Language is constantly evolving—old words fall out of use while new ones are born and spread like fire. \
Every year, the dictionary must add new words to keep up with our expanding vocabularies, and this year was no exception.
On Twitter, the Merriam-Webster dictionary announced it would be adding 620+ new words to the dictionary for 2019, among them some pretty notable words from internet culture.
Well-known terms like "cryptid" and "bottle episode" will both be given a formalized definition.
But perhaps the most shocking addition to the dictionary was the word "stan."
Other words which became popular online also made the cut:
But "stan" definitely seemed to grab people's attention as an unlikely candidate for a new word.
There were still some people who needed an explanation as to what exactly it meant.
It turns out "Stan" started with the Eminem song, and his name is a portmanteau of "staulker" and "fan."
Eminem - Stan (Short Version) ft. Didowww.youtube.com
There were some people on Twitter who didn't think "stan" deserved to be a new word.
Others, however, were pretty pumped to see the dictionary reflect their actual use of language!
The dictionary will continue to grow and change as we continue to use language differently every day.
We stan a legend: Merriam-Webster!
Jason Howard/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images/GettyImages, @FilmUpdates/X
