Before you read: some questions to help you think about the topic and the words you might need.
Do you know any new English (or words in your language) that are new or have become popular?
How do you think new words begin?
New words are continuously being added to the English language. Some of these words are slang words that are used by small groups such as surfers who use words like ‘gnarly’ to mean difficult or cool to some people. Words that you don’t usually need to know for an English test, but would be useful if you want to ‘hang with’ some types or groups of people.
2012 has been an interesting year for words. New words were added to dictionaries, some came from being used by large crowds of people. Many of us thought it was very interesting when we heard words such as ‘tweeps’, ‘Lolz’ and various online terms become common in our vocabulary.
Collins Dictionary has released its “12 words of 2012″ list and among the words that made it is “zuckered”. The word began in May when Facebook offered the public an opportunity to buy shares and its share price plummeted almost immediately after its Initial Public Offering (IPO). From this failure began the word “zuckered,” named after Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.
Another popular word around the Internet and to find its way to this list is “Gangnam Style” ― this is not really surprising. The South Korean music sensation PSY is on every popular list this year it seems. The catchy song became the most viewed video on YouTube in November with close to a billion views. It has since birthed many fun and humorous copies in countries around the world.
But before these words can become part of the English language they have to stand the test of time. That means that they need to be used by enough people over a long time and become commonly used.
Guessing meaning from context (the words around that word or phrase).
Try to guess the meaning of the words in bold and match them with their closest meaning from the choices in the right. The answers are below the table.
|
hang with’ |
A |
1 |
To completely fall quickly |
|
plummeted |
B |
2 |
Very popular, very popular, exciting |
|
Initial Public Offering |
C |
3 |
To be able to continue/persist over a long period |
|
find its way |
D |
4 |
Popular, easy to remember |
|
sensation |
E |
5 |
When a company first offers parts/shares of its company for the public to buy. A company changes from being a private to a public company |
|
catchy |
F |
6 |
To begin, the beginning of something new |
|
birthed |
G |
7 |
Spend time doing things with another person or thing |
|
stand the test of time |
H |
8 |
To discover how to get somewhere, to know how to achieve something |
A=7, B=1, C=5, D=8, E=2, F=4, G=6, H=3
Some example sentences using the new words to help you to better understand their meaning.
1. Korean students feel more comfortable in a new country when they have friends to hang with.
2. In 2008 almost every stock plummeted because of the financial crisis
3. When a company’s value reaches a special value it is allowed to raise more money on the KOSPI (or other stock exchange) by offering an IPO (Initial Public Offering).
4. After I got into university I still wasn't sure what I wanted to do for a career, but after two years I was able to find my way and entered law school.
5. Smartphones created a sensation when they were first released.
6. Hello Kitty is an example of an animation character that was catchy amongst animation character fans over the past ten years.
7. Many new companies have been birthed because of the Internet.
8. Many new companies fail in the first year, but those that stand the test of time are those that can grow and continue for 5 years.
Some discussion questions using the new words to help you better understand the word meaning and how to use them correctly. Try to use the words in your answer.
1. What special words do you use when you hang with your friends/coworkers?
2. Do you know why Facebook’s stock plummeted? Can you guess why?
3. What company would you like to have bought shares in if they were to offer an IPO today? Why?
4. What words have found their way into common usage in your language? What groups of people use them?
5. Why do you think Psy has become such a world sensation?
6. What do you think makes Psy’s song so catchy? What are music acts or entertainment have some catchy words or tunes?
7. What new products do you think will be birthed in the future?
8. What products/ideas have stood the test of time to become very popular?
ECK Education
