Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Say It With Me...

w00t.

If I'm not hip enough for an iPod, I'm surely not hip enough to use the word "w00t" in general conversation, or even blog entries. Am I?

I better get with the program, though. Because Merriam-Webster...yes, the dictionary people of dictionary people...has named "w00t" its Word of the Year 2007. A funny little word with two zeroes for o's...and why? Wh0 kn0ws? (actually, it's a common practice in computer hacker language. I just learned that tonight, and if you clicked on the link, so did you.)

w00t (interjection)

expressing joy (it could be after a triumph, or for no reason at all);
similar in use to the word "yay."

Love that definition. "...for no reason at all." So you're well within your rights to go around saying, "w00t! w00t! w00t! w00t!" all day. But that'd be quite a bit of joy to express.

The word hasn't found its way into the print edition of Merriam-Webster yet, but if words like "McJob" are in there, "w00t" probably isn't far behind. (I have a feeling that "McJob" has the McDonald's people pretty McPissed.)


If this guy is hip enough to say things like, "w00t!", I think I might stick with "yay."










"If your strength is small,
don't carry heavy burdens.
If your words are worthless,
don't give advice."
—Chinese Proverb

3 comments:

  1. Your post reminds me that I need to do more things for no reason at all.

    Probably the secret to true happiness.

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  2. W00t made it in? W00t, w00t!

    I once worked with a boss who typed the number one for the letter "l". In some fonts, it just didn't work. She said she learned to type on a typewriter that didn't have the letter L. I have vague recollections that she used zero for the letter "O" as well. She was a bit inflexible using the modern keyboard, but she was a
    w00ter before her time.

    ReplyDelete
  3. By the way, I like how you put quotes at the end of your posts. Fantastic stuff.

    ReplyDelete