Which Word?: Words of the Year

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Hello everyone!

Since 2015 is drawing to a close, I thought I’d do a slightly different Which Word? segment this week and bring your attention to the 2015 Words of the Year, as decided by the Oxford English Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, and dictionary.com. I find all three particularly interesting this year…you can decide which word is your favorite!

Dictionary.com’s word is identity, which seems a highly relevant selection in light of the many aspects of identity and their significance that appeared in the news this year. As a word that has been widely debated and largely redefined in both the popular and political spheres, identity was the subject of many dictionary.com searches–and dictionary.com actually rewrote their definition of it (and related terms, such as identify) to remain in line with current events. Interestingly, identity is the only Word of the Year that is actually a word.

Merriam-Webster’s word is not a full word, but instead a suffix: -ism. Merriam-Webster selected this suffix to represent the many words ending in -ism that spiked in lookups this year. In a year full of so many charged political conversations, it’s not surprising that many people were curious about the exact meanings of many -isms.

While Merriam-Webster leaned toward the political side in its Word of the Year selection, Oxford English Dictionary’s word is firmly in the popular realm. I use the word “word” here loosely, as the OED Word of the Year is not a word at all, but rather an emoji (one of the highly popular face icons used to express emotion in typed text). It is the “face with tears of joy” emoji, seen as tears-of-joy-emoji. While dictionary.com’s and Merriam-Webster’s words both indicate society’s wrestling with core ideological issues, the OED’s choice of an emoji for its word illustrates how the nature of language itself is changing. As today’s world becomes increasingly united and blended, overcoming geographical separations through technological advances, so language and art are coming together to form a new (and more thorough) form of expression–and categorizing an emoji as a Word of the Year brings home just how pervasive that change is.

So which word is your favorite? Which word best expresses your year?

Happy New Year! Until next time!

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About Sarah Dawson

For nearly a decade, I have worked with both corporate and independent authors to perfect their writing prior to its publication. As a freelancer, the services I offer include proofreading, copyediting (light, medium, and heavy), substantive editing, rewriting, and writing. Whatever the type of service I provide, I consider myself a liaison between author and reader; my job is to convey the author’s message to the reader in the clearest, most pleasing way possible. Among my particular areas of expertise are educational materials and child and young adult literature. My background as an educator and a school librarian gives me unique insight into how to make such writing exceptional. I have also worked extensively with corporate writers, working on text for use in marketing, employee education, and websites. I welcome all inquiries. Let me know how I can help perfect your writing!