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New Words Added to English Dictionaries

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Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. 6. carbon credit n. Permit allowing a certain amount of carbon dioxide emissions. 7. carbon offsetting n. Counteraction of CO2 emissions with a corresponding reduction. 8. catastrophize v. To present a situation as worse than it is. 9. cheeseball adj. Lacking taste or style. 10. chillax v. To calm down and relax. 11. cool hunter n. One who predicts new styles and trends. 12. cougar n. Older woman who dates younger men. 13. eggcorn n. Logical swap of words with similar sounds (from "egg corn" for "acorn"). 14. exit strategy n. Planned means of extricating oneself from a situation. 15. flash mob n. Brief gathering for a common purpose, announced by e-mail or text. 16. flyover states n. [derogatory] Central regions of the U.S. 17. frenemy n. Friend with whom one has frequent conflict. 18. friend v. To add to a list of personal associates on a website. 19. gal pal n. Female friend. 20. green audit n. Analysis of a business' environmental impact. 21. green-collar adj. Of or relating to workers in the environmentalist business sector. 22. hater n. Negative person. 23. heart v. To like very much; love. 24. homeshoring n. Moving jobs to employees' homes (from "offshoring"). 25. hypermiling n. Altering a car to maximize its fuel economy. 26. LBD n. Little black dress. Entertainment $3 off popcorn and soft drink combos See more Entertainment offers > 29. megachurch n. Huge church congregation, typically evangelical Christian. 30. meme n. Image, video or phrase passed electronically on the Internet. 31. microblog v. To post very short entries on a blog. 32. overleveraged adj. Having taken on too much debt. 33. own v. To utterly defeat or humiliate. 34. paywall n. Arrangement whereby website access is restricted to paying users only. 35. pimp v. To make something more showy or impressive. 36. riff v. To expound on a particular subject. 37. rock v. To do something in a confident, flamboyant way. 38. sheeple n. Unquestioning followers (from "sheep" + "people"). 39. social media n. Websites and applications used for social networking. 40. soft skills n. Attributes that enable someone to interact harmoniously with others. 41. staycation n. Vacation spent at home. 42. toxic debt n. Debt that has a high risk of default. 43. truthiness n. Quality of seeming true. 44. turducken n. Roast of a chicken inside a duck inside a turkey. 45. tweet n. Posting made on the social networking site Twitter. 46. unfriend v. To remove from a list of personal associates on a website. 47. viral adj. Circulating rapidly on the Internet. 48. vuvuzela n. Long horn blown by fans at soccer matches. 49. webisode n. Episode or short film made for viewing online. 50. zombie bank n. Insolvent bank that survives through government support. Sources: Oxford Dictionary of English; New American Oxford Dictionary; Oxford English Dictionary; Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, New Words 2009 More on entertainment AARP NEWSLETTERS %{ newsLetterPromoText }% %{ description }% Subscribe AARP VALUE & MEMBER BENEFITS See more Health & Wellness offers > See more Flights & Vacation Packages offers > See more Finances offers > See more Health & Wellness offers > SAVE MONEY WITH THESE LIMITED-TIME OFFERS