Can You Guess the 2010 Word of the Year? (Hint: It Only Has 3 Letters)
by JasonBlack
Our friends over at the Nseries blog – and one of our regular contributors, John Verity – alerted us to some great trivia! The “Word of the Year” for 2010 was recently selected. It’s only 3 letters long! Three powerful, compelling little letters …
The American Dialect Society (ADS) revealed their choice for the 2010 “Word of the Year,” and for those of us who actively use our Nokia mobile devices, the winning word might not be too surprising! Can you guess what that word might be? Keep reading …
Members in the ADS, which was founded in 1889, include: linguists, lexicographers, etymologists, grammarians, historians, researchers, writers, authors, editors, professors, university students, and independent scholars. A well-esteemed and qualified group to make such an important decision. According to the ADS, in conducting their vote, the members “act in fun and do not pretend to be officially inducting words into the English language. Instead they are highlighting that language change is normal, ongoing, and entertaining.”
“One of the most convincing arguments from the voting floor was from a woman who said that even her grandmother had heard of it,” noted Ben Zimmer, chair of the New Words Committee of the American Dialect Society and executive producer of VisualThesaurus.com. Zimmer is also the “On Language” columnist for the New York Times Magazine. Zimmer presided over the vote with ADS Executive Secretary Allan Metcalf of MacMurray College.
So, what’s the winning word?
In its 21st annual words of the year vote, the ADS voted “App” (noun, an abbreviated form of application, a software program for a computer or phone operating system) as the word of the year for 2010!
According to the ADS, the words or phrases that are considered for this honor do not have to be brand-new, but they must be “newly prominent or notable in the past year.” It is also worth noting that this annual vote is the longest-running such vote anywhere, and it is NOT tied to any commercial interests! So, the little “App” earned this honor entirely on its own merit.
And, what’s more, “App” beat out four other words for this coveted honor: nom, junk, Wikileaks, and trend.
Well done, App. Congratulations to you, and the many thousands of apps that are available in Ovi Store (and elsewhere) for our use and enjoyment every day.
More information about the 2010 winner is in the ADS press release.
And, you can find information about past winners, too.
How will you help to celebrate “App” winning Word of the Year honors? Maybe a download or two? Share your ideas in the Comments section below.