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Cambridge Dictionary has added 3,200 new words, including "boop", "chef’s kiss" and "IYKYK" so far in 2024. The dictionary was updated with new words people are using about modern life, science, gaming, music and work, reflecting how language is always changing.
Informal terms such as "the ick", meaning "a sudden feeling that you dislike someone or something or are no longer attracted to someone because of something they do", and "boop", meaning "a gentle hit or touch on a person’s or animal’s nose or head, showing that you like them or as a joke" have been added.
Other words added include:
The 3,236 new words, alongside a regular programme of revisions and an expanding range of bilingual dictionaries.
Wendalyn Nichols, Cambridge Dictionary publishing manager, said: “Language is dynamic, changing right along with technology and culture. It’s fascinating, and a privilege, to monitor this change and to capture not just new words, but also new uses of existing words, in our monthly updates. Some new terms are added very quickly and others can take some time. We try to identify words and uses that have proven staying power, rather than adding ones that might be short-lived.
"Lexicographers use the Cambridge English Corpus, a collection of more than two billion written and spoken English words, to gather evidence for how a new word is used by different people and in a variety of situations. We also collect evidence of new words that have only appeared in English very recently."