托福听力短文 II-09-3

(MA) We've probably all wondered how a new word gets into the dictionary. Take the word "doofus," for example, spelled d-o-o-f-u-s, meaning a stupid or incompetent¹ person. This word, which has been around since the late 1960's in a slang² sense, made it into the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary only in 1993.

Why did it take so long? Well, first of all, dictionary editors like to wait at least three years to be sure a word is going to last, especially a slang word. They don't want to put in a new word prematurely³ and then have to take it out in the next edition.

But even for words that aren't slang, getting into the dictionary isn't easy. New words have to pass a lot of editorial⁴ tests, including how difficult or easy they are to look up. There's also a limit to how thick a dictionary can be or how small its type can get before people feel they don't want to use it. Some words have to come out before others can go in. The Collegiate Dictionary adds about ten thousand words to every edition, but it takes out only a few hundred, so choices have to be made very carefully.

1 incompetent   

adj.无能力的，不能胜任的

参考例句：

• He is utterly incompetent at his job.他完全不能胜任他的工作。
• He is incompetent at working with his hands.他动手能力不行。

2 slang   

n.俚语，行话；vt.使用俚语，辱骂；vi.辱骂

参考例句：

• The phrase is labelled as slang in the dictionary.这个短语在这本字典里被注为俚语。
• Slang often goes in and out of fashion quickly.俚语往往很快风行起来又很快不再风行了。

3 prematurely   

adv.过早地，贸然地

参考例句：

• She was born prematurely with poorly developed lungs. 她早产，肺部未发育健全。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• His hair was prematurely white, but his busy eyebrows were still jet-black. 他的头发已经白了，不过两道浓眉还是乌黑乌黑的。 来自辞典例句

4 editorial   

adj.编者的，社论的；n.（报刊的）社论，重要评论

参考例句：

• For a full hour they argued over the wording of the editorial.他们为社论的措辞争论了一个小时。
• We now bring you the full text of the Renmin Ribao editorial.现在全文广播《人民日报》社论。