I think the American people have isolated a very important issue for our society to be dealing with. The entire list gives us an interesting window that opens up into what people are thinking about in their lives. |
None of these items should have come as a surprise to anyone. |
That was enough of a public health concern to get it in the dictionary right away. Now, one of two things could happen. Either we'll never hear about SARS again, and if so, I've wasted three lines of type in the dictionary. Or it will come back, and everyone will go to the dictionary in a time of need to see how SARS is defined. |
We have editors who spend a part of each day reading magazines and newspapers, looking for evidence of how words are being more commonly used. We're looking for words that show up in the contexts that the average adult might encounter. |