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Article: Let them eat nutri-cake: Merriam-Webster thinks our 'biosolids' don't stink. (how the word biosolid became a dictionary term)
- Article from:
- Harper's Magazine
- Article date:
- November 1, 1998
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1998 Harper's Magazine Foundation. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Merriam-Webster thinks our "biosolid" don't stink
How do words make it into the dictionary? According to the preface to the 1998 edition of Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, in which this definition of "biosolid" appears, editors read newspapers, books, and magazines in a continuous search for new words, spellings, and meanings. When a new word has appeared in a number of publications, over a sufficient period of time, a "definer" then makes a judgment as to whether the word warrants inclusion. Dictionary editors try to write definitions that reflect what a word means as it is actually used, says the preface, "rather than what the definer or someone else ...