New words

[therealdrhyde]

I just found my second real word that's not in the OED 2nd edition. Yay!

The first one I found was some time ago - hardbody, which appears in print in "American Psycho". The second is prannet, which as well as being in Ian Dury's most excellent little ditty "Billericay Dickie" also appears in Alan Moore's "V for Vendetta".

Comments

[rickbooth]

So are you defining a real word as "one that appears in print, not by accident" or similar? I'm not at all convinced that that's tenable.

[therealdrhyde]

That's all the criteria needed for an OED entry. I suppose that doesn't suffice to make it a real word, but it's good enough for livejournal.

[rickbooth]

Interesting. How does this cope with, for example, Feersum Endjinn?

[therealdrhyde]

I'm not an OED editor, but I'd guess that they'd go "this author is being silly" and ignore the work.

[therealdrhyde]

"Prannet" is now listed in the online OED and so will be in the 3rd edition. Hurrah!

[rickbooth]

Excellent - were you involved in this process at all?

Very fine extended-reply-time thing going here too :).

[therealdrhyde]

I told them about it, but last I heard was from some Beard there saying "thanks, we'll take a look" umpty years ago.