LONDON – At least someone is excited about "meh."
The expression of indifference or boredom has gained a place in the Collins English Dictionary after generating a surprising amount of enthusiasm among lexicographers.
Publisher HarperCollins
announced Monday the word had been chosen from terms suggested by the
public for inclusion in the dictionary's 30th anniversary edition, to
be published next year.
The origins of "meh" are murky, but the term grew in popularity after being used in a 2001 episode of "The Simpsons" in which Homer suggests a day trip to his children Bart and Lisa.
"They both just reply 'meh' and keep watching TV," said Cormac McKeown, head of content at Collins Dictionaries.
The
dictionary defines "meh" as an expression of indifference or boredom,
or an adjective meaning mediocre or boring. Examples given by the
dictionary include "the Canadian election was so meh."
The dictionary's compilers said the word originated in North America, spread through the Internet and was now entering British spoken English.
"This
is a new interjection from the U.S. that seems to have inveigled its
way into common speech over here," McKeown said. "Internet forums and
e-mail are playing a big part in formalizing the spellings of vocal
interjections like these. A couple of other examples would be 'hmm' and
'heh.'
"Meh" was selected by Collins
after it asked people to submit words they use in conversation that are
not in the dictionary. Other suggestions included jargonaut, a fan of
jargon; frenemy, an enemy disguised as a friend; and huggles, a hybrid
of hugs and snuggles.
Home 
