Merriam-Webster adds more than 5,000 terms in Collegiate dictionary overhaul

NEW YORK — Merriam-Webster on Thursday announced a major overhaul of its Collegiate dictionary, adding more than 5,000 terms to reflect changes in everyday speech and digital culture.

The update broadens coverage beyond traditional lexicon to include slang, technology terms and phrases that have moved into mainstream usage. Among the new entries are several that gained traction in memes, social posts and media, with definitions and example sentences that illustrate how the terms are used in context. For example, the entry for 'beast mode' defines it as an extremely aggressive or energetic style or manner that someone adopts temporarily to overpower an opponent in a fight or competition. The dictionary’s note provides an example: 'He needed to go beast mode to crush the hot dog eating contest.' The addition extends to the ubiquitous 'dad bod,' described as a physique typical of the average father, especially one that is not extremely muscular, with an illustration that reads 'Harry rocked a dad bod even before the birth of his first child.'

Other new terms include 'burner dumbphone,' a cellphone that does not include advanced software features such as email or an internet browser typically found on smartphones; and 'farm-to-table,' defined as involving or advocating the direct sale and distribution of food from its point of origin to customers, alongside a tongue-in-cheek variant 'Farm-to-table, shmarm-to-table' that contrasts wholesome sourcing with casual consumer expectations. The update also features 'hard pass,' a firm refusal or rejection of something, such as an offer, with an example line: 'The egg salad’s been in the sun for six hours. That’s a hard pass for me, Suzy.' Beyond these, the dictionary expands as well into what Merriam-Webster terms popular reads—terms that describe social behavior and culture—such as 'love language,' a person’s characteristic means of showing love or care; 'petrichor,' the earthy, usually pleasant odor associated with rainfall after a warm, dry period; 'rizz,' a term for romantic appeal or charm; and 'side-eye,' a sidelong glance or gaze used to convey scorn or veiled curiosity. A computing term closes the list: 'teraflop,' a unit of measure for computer speed equal to one trillion floating-point operations per second.

The breadth of terms—not only slang but also tech and everyday concepts—underscores how the language evolves as audiences move across platforms and demographics. Editors emphasize that the revisions aim to capture usage as it appears in conversation, media, and digital communication, not just in formal writing. The update reflects a broader trend in lexicography toward documenting language in real time, recognizing that words can rise quickly from social media, podcasts and streaming culture into dictionaries used by students, researchers and the general public.

The Merriam-Webster team noted that the Collegiate dictionary update is part of an ongoing effort to reflect language as it is actually used, including terms that originate online, in entertainment, in commerce and in everyday life. By updating definitions and adding new headword entries, the publisher seeks to provide readers with clear guidance on meaning, usage and nuance in a fast-changing linguistic landscape. The project aligns with the publisher’s long-standing mission to track language as it unfolds, rather than waiting for terms to become crystallized in print years after they first appear.

For readers, the refreshed Collegiate dictionary offers a resource that mirrors contemporary speech, including the ways people describe technology, social interaction and cultural phenomena. Journalists, educators and students are among those likely to consult the online edition to verify contemporary usages and to understand how new phrases are being employed in discourse. While some terms may be playful or ephemeral, others are already taking root in professional and academic writing, contributing to a shared understanding of current language norms.

Language experts caution that dictionaries are not arbiters of morality or trendspotters for popularity alone; rather, they document recurring usage across contexts. The 5,000-plus-term expansion illustrates how dictionaries can serve as archives of linguistic shifts tied to technology, media, fashion and everyday life. In an era when a word can travel from a social post to classroom discussion within days, publishers like Merriam-Webster play a crucial role in standardizing spellings, senses and examples that help readers interpret meaning consistently across sources.

As readers explore the updated Collegiate dictionary online, they will encounter entries that reveal how quickly cultural vocabulary can change. From the casual ease of discussing romantic appeal with 'rizz' to the scientific precision of 'teraflop,' the collection demonstrates the spectrum of language in use today. The update does not mark an endpoint but rather a milestone in an ongoing process, inviting users to consider how new expressions reflect shifts in identity, technology and daily life.