Merriam-Webster Adds ‘Alt-Right’ and ‘Sriracha’ and 250 More Words to its Dictionary

Merriam-Webster has added more than 250 words to its dictionary in the last month, including “alt-right” and “sriracha.” Alt-right is defined by Merriam-Webster as “a right-wing, primarily online political movement or grouping based in the U.S. whose members reject mainstream conservative politics and espouse extremist beliefs and policies typically centered on ideas of white nationalism.”

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Alt-right, which dates from 2009, has drawn criticism from those who believe it is a euphemism for white nationalist ideologies. The Associated Press instructs journalists to avoid the term, “because it is meant as a euphemism to disguise racist aims.”

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Merriam-Webster Associate Editor Emily Brewster said in a news release that lexicographers are responsible for following “the development of language” over the years.

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The addition of the new words comes on the 308th birthday of Samuel Johnson, author of the 1755 “Dictionary of the English Language,” considered one of the most important dictionaries in history.

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