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Merriam-Webster chose "they" as its 2019 Word of the Year based on the number of dictionary lookups, and the singular "they" was added to its online dictionary
by blindmute 5y ago
Merriam-Webster chose "they" as its 2019 Word of the Year based on the number of dictionary lookups, and the singular "they" was added to its online dictionary in September.
In other words, the dictionary added it 3 years ago due to political pressure. It's never been correct English, and it still isn't.
- woodruffw 5y ago“Correct” English is a very silly thing to get hung up on. I’ll repeat myself: if it’s correct enough for Dickens and Shakespeare, the two of us can probably suffer it. (I’ve also never heard any English dictionary make a claim of linguistic completeness, so “it’s not in Merriam-Webster” doesn’t strike me as an important standard.)
- at_a_remove 5y agoIt isn't an important standard for really obscure words. However, if Merriam-Webster forgot something like "him," you would look askance. We both know this. Why pretend?