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■在2010年，vuvuzela (巫巫茲拉) 因南非世界盃而聞名。資料圖片
If you don't know WOTY, please learn it now - it's the short form for 'word of the year'. Every year, some organisations, newspapers or magazines will choose their own WOTY - or WOTYs, and the most authoritative is perhaps the language experts at the Oxford University Press(OUP). What's the purpose of such WOTY(s)? It can indicate what has been going on in the past year. So, what's OUP's WOTY for 2010? It's: refudiate.
Never heard of it? Well, it's not a common word. Actually, it's a blend of 'refute' and 'repudiate'. To refute is to say that something is wrong or unfair, and to repudiate is to refuse to accept something, and to publicly say that it's wrong. So, to 'refudiate' is to suggest a general sense of 'reject'. This rare word is made famous by Sarah Palin, the American female politician who was chosen in 2008 by the Republican presidential candidate John McCain to be his running mate.
Though 'repudiate' is now so world-famous, it's not a proper word yet, so it's better not to use it - except in a humorous way. In fact, it's not yet included in the Oxford dictionaries.
Besides 'refudiate', there are other words that make into the short list. Here are some of them and their meanings:
Bankster: (noun) a member of the banking industry perceived as a predator that grows rich at the expense of those suffering in a crumbling(= collapsing) economy; blend of 'banker' and 'gangster'.
Crowdsourcing: (noun) the practice whereby an organization enlists a variety of freelancers, paid or unpaid, to work on a specific task or problem; the word is on the pattern of 'outsourcing'.
Double-dip: (adjective) denoting or relating to a recession during which a period of economic decline is followed by a brief period of growth, followed by a further period of decline.
Nom nom: (exclamation) an expression of delight when eating.
Retweet: (verb) (on the social networking service Twitter) repost or forward (a message posted by another user); (noun) a reposted or forwarded message on Twitter.
Tea Party: (noun) a US political party that emerged from a movement of conservatives protesting the federal government in 2009.
Top kill: (noun) a procedure designed to seal a leaking oil well, whereby large amounts of a material heavier than the oil - e.g., mud - are pumped into the affected well.
Vuvuzela: (noun) a long horn blown by fans at soccer matches, also called 'vuvu'.
Webisode: (noun) 1. an original episode derived from a television series, made for online viewing; 2. an online video that presents an original short film or promotes a product, movie, or television series; blend of 'Web' and 'episode'.
Study these words carefully, and you already know much about last year.
Questions:
The following three words appear above. Explain their meaning:
1. Predator.
2. Gangster.
3. Outsourcing.
Answers:
1. An animal that kills and eats weaker animals; a person or organisation that bullies and takes advantage of weaker ones.
2. A member of a gang; a member of a group of violent criminals.
3. The practice of arranging for some people or firm outside a company to do work or provide goods for that company. ■MT Ness
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