Hot off the press!
This September the Oxford English Dictionary updated its entries. This includes words, phrases or new definitions of words that already existed.I love updated words as a few of these definitely indicate the way we live in the 21st century. And that’s just it, language reflects life.
Here are a handful of my favourites, in no particular order. All definitions in italics are provided by the Oxford English Dictionary.
Al desko
An adverb that indicates an activity done at a desk, inspired by the Italian phrase ” al fresco.” Anyone who has ever worked in an office can probably relate to the idea of an al desko lunch. Deskfast –“Breakfast eaten at work, typically at a desk in an office.” also makes the list.
Have you deskfasted at any time in your life?
Deplatforming
Definition: ” “The action or practice of preventing a person, group, or organization from contributing to a public forum or debate.”
Speak to Donald Trump about this one.
Binge viewing
Thanks to streaming services for this one. We all know what this is (and maybe indulge in it ourselves) but you can rest assured that binge viewing and binge-viewers are now officially in the dictionary. Its predecessor, binge watching, that is ” the practice of watching several episodes of a TV show on one occasion, usually by means of DVDs or digital streaming” was admitted to the OED in 1998.
So a binge-watch might be a one-off activity but binge viewing is next level, defined as “The activity or practice of viewing television, film, video content on social media, etc., for intensive or extended periods, esp. by watching multiple episodes of a particular programme, series, etc., consecutively or in rapid succession.
Are you guilty of binge viewing or not?
Crackalack
This one is U.S. slang, nothing wrong with that. It’s a verb generally used in present participle as in ” What’s crackalacking?” in other words, what’s going on?
You’ve got to admit that it’s also quite enjoyable. Try it out and let me know how it goes.
Asparagussy
Okay, not a terribly useful adjective if you don’t talk about asparagus a lot, but this word just rolls off the tongue if you need to describe erm, an asparagus, for example.
The full list can be accessed here: https://www.oed.com/discover/new-words-in-the-oed-september-2025-update/
Which one is your favourite? How would you use it in a sentence? Let me know!
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