Hello, everyone. I’m Chris.
This lesson is about some brand spanking new vocabulary for you.
Every so often the Oxford Dictionary do an update
with new words which people are saying on the streets of Britain
so to speak and they’ve done that again recently.
The BBC have written a short article to explain some of the new words
and I’d like to read this for you.
So it’s a chance to learn some new vocabulary
and to practise some reading.
Please enable captions (or subtitles)
on Youtube or Facebook, wherever you’re watching this,
so that you can read along if you want to.
The title of the article is:
“Oxford English Dictionary updates include budgie smugglers”
And the link is:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-36723193
You can click on it in the description on the Youtube page to this lesson.
Let’s get started then with this article.
Budgie smugglers, glamping and listicles are some of the more eye-catching new entries
to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED).
The latest update also includes the likes of "bovver", made famous by comedian Catherine
Tate.
A number of internet slang acronyms such as FWIW and ICYMI have also made the new list.
They are some of the more than 1,000 new words and senses, and nearly 2,000 fully revised
or expanded entries.
"Budgie smugglers" is an Australian term used since the 1990s that refers to a pair of tight
men's swimming trunks.
"Glamping" is a shortened form of the phrase "glamorous camping", used to describe a camping
with luxuries and accommodation more associated with hotel stays.
"Listicles" are a recent invention of the internet age, describing online newspaper
or magazine articles presented in the form of a list.
In the latest update, the OED acknowledges the "inescapable factor of modern life is
our increasing reliance on computers and digital communications".
It has included acronyms such as FWIW, short for "for what it's worth", and ICYMI, "in
case you missed it", which are used frequently on social media and in text messaging.
"Bovver" makes the list thanks to Catherine Tate's teenage character Lauren's much-repeated
catchphrase "Am I bovvered?".
"Dudettes", meanwhile, has been in use since 1883, five years after the more commonly used
male equivalent "dude" came into use.
The next update to the OED is due in September.
That was a reading of a recent BBC article
which describes the latest updates to the Oxford English Dictionary.
I hope you found that useful,
thanks very much for your time.
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Take care.