Sarah Palin attempt to splice "refute" and "repudiate" in a news program and a Twitter message in July sparked more searches in the dictionary publisher's online in the summer than the actual words did. But do not expect all the interest in "refudiate" to lead to real dictionary entry.
The former governor of Alaska has laughed off criticism about his pseudo-word, noting that Shakespeare also coined new words.
"Refute" and "repudiation" have similar meanings. Refute means to prove something wrong or deny their truth or accuracy. Repudiate the means to reject any connection with something or reject as false or unfair.
"I think people knew immediately what I was trying to say, because the word" refute "and" repudiate "were being considered until very, very frequently," said John Morse, Merriam-Webster president and publisher.
"It's an interesting mix, but no, 'refudiate' is not a word of truth," he said.
But that could change someday. Many of the words today accepted once considered strange hybrid, too, including device (trap artifice and invention) and splash (splash and spray).
Massachusetts-based Merriam-Webster started tracking trends in the news-driven words most frequently arose after the death of Princess Diana. That's when the editors noticed an increase in online searches for certain words associated with that event, as paparazzi (a celebrity photographer ambitious measures) and courtship (a funeral).
It is now able to track every search on its website, naming the words higher tendency of each year and an annual compilation of "new words" accepted in the dictionary, a "blog" and "staycation."
"Refudiate" joins the list this summer of the main words "start" and despicable, "" to search immediately jumped online as movies were released with those words in titles. Some other times, looking for words including "moratorium", "austerity", "affluent" and doppelganger. "
"Frugal" also on the list, which reflects what the Merriam-Webster editor Peter Sokolowski generally described as "a word the feeling of the moment for the country."
Some perennial puzzles, such as "irony" and the duo that plagued "affect" and "effect" was kept from the Merriam-Webster words searched more often, however, and their editors do not expect that to change soon.
Palin was not the first to combine two words with similar meanings into one. Others have worked their way into the dictionary over time, as "bold" and "daring" melting to become "artificial" or "guess" and "estimates" becoming "conjecture."
Bobaljik Jonathan, a professor of linguistics at the University of Connecticut, said the transition from the slang term for acceptance as a word is not a well-defined process.
For example, people with something in common - such as Palin's supporters - could use a particular term to indicate its affinity although I know that is not considered proper English.
"If enough people decide by popular consent they will use it, then eventually can become a word," said Bobaljik.
In fact, said Morse lexicographers have told the Merriam-Webster editors are seeing increased use of "refudiate", but always by people who know the history behind it.
But it remains to be seen whether "refudiate" be accepted as a word "real."
"Will refudiate" get in the dictionary? Time will tell, "said Morse." Lexicographers are not fortune tellers, so even if he had a theory that would make it true.News From AP.
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