Search blog...

How social media is changing language

From unfriend (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/unfriend) to selfie
(http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/selfie), social media is clearly having an
impact on language. As someone who writes about social media Im aware of not only how
fast these online plat f(ohrmttps: /c/whawnwge.o, xbfuotr dadlsioc toiof nhaorwie tsh.ecyo
min/f)luence the language in which BI log
write. (http://b log.ox

The words that surround us every day influence the words we use. Since so much of the
written language we see is now on the screens of our computers, tablets, and smartphones,
language now evolves partly through our interaction with technology. And because the
language we use to communicate with each other tends to be more malleable than formal
writing, the combination of informal, personal communication and the mass audience
afforded by social media is a recipe for rapid change.

From the introduction of new words to new meanings for old words to changes in the way we
communicate, social media is making its presence felt.
New ways of communicating
An alphabet soup of acronyms, abbreviations, and neologisms has grown up around
technologically mediated communication to help us be understood. Im old enough to have
learned the acronyms we now think of as textspeak on the online forums and internet relay
chat (IRC) that predated text messaging. On IRC, acronyms help speed up a realtime
typed conversation. On mobile phones they minimize the inconvenience of typing with tiny
keys. And on Twitter they help you make the most of your 140 characters.
Emoticons such as ) and acronyms such as LOL (laughing out loud which has just
celebrated its 25th birthday) add useful elements of non-verbal communication or annoy
people with their overuse. This extends to playful asterisk-enclosed stage directions
describing supposed physical actions or facial expressions (though use with caution: it turns
out that *innocent face* is no defence in court
(http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2013/may/16/sallybercow-lord-mcalpine-twitter)).

An important element of Twitter syntax is the hashtag a clickable keyword used to

categorize tweets. Hashtags have also spread to other social media platforms and theyve
even reached everyday speech, but hopefully spoofs such as Jimmy Fallon and Justin
Timberlakes sketch on The Tonight Show
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57dzaMaouXA) will dissuade us from using them too
frequently. But you will find hashtags all over popular culture, from greetings cards and
t-shirts to the dialogue of sitcom characters.

Syntax aside, social media has also prompted a more subtle revolution in the way we
communicate. We share more personal information, but also communicate with larger
audiences. Our communication styles consequently become more informal and more open,
and this seeps into other areas of life and culture. When writing on social media, we are also
more succinct, get to the point quicker, operate within the creative constraints of 140
characters on Twitter, or aspire to brevity
(http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/brevity) with blogs.

New words and meanings

Facebook has also done more than most platforms to offer up new meanings for common
words such as friend ,( lhikttep, :s//twatwusw,. owxaflol, rpdadgicet,i oannadr iperso.fcileo.m
O/)ther new meanings which cropB luopg

on social media channels also reflect the dark side of social media: a troll is no longer jus(th attp://b

log.ox character from Norse folklore, but someone who makes offensive or provocative comments
online a sock puppet is no longer solely a puppet made from an old sock, but a self-serving fake online
persona and astroturfing is no longer simply laying a plastic lawn but also a fake online grass-roots
movement.

Social media is making it easier than ever to contribute to the evolution of language. You no
longer have to be published through traditional avenues to bring word trends to the attention
of the masses. While journalists have long provided the earliest known uses of topical terms
everything from 1794s pew-rent in The Times to beatboxing in The Guardian (1987) the
net has been widened by the net. A case in point is Oxford Dictionaries 2013 Word of the
Year, selfie: the earliest use of the word has been traced to an Australian internet forum
(http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/2013/11/word-of-the-year-2013-winner/). With forums,
Twitter, Facebook, and other social media channels offering instant interaction with wide
audiences, its never been easier to help a word gain traction from your armchair.

Keeping current
Some people may feel left behind by all this. If youre a lawyer grappling with the new geek
speak, you may need to use up court time
(http://gawker.com/5609419/4chan-founder-tries-toexplain-b-tard-to-federal-prosecutors) to
have terms such as Rickrolling
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ) explained to you. And yes, some of us
despair at how use of this informal medium can lead to an equally casual attitude to grammar.
But the truth is that social media is great for word nerds. It provides a rich playground for
experimenting with, developing, and subverting language.

It can also be a great way keep up with these changes. Pay attention to discussions in your
social networks and you can spot emerging new words, new uses of words and maybe even
coin one yourself.

The opinions and other information contained in OxfordWords blog posts and comments do not
necessarily reflect the opinions or positions of Oxford University Press.

Search blog...

Guest blogger
 Jon Reed (ht
(thptt:p/:///wbwlwo.ogx.fooxrdfdoicrtidondaircietsi.oconma/)ries.com/author
/joBnlog (http://b log.ox reed/)
Jon Reed is a screenwriter (http://www.curtisbrown.co.uk/client/jon-reed), author and
social media consultant (http://www.reedmedia.eu/). He wrote Get Up to Speed with
Online Marketing (http://www.getuptospeed.biz/) and runs the blog Publishing Talk
(http://www.publishingtalk.eu/). Follow him on Twitter at @jonreed
(https://twitter.com/jonreed).

Published
18 June 2014

Category
English in use (http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/category/english-in-use/)

Tags
Facebook (http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/tag/facebook/), selfie
(http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/tag/selfie/), social media
(http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/tag/social-media/), twitter
(http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/tag/twitter/), unfriend
(http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/tag/unfriend/)

5 Comments

Like 750 Tweet

FURTHER READING

A smorgasbord of fusion words for the Twitterati

 (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/) Blog
(http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/2014/02/facebook-official-language/) (http://b log.ox

(http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/2011/04/fusion-words-for-the-twitterati/)

What happens when language becomes Facebook official?

Facebook: a language

(http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/2013/05/facebook/)
COMMENTS

It's funny that how I was thinking about this topic these days, because you said
"but also of how they influence the language in which I write". Well, it changed,
of course, the language that I write and speak, too. I speak portuguese, from
Brazil and the influence of Facebook is huge. In english you have "Like", in
portuguese (BR) we have the word "curtir". In the beggining of FB, we had
"curtir(desfazer)", after that, Facebook started using the word "descurtir", is
kinda "unlike" for you, but this word "descurtir" doesn't exist in brazilian
vocabulary, it's a neologism created by Facebook, changing our way of writing
and speaking. That's one more influence by social media. In different countries.
With different languages.
1 Reply Share

Wilson R 3 months ago

Social media has evolved the english language. By changing the meanings of
words, an (dh sttlpa:n/g/w, wchwa.nogxefodr dthdeic ntioornmaarli ewsh.cyo amve/)rage
american uses proper Blog
grammar. By evolving the english language allowed for faster communication(,http://b
log.ox
therefore the evolved english language is for the better. The future is in our
hands. We are making it for the better if mankind.

Changing the meaning of words has allowed for the american people using
social media to have a wider option of words to use. With the a bigger option
allowed for more variety. With more variety there is less copied work. We
changed the words clue which one ment a ball of yarn now means a piece of
evidence used in a crime. Naughty: Long ago, if you were naughty, you had
naught or nothing Then it came to mean evil or immoral, and now you are just
badly behaved.(ted) Theses words once meant completely different things but
recently social media has changed theses words for the better. Social media
has changed the meanings of many words. Slang has changed due to social
media causing for communication to change.17,000 slang words(slang
dictionary) Slang changed communication by making it easier for humans to
 understand each other. When slang is used humans of different regions will
understand you

see more

Rep ly Share

Ayoub Idrissi Ouali 3 months ago

yeh i mean as consumers of social media , everyday i mean the normal

language that we use change so fast in our personnal conversation .. i mean
like language that we use change so fast in our personnal conversation .. i
mean like im gonna say how are you my friend .. and actually we write it : h r u
buddy !! it is a huge changement
Reply Share

jenny biel 6 months ago

great,thanks for sharing!
Reply Share

Depixion 7 months ago

Social media is one of the largest contributors towards an influence on our

language. Mainly because those that use it are in a rush or are limited to the
number of characters that can be used.
Reply Share

Marieke a year ago

I also think that social media has a big influence on our language but I don't
think it's always positive. It can also be negative I think because on social
media we use words that don't exist.
Reply Share

ejoty 2 years ago

"Social media is making it easier". Hmm. Are they really?

Reply Share

ALSO ON OXFORD DICTIONARIES BLOG

Upstander, Turtle Island, and tink: an American vs British pronunciation: 7

Oxford Dictionar (iehstt pu:p//wdawtwe.oxforddictionarwieosr.cdosm to/) watch out forBlog
2 comments 25 days ago 14 comments 2 months ago (http://b log.ox
Avat Sarah Jean Waldock Slack line Avat Quant Mobile... Mob-eye-all....mobwalking
is not a few decades old, sorry all but that's wrong. It probably predates tight rope
walking and as
 Latinx and Mx: the X factor The awkward language of David
3 comments a month ago Brent and The Office
Avat Yo Yo! In the plural, we've long had 4 comments 24 days ago the option to call

Latin-Americans Avat AF David Brent is, a.k.a., my hero. "Latins", tho' I've heard
it but rarely. But vis-a-vis his blue sky thinking isn't However, I've not heard "a Latin"
really blue, more a shade of bluepink.....less blue, more pink.
Subscribe d Add Disqus to your site Add Disqus Add Privacy

Contact us (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/words/contact-us)

Privacy policy & legal notice (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/words/privacy-policy-and-legal-notice)

Browse (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/browse/) Help (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/words/help)

About (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/words/about)

Copyright Oxford University Press 2016 RSS Feed (http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/feed)

(http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/) Blog
(http://b log.ox