 1995 kitten heels 1945 mobile phone 1996 ghetto fabulous 1946 megabucks 1997 dot-commer 1947 Wonderbra 1998 text message 1948 cool 1999 google 1949 Big Brother 2000 bling bling 1950 brainwashing 2001 9/11 1951 fast food 2002 axis of evil 1952 Generation X 2003 sex up 1953 hippy 2004 chav 1954 non-U
― Alba (Alba), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 05:30 (twenty-one years ago)
― Huk-L, Tuesday, 19 October 2004 05:44 (twenty-one years ago)
Nice article tho N.. I love this kind of stuff.
― Trayce (trayce), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 05:48 (twenty-one years ago)
The replacing 'Th' with 'F' really galls me, I think it's horrible sounding and lazy.
― Rumpy Pumpkin (rumpypumpkin), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 05:56 (twenty-one years ago)
― Haaaaaitch (haitch), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 05:58 (twenty-one years ago)
― gem (trisk), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 05:59 (twenty-one years ago)
― Kevin Gilchrist (Mr Fusion), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 06:20 (twenty-one years ago)
― lukey (Lukey G), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 07:09 (twenty-one years ago)
― koogs (koogs), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 07:19 (twenty-one years ago)
I must've been asleep in 1996, I don't remember 'ghetto fabulous' at all.
― Ste (Fuzzy), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 07:26 (twenty-one years ago)
― Freelance Hiveminder (blueski), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 07:47 (twenty-one years ago)
― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 08:01 (twenty-one years ago)
― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 08:05 (twenty-one years ago)
wtf? i now imagine scores of old pervs in dirty macs running up to young women yelling 'Huge Reductions!'
― Freelance Hiveminder (blueski), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 08:05 (twenty-one years ago)
― Freelance Hiveminder (blueski), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 08:07 (twenty-one years ago)
― CarsmileSteve (CarsmileSteve), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 08:16 (twenty-one years ago)
― Freelance Hiveminder (blueski), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 08:20 (twenty-one years ago)
tiddly-om-pom-pom cyborg civvy street acid avant garde Trekkie drive-in toy-boydumb down double-clickcheeseburger lattefast food axis of evil brainwashing 9/11
― Onimo (GerryNemo), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 08:57 (twenty-one years ago)
― Freelance Hiveminder (blueski), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:02 (twenty-one years ago)
― ken c (ken c), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:10 (twenty-one years ago)
― Alba (Alba), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:14 (twenty-one years ago)
― Michael Jones (MichaelJ), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:15 (twenty-one years ago)
― Alba (Alba), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:17 (twenty-one years ago)
"erm quick we need a word for this year!!!"
― Ronan (Ronan), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:23 (twenty-one years ago)
― CarsmileSteve (CarsmileSteve), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:26 (twenty-one years ago)
― Ronan (Ronan), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:27 (twenty-one years ago)
― Ste (Fuzzy), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:27 (twenty-one years ago)
PS - What is ghetto fabulous? I spent 1996 with head up the arse of cultural theory, so wasn't hip to the groove.
― It's that time of year again (daveb), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:50 (twenty-one years ago)
― Serghei Daduismus (Dada), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:52 (twenty-one years ago)
Kitten heels:http://www.bewitchedby.com/fashion/graphics/ff02.04/aerosolespixie.jpg
― Archel (Archel), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:53 (twenty-one years ago)
― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:54 (twenty-one years ago)
― Serghei Daduismus (Dada), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:56 (twenty-one years ago)
― Ste (Fuzzy), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:56 (twenty-one years ago)
― Freelance Hiveminder (blueski), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:56 (twenty-one years ago)
― ken c (ken c), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:56 (twenty-one years ago)
― ken c (ken c), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:57 (twenty-one years ago)
― ken c (ken c), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:58 (twenty-one years ago)
― Serghei Daduismus (Dada), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 09:59 (twenty-one years ago)
bascially that america geezer needed excitement (he's not addicted honestly) and so he asked "who got the funk?" and thought, "Iraq have too much brandy".
So, he asked the british geezer "hey, let's push things forward". The britain guy was like "why but we don't even know if he has any sharp darts!!"
but the american chap wouldn't have it any other way, and he was like "well, we don't know for sure, but if we look, the weapons could well be in!" the british geezer was like "has it come to this? well ok", american chap was supportive "com'on.. who dares wins!" british guy was like "guess you're right, stay positive".
so, the british guy turned the page, and really sexed up his essay with flashing lights and everything. He looked at it and he was like "my god, this essay it's so fit, but you know it!" The public, blinded by the lights, thought "yeah! got for it, just don't mug yourself ok?"
and woosh! they went there and blew the shit out of the iraqi dudes, "weak became heroes today", they chanted, and started going around the place. All they found were empty cans! The same old thing everywhere. Where were these weapons? And they realised that it was all a lie.
But it was too late!! they've blown the place to shit. What was he thinking?? such a twat. the british geezer went to the american geezer "hey you told me there were definitely weapons and finding it was supposed to be so easy!!".
"dry your eyes mate", said american geezer.
The end.
― ken c (ken c), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 10:17 (twenty-one years ago)
― Serghei Daduismus (Dada), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 10:19 (twenty-one years ago)
― ken c (ken c), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 10:20 (twenty-one years ago)
― Freelance Hiveminder (blueski), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 10:24 (twenty-one years ago)
― suzy (suzy), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 11:20 (twenty-one years ago)
― Freelance Hiveminder (blueski), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 11:23 (twenty-one years ago)
― Penelope_111 (Penelope_111), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 11:24 (twenty-one years ago)
― ken c (ken c), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 11:24 (twenty-one years ago)
― Penelope_111 (Penelope_111), Tuesday, 19 October 2004 11:25 (twenty-one years ago)
But neds in these areas would look down their noses (and talk thru their noses) at neds from Lanarkshire and Ayrshire. Whereas chav is a convenient word (and concept) that allows middle class people to be snobbish and not feel guilty about it, ned is a word from the working class about other working class people who are letting the side down as 'twere.
― They're Dairylea Mad, Them Kids (Dada), Friday, 28 April 2006 16:33 (nineteen years ago)
― Raw Patrick (Raw Patrick), Friday, 28 April 2006 16:33 (nineteen years ago)
All I remember from when I was a kid during the '80's mod revival is that a few of them @ our school were real hard bastards. The music they listened to in the eighties was terrible stuff. "secret affair", "the merton parkas" and "the look". They all seemed to get it catastrophically wrong in some way.
― Pashmina (Pashmina), Friday, 28 April 2006 16:37 (nineteen years ago)
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Friday, 28 April 2006 16:51 (nineteen years ago)
Only bands I remember being mentioned were The Who, The Kinks and The Jam. When I think about it they probably all moved onto the echo & the bunnymen type raincoats. I don't think there were any goths at school. But everyone did have to wear school uniform, girls werent allowed much make up etc, no long hair at all. Someone even got suspended for having hair like bono(I bet he's embarrassed now!). So perhaps there was some part time goths after school hours!
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Friday, 28 April 2006 18:49 (nineteen years ago)
check: THE WORST NME COVER OF ALL TIME
― DJ Martian (djmartian), Friday, 28 April 2006 18:54 (nineteen years ago)
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Friday, 28 April 2006 19:11 (nineteen years ago)
― Colonel Poo (Colonel Poo), Friday, 28 April 2006 19:29 (nineteen years ago)
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Friday, 28 April 2006 19:31 (nineteen years ago)
― Colonel Poo (Colonel Poo), Friday, 28 April 2006 19:54 (nineteen years ago)
― engelbert, Friday, 28 April 2006 23:57 (nineteen years ago)
― When I Open Up My Mouth All Bullets Spit Out: Bang! (noodle vague), Saturday, 29 April 2006 00:00 (nineteen years ago)
That doesn't fit in the song.
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Saturday, 29 April 2006 01:12 (nineteen years ago)
― When I Open Up My Mouth All Bullets Spit Out: Bang! (noodle vague), Saturday, 29 April 2006 01:24 (nineteen years ago)
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Saturday, 29 April 2006 01:29 (nineteen years ago)
― When I Open Up My Mouth All Bullets Spit Out: Bang! (noodle vague), Saturday, 29 April 2006 01:47 (nineteen years ago)
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Saturday, 29 April 2006 02:12 (nineteen years ago)
― When I Open Up My Mouth All Bullets Spit Out: Bang! (noodle vague), Saturday, 29 April 2006 02:16 (nineteen years ago)
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Saturday, 29 April 2006 02:33 (nineteen years ago)
― When I Open Up My Mouth All Bullets Spit Out: Bang! (noodle vague), Saturday, 29 April 2006 02:37 (nineteen years ago)
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Saturday, 29 April 2006 03:07 (nineteen years ago)
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Sunday, 30 April 2006 22:24 (nineteen years ago)
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Tuesday, 2 May 2006 00:38 (nineteen years ago)
[news]- Chav rock meets dad rock as Paul Weller joins Hard Fi in London
― Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Thursday, 25 May 2006 14:46 (nineteen years ago)
Lame.
― Je4nn3 Fuhfuh (Je4nne Fury), Monday, 8 January 2007 21:44 (eighteen years ago)
― You've Got Scourage On Your Breath (Haberdager), Monday, 8 January 2007 21:45 (eighteen years ago)
― the original hauntology blogging crew (Enrique), Tuesday, 9 January 2007 09:15 (eighteen years ago)
― Matt (Matt), Tuesday, 9 January 2007 10:13 (eighteen years ago)
― Alba (Alba), Tuesday, 9 January 2007 10:15 (eighteen years ago)
that makes it sound like a big deal, it isn't really.
― the original hauntology blogging crew (Enrique), Tuesday, 9 January 2007 10:17 (eighteen years ago)
― reverto levidensis (blueski), Tuesday, 9 January 2007 10:37 (eighteen years ago)
― My Koogy Weighs A Ton (koogs), Tuesday, 9 January 2007 10:57 (eighteen years ago)
― the original hauntology blogging crew (Enrique), Tuesday, 9 January 2007 10:59 (eighteen years ago)
― CharlieNo4, Wednesday, 14 March 2007 01:20 (eighteen years ago)
― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 14 March 2007 01:23 (eighteen years ago)
BOSTON (Reuters) - "w00t", an expression of joy coined by online gamers, was crowned word of the year on Tuesday by the publisher of a leading U.S. dictionary.
Massachusetts-based Merriam-Webster said "w00t" -- typically spelled with two zeros -- reflects a new direction in the American language led by a generation raised on video games and mobile phone text-messaging.
It's like saying "yay", the dictionary said.
"It could be after a triumph or for no reason at all," Merriam-Webster said.
Visitors to Merriam-Webster's Web site were invited to vote for one of 20 words and phrases culled from the most frequently looked-up words on the site and submitted by readers.
Runner-up was "facebook" as a new verb meaning to add someone to a list of friends on the Web site Facebook.com or to search for people on the social networking site.
Merriam-Webster President John Morse said "w00t" reflected the growing use of numeric keyboards to type words.
"People look for self-evident numeral-letter substitutions: 0 for O; 3 for E; 7 for T; and 4 for A," he said. "This is simply a different and more efficient way of representing the alphabetical character."
One Web site, www.thinkgeek.com, already sells T-shirts with the word "w00t" printed on the front.
"w00t belongs to gamers the world over. It seems to have been derived from the obsolete 'whoot' which essentially is another way to say 'hoot' which itself is a shout or derisive laugh," Think Geek said on its Web site.
"But others maintain that w00t is the sound several players make while jumping like bunnies in Quake III," it added, referring to a popular video game.
Online gamers often replace numbers and symbols with letters to form what Merriam-Webster calls an "esoteric computer hacker language" known as "l33t speak." This translates into "leet", which is short for "elite".
A separate survey of words used in the media and on the Internet by California-based Global Language Monitor produced a different set of winners on Tuesday. "Hybrid" took top honours as word of the year with "climate change" the top phrase.
Global Language Monitor, which uses an algorithm to track words and phrases in the media and on the Internet, said "hybrid" had broad connotations of "all things green from biodiesel to wearing clothes made of soy to global warming".
Runner-up was "surge," based on the "surge" of 30,000 extra U.S. troops deployed to Iraq since mid-June, followed by the word "Bluetooth," a technology used to connect electronic devices via radio waves.
"The English language is becoming more and more a globalised language every year," said Global Language Monitor president Paul Payack, noting that this year's list included words also culled from India, Singapore, China and Australia.
― DavidM, Wednesday, 12 December 2007 17:14 (eighteen years ago)
surge? that's TWO WORDS.
― That one guy that hit it and quit it, Wednesday, 12 December 2007 17:15 (eighteen years ago)
"W00t" only makes me think of Greggles.
― Laurel, Wednesday, 12 December 2007 17:18 (eighteen years ago)
TWO WORDS? That's 2 words.
― Mark G, Wednesday, 12 December 2007 17:18 (eighteen years ago)
how is it more efficient to use a character to represent a character?
"w00t" has been around for years, I don't see it as indicating a "new direction in American language" as much as indicating that online gaming is more mainstream than it was a decade ago.
― onimo, Wednesday, 12 December 2007 17:19 (eighteen years ago)
more that it has broken free from the doritos-fingered grasp of online gamers into acceptable society.
― That one guy that hit it and quit it, Wednesday, 12 December 2007 17:27 (eighteen years ago)
acceptable society
a generation raised on video games and mobile phone text-messaging.
― onimo, Wednesday, 12 December 2007 17:28 (eighteen years ago)
acceptable by ilx standards
― DG, Wednesday, 12 December 2007 17:29 (eighteen years ago)
Wait, mobile phone in 1945? Generation X in 1952? Seriously?
― Will M., Wednesday, 12 December 2007 17:34 (eighteen years ago)
Couldn't find another thread for the programme, but would just like to record that today's Countdown conundrum conclusively proved LARGE BAPS = GRASPABLE.
― emil.y, Tuesday, 14 December 2010 22:08 (fifteen years ago)
Rachel Riley RIP :-(
― xyzzzz__, Monday, 7 January 2019 18:19 (six years ago)
lmao
― twitter is bad not good (||||||||), Monday, 7 January 2019 19:41 (six years ago)
Some of the messages were replying to tweets I couldn’t see, as the tweeter had blocked me. As far as I know, I’ve never had any dealings with this person, but their timeline shows support of those known to promote Antisemitism Loach, Bastani, Chomski. No surprise pro-Corbyn.— Rachel Riley (@RachelRileyRR) January 6, 2019
― twitter is bad not good (||||||||), Monday, 7 January 2019 19:44 (six years ago)
gnome chomski
― an erotic picnic with Ming (bizarro gazzara), Monday, 7 January 2019 21:23 (six years ago)
This has actually taken quite a turn:
The Labour anti-Semitism scandal has reached the point where Rachel Riley, presenter of the TV quiz show 'Countdown' is citing Chomsky and the Faurisson affair. As usual all the reactions to this are fucking terrible, so here's some quick background.— libcom dot org (@libcomorg) January 8, 2019
― xyzzzz__, Tuesday, 8 January 2019 14:00 (six years ago)