Defining the times

Present and past examined in two new dictionaries

In this story: Many new words 'fizzlers' Walking through 'The Word Museum' Deosculating and cybersex RELATED STORIES, SITES

By Jamie Allen
CNN.com Senior Writer

(CNN) -- In case you're so caught up in this Internet generation that you use words like "netiquette" and "digerati" in conversation -- and you can't remember a time when you didn't -- here's a reminder: A lot has changed in the last five years.

Fathom, for instance, a dictionary that doesn't have "dot-com" in it. Can you imagine?

You don't have to imagine, actually. Just read the paperback third edition of "The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language," which came out in 1995. It was, as most dictionaries are, reflective of our culture -- and computer-related terms were still downloading from 28K modems to daily language.

VIDEO CNN's Garrick Utley looks at how new words go legit in the dictionary Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)     QUIZ How well do you know your English?     ALSO Review: Lingua fade-out    Background: These are among the new terms in the new American Heritage Dictionary: buyback dark matter digerati dot-com erectile dysfunction face time family leave Bill Gates homeschool poetry slam wannabe xenotransplant

The good news is, a fourth edition of American Heritage from Houghton Mifflin is now on shelves, and its editors have solidified cyber-words into real print, justifying their existence in the pages of the respected dictionary.

Like "dot-com."

" 'Dot-com' seems like a very widely used word now and everybody likes it," says Joseph Pickett, executive editor of the new American Heritage. "It's always in the newspapers. But about a year and half ago, 'dot-com' was just sort of coming on.

"It was actually one of the last words we entered into our database," he admits. "It was one of these words that our editor who handles computer science stuff said, 'Hey, we should probably put this in. It looks like it's going to be a big word.' "

They were right. But their cautious approach is commendable, particularly in an age when new words, phrases and numbers/letters -- B2B, anyone? -- spring from the mouths of overzealous Net-heads in conference rooms across America.

"A lot of new words that come up are fizzlers," Pickett says. "They evaporate after a couple of months. So usually we're skeptical and we like it to develop a track record of usage before we put it in, because we don't want to load the book up with a lot of trendy junk."

Techno-jargon not only fed the content of the dictionary, says Pickett. "Technology really influenced the way we worked in this product."

The new American Heritage Dictionary boasts color pictures, usage notes, charts and histories to break up the lists of definitions on every page

For the third edition, the editors were still working on file cards that were stored in (real) file cabinets. For the latest edition, they converted their list of words to a database accessible over computer network. E-mail also played an important role in debating the merits, usage and pronunciation of words, old and new.

The result is the most colorful, comprehensive word compendium yet from American Heritage. About 10,000 new terms have been added, including new biographical entries on Bill Gates, Wayne Gretzky and Patsy Cline. Color pictures adorn each page. Usage notes, charts, and word histories break up the lists of definitions.

But it's the Net definitions that are on the tip of Pickett's tongue. His favorite new word is "digerati": people who are knowledgeable about digital technologies such as computer programming and design, according to the dictionary.

"That's a nice word," he says. "It's a clever coinage, a blend of two words. Another one I like is 'netizen.' "

But for those who long for the old days -- the really, really old days, when technology, in fact, was still relegated to non-electrical inventions -- there's a new paperback out called "The Word Museum" (Touchstone/Simon & Schuster). Author Jeffrey Kacirk calls his book "a dictionary of archaic words."

"I'm a pretty old-fashioned person," says Kacirk, a chiropractor who, when he's not cracking backs, has spent 15 years digging up old utterances. "I wouldn't consider myself on the cutting edge. I certainly use a computer, but I'm not up to date on the latest technology."

His book, in fact, is filled with words that are never used in modern English. Kacirk says his collection, culled from old texts, gives readers a window into the past.

"A lot of times what a word is to me is not just a word, but often a way of seeing a whole little side of social life," he says.

For instance, there's the old word "corsned." Definition, according to Kacirk: a piece of "ordeal bread" that could be eaten by suspects in a crime, thereby clearing them of charges.

Perhaps many a "laced-mutton" ate corsned. A laced-mutton, you see, is what some people used to call a prostitute. If that makes you laugh, you might be a "flizzy," which once was the term for someone who laughed at little, according to "Word Museum."

Another old term is "deosculation," or the act of kissing. Kacirk understands why words like this are no longer used.

" 'Kiss' is a lot easier to use than 'deosculate,' " he says. "It sounds like something a veterinarian would do. It just doesn't sound like something you'd want to say to somebody -- 'Deosculate me, you fool!' "

Perhaps deosculate's cousin can be found in the word "cybersex," which showed up this year in the American Heritage Dictionary.

"We had a lively debate about that was," says Pickett. "What do you say? What exactly is involved and how extensively detailed do you want to be? Those are delicate matters."

"What a dictionary is supposed to do is give you an answer to a question without, you know, providing more detail than necessary," he says.

A dictionary is also "a lifelong learning tool," says Pickett. "It's fundamental to your being able to understand the world around you. It's really important that children be taught how to use a dictionary. It's like riding a bicycle. Once you learn how to use a dictionary, it becomes a very natural thing to you."

A book for those who are not screenagers
August 11, 2000
Brave new words
July 3, 2000
New words for a 'New World': An updated dictionary
October 11, 1999

Houghton Mifflin
Touchstone/Simon & Schuster

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