Simples, whatevs and Jedi added to Oxford English Dictionary

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Aleksandr from Compare the Market adverts and Star Wars character YodaImage source, BGL Group/Getty Images
Image caption,

Simples is associated with the Compare the Market ads while Jedi is from Star Wars

Whatevs, simples, chillax, sumfin and Jafaican have been added to the Oxford English Dictionary.

They are among 203 new words which appear in the dictionary for the very first time.

Other words which are part of the October 2019 update include Jedi, nomophobia and easy-breezy.

The letter 'O' has also been added and is defined as being "used to symbolise a hug especially at the end of a letter or greetings card".

An easy-breezy list

Here are just some of the words that have been added to the latest update:

  • chewy, n.: Chewing gum; a piece of chewing gum.

  • chillax, v.: intransitive. To calm down and relax; to take it easy, to chill (see chill v. additions 4). Often in imperative: 'relax', 'calm down'.

  • cryptocurrency, n.: An informal, substitute currency. rare.

  • easy-breezy, adj.: Esp. of clothing, style, etc.: informal, casual; relaxed, carefree.

  • Jafaican, n. and adj.: A non-Jamaican person who adopts or identifies with aspects of Jamaican culture, esp. in a way regarded as contrived or inauthentic. Usually…

  • Jedi, n.: In the fictional universe of the Star Wars films: a member of an order of heroic, skilled warrior monks who are able to harness the mystical power of…

  • kapow, int.: Representing the sound of an explosion, a gunshot, a hard punch or blow, etc. Also in extended use, conveying the suddenness or powerful effect of an…

  • lightsabre, n.: In the fictional universe of the Star Wars films: a weapon resembling a sword, but having a destructive beam of light in place of a blade. Also: a…

  • nomophobia, n.2: Anxiety about not having access to a mobile phone or mobile phone services.

  • o, n.5: Used to symbolise a hug, esp. at the end of a letter, greetings card, or the like. Only in combination with x (see X n. 6), as in xox, xoxo, etc.

  • omnishambles, n.: Chiefly in political contexts: a situation that has been comprehensively mismanaged, or is characterized by a series of blunders and miscalculations…

  • simples, int.: Used (usually immediately after a statement giving a solution to a problem) to indicate that something is very simple or straightforward to do…

  • sumfin, n. and adv.: = something, n. (in various senses).

  • summum malum, n.: The greatest or supreme evil; that which is most reprehensible, harmful, or undesirable. Cf. summum bonum n.

  • whatevs, int. and pron.: Used (typically in response to a question or statement) to indicate that the speaker is disinclined to engage with, or is indifferent to, the matter...

The full list is available, external on the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) website.

The OED is updated four times a year with the next update due in January 2020.

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