特朗普的語言技巧可能受人質疑,但這位美國總統(tǒng)的常用語已對英語造成了影響,這在最新增補的牛津在線詞典中可見一斑。牛津在線詞典是流行英語的參考指南。
New coinages that reflect the latest wave of online political activism form a significant section of more than 300 new definitions in the database, which is a sister work to the Oxford English Dictionary.
反映最新一波網絡政治活動的新詞已在這個數(shù)據庫中組成了300多個新詞條。牛津在線詞典是《牛津英語大詞典》的姐妹版。
Additions including "clicktivism" (a pejorative word for armchair activists on social media), "haterade" (excessive negativity, criticism, or resentment), "otherize" (view or treat – a person or group of people – as intrinsically different from and alien to oneself) and "herd mentality" (the tendency for people's behaviour or beliefs to conform to those of the group to which they belong) all emerged during the 2016 battle for the White House, said head of content development Angus Stevenson.
牛津在線詞典內容開發(fā)負責人安格斯•史蒂文森說,新增詞匯包括"clicktivism"(網絡點擊行動主義)、"haterade"(極端仇恨)、"otherize"(異己)和"herd mentality"(羊群心態(tài)),它們都曾出現(xiàn)在2016年的白宮選戰(zhàn)中。
"We are getting a convergence of high-level politics and online language in quite a new way," Stevenson said. "We had all the words around Brexit in the last update and we are now starting to see all the words around Trump coming into the dictionary."
史蒂文森說:"我們以新的形式將高級政治和網絡用語結合。在上一次更新詞典數(shù)據庫時,我們吸收了所有與英國脫歐有關的詞語。現(xiàn)在,我們正在將與特朗普有關的詞語收錄到在線詞典中。"
Stevenson said that new terms from Trump, his supporters and opponents were emerging more rapidly than in the past. "We have lots to add all the time. We don't have 'fake news' or 'alternative fact' this time, because they have just started gaining currency, but I am sure they will be in the next update," he added.
史蒂文森說,來自特朗普及其支持者與反對者的這些新詞的出現(xiàn)速度比以往任何時候都快。他還補充說:"我們總是有很多詞語要添加。這一次,我們沒有收錄'fake news'(假消息)及'alternative fact'(另類事實),因為它們剛開始流傳,但我可以確定的是下次更新詞典時,它們將被收入。"
As well as political terms, public conversations about diet, fitness and gender were a strong influence on the words included in the latest update. "Superfruit", a nutrient-rich fruit considered to be especially beneficial for health and wellbeing; HIIT, the acronym for high-intensity interval training; and "third gender", a category of people who do not identify simply as male or female, all made it into the online database.
與政治詞匯一樣,人們關于飲食、健康和性別的交談也對這次的詞匯更新造成了很大的影響。"Superfruit"(超級水果),指的是一種富含營養(yǎng)的水果,對身體健康非常有益;"HIIT",是"high-intensity interval training"(高強度間隔訓練)的首字母縮寫;"third gender"(第三性別),指的是那種無法被簡單判定為男性或女性的群體。這些詞語都被納入了在線數(shù)據庫中。
Social media were the source for many of the new coinages, though most were the kind of compounds that would have language purists clutching their pearls. "Craptacular" (remarkably poor and disappointing), "bronde" (hair dyed both blond and brunette) and "fitspiration" (a person or thing that serves as motivation for someone to sustain or improve health and fitness) all made the cut.
社交媒體是許多新鮮詞匯的來源,盡管其中的大多數(shù)詞語都是復合詞,這些復合詞會讓語言純粹主義者大驚失色。"Craptacular"(意思是特別的窮困和沮喪)、"bronde"(指的是被染成金色和淺黑色的頭發(fā))以及"fitspiration"(指的是一個人或一種物品,用來作為維持或提升某人健康的動力)都達標了。
Stevenson said the need for brevity on Twitter was not responsible for rising numbers of compound words, but it had widened the pool of those inventing new terms. "People feel much freer to coin their own words these days," he said, advising anyone who wished to make a permanent dent in the English language to make sure that their word sounded attractive. Citing the word "vlog", he said ugly-sounding words tended not to gain very wide currency. He added: "They have to have a euphonious sound."
史蒂文森說,推特對詞匯簡潔性的要求并不是復合詞數(shù)量的增加的原因,但這的確為創(chuàng)造新詞匯的人們拓寬了道路。"如今,人們可以更自由地創(chuàng)造詞語,"他說,他建議那些想要在英語詞匯上留下永久印記的人們務必要確保他們所創(chuàng)造的新詞發(fā)音好聽。他引用"vlog"這個詞,然后說發(fā)音很難聽的詞一般都不會被大家廣泛使用。他補充說:"這些詞語得有一個悅耳的讀音。"