Popular Words Added To The Dictionary The Year You Were Born

New words get added to the dictionary every year. As more and more ideas, culture references, and words get invented, they also get added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary. Can you guess some of the words that came out the year you were born? Now you don't have to guess. Merriam-Webster's website came out with a "Time Traveler" tool where you can look back and find out what words were recorded on certain years. Here are some words that were first recorded during the 1950s to 1970s. Which of these words do you remember being added? 1951 Wikimedia Commons 3-D, animal control, banana clip, birth control pill, cable television, fast-food, Hotel, Kegel exercises, nit-picking, water gun, and zero gravity. 1952 Flickr Automate, bad seed, capri pants, dust bunny, global warming, Hawaiian shirt, nonjudgmental, silent auction, stress fracture, and Whiskey. 1953 via GIPHY Audiobook, declaw, digitize, fish stick, klepto, Medicare, off-Broadway, overqualified, stiletto heel, sunblock, talent show, toasty, and wax museum. 1954 Flickr Baby back ribs, brushfire, cha-cha, deli, fight song, junk mail, never mind, New York minute, rock and roll, security blanket, time warp, TV dinner, and unflappable. 1955 Flickr Aerospace, booster seat, box cutter, counterintuitive, DIY, empty calories, kegger, majorly, panini, red panda, skydiving, speakerphone, split end, veggie, and zinger. 1956 via GIPHY Angry young man, caring, country rock, decaf, hangry, kitten heel, margarita, psychedelic, snooze button, stretch marks, and throw pillow. 1957 Public Domain Pictures Bone spur, clip art, clown fish, doggie bag, fab, ghosting, leaf blower, pothead, scum bag, smiley face, warts-and-all, and Zen-like. 1958 Wikimedia Commons Acetaminophen, bigfoot, cross-train, frozen yogurt, game show, glitch, laundry list, minibus, nonstick, onboard, Spanglish, and think tank. 1959 via GIPHY Amuse-bouche, brown bagging, cloud nine, counterproductive, double-digit, happy hour, hip-huggers, hump day, mono, nutjob, sing-along, and zonked. Read on to the NEXT page for the 1960s and beyond! 1960 Wikimedia Commons AAA battery, arcade game, arugula, catsuit, dial-up, health spa, junk food, lab coat, mayo, mini, ob-gyn, reality check, theme park, and valet parking. 1961 via GIPHY AA battery, after-party, bionic, Black Friday, computer science, dress code, health club, holidays, mic, potbellied pig, solar panel, toaster oven, and wazoo. 1962 Wikimedia Commons Antianxiety, bananas Foster, care package, carpool, coffee-table, fender bender, key club, kissing disease, log on, Oval office, salsa, trendy, and win-win. 1963 via GIPHY Baby boomer, bodysuit, call-waiting, disco, elevator music, hit man, hotdog, mind game, one-up, sicko, space walk, telemarketing, and zip code. 1964 Wikimedia Commons Black hole, carryout, condo, dweeb, endangered, garage sale, identity theft, ninja, pantsuit, skinny-dip, soul food, talking head, training wheels, and worst-case. 1965 via GIPHY Alley-oop, beta-blocker, convenience store, doo-wop, game face, hippie, hone in, jet lag, lava lamp, midlife crisis, petting zoo, sleepover, stoked, and wiggle room. 1966 Max Pixel Blow-dry, bunny slope, crash course, druggie, foosball, grinch, knockoff, lovebug, mountain bike, paralegal, ranch dressing, ski mask, upscale, and zit. 1967 via GIPHY Aerobics, dirtbag, dork, fanny pack, flower child, hissy fit, ick, loogie, networking, primary care, water pill, wet bar, and yada yada. Read on to the NEXT page for even more! 1968 via GIPHY Band-Aid, car seat, cash bar, clunky, drive-by, Fu Manchu mustache, limo, noogie, peace sign, penny loafer, sick day, tough love, and word processor. 1969 via GIPHY Anchorwoman, bubblegum, dust mite, ew, ho-hum, life coach, microchip, rip-off, roadie, telephone tag, videography, and zapper. 1970 via GIPHY Bad hair day, beeper, comfort food, control freak, dirt bike, granola, hot pants, love handles, newbie, punk rock, shower gel, top dollar, and zip line. Keep in mind that this list simply means the first time the words were recorded. They may have been used for many years before that. They might have been spoken before they were added to the written language. Still very interesting! What is your favorite word on this list? Were you surprised by any words that came out the year you were born or during your childhood? For even more words for each year or to find a different year, click here for the Time Traveler tool. If you are curious about how words get added to the dictionary, check out the video below. If you enjoyed this article, please SHARE with your friends so they can find out what words were added to the dictionary the year they were born!

The Most Popular Words Added To The Dictionary The Year You Were Born

by Lauren Novak
Published October 31, 2018

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