Can a word be taken out of the dictionary? - FactzPedia

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Can a word be taken out of the dictionary?

 

Can a word be taken out of the dictionary?



It is very uncommon for a word to be removed from the dictionary.

Oxford English dictionaries claim that they have never removed a word from their dictionaries.

Instead, if a word has become outdated or the meaning has developed or changed the word will be labeled as obsolete.

The concept of the dictionary is to be a record of all words that have ever existed in the language it is documenting.

For example, if you are reading a book from 1920 and there is a word you don’t recognize, you can use the dictionary to find out.

Whether it's the Oxford English Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Dictionary, American Heritage Dictionary — or an exclusively digital version such as Dictionary.com — each type of dictionary has its own process for removing words and this information isn't always publicly available. While some dictionaries don't share the decision-making tree for word removal, the American Heritage Dictionary removes words created before the year 1755 that are only sporadically used in modern life.

When lexicographers remove a word from the dictionary, it doesn't mean that word ceases to exist. It also means that we, collectively, have the power to influence which words stay. If you'd like to return "skedaddle" to popular usage, then you'd better get to it — fast.

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