Can new words be invented?

The commonest method of creating a new word is to add a prefix or suffix to an existing one. Hence realisation (1610s), democratise (1798), detonator (1822), preteen (1926), hyperlink (1987) and monogamish (2011). The inverse of the above: the creation of a new root word by the removal of a phantom affix.

How are new words created in a language?

Over half of the words in our language have been formed by adding prefixes and suffixes to root words. It relies on the fact that these suffixes or prefixes have known, stable definitions, so they can be attached to any existing word to layer their meaning.

Why won’t my new word make it into the Dictionary?

As one of our lexicographers explains: “Your new word won’t make it into the dictionary—even if it is very clever or fills a specific need in the language—unless it gets adopted and used by other people. The dictionary only includes words that have a specific meaning many people can agree on.”

What is a dictionary and why is it important?

Words and language are constantly evolving, and our lexicographers are tirelessly documenting them. It’s the dictionary’s job to describe all words the way they are used in the real world, so dictionaries contain standard words, slang words, dialect words, nonstandard words, and more.

Why do we use the words we use?

The words we use—if they are new or relatively new—are the words we need to express and explain our world. If these words then also become widely used, it becomes the dictionary’s job to explain this use.

Why is it important to define new words?

New words are a happy fact of life for a living language, and taking careful stock of the words that we use is an important part of the work of dictionary editors. Words can come and go in a language, but those that show staying power and increasing use need to be recorded and described. In other words: they need definitions.