韦氏词典2017年度词汇：Feminism(女性主义)
编辑:给力英语新闻 更新:2017年12月13日 作者:美国之音英语学习
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'Feminism' Is Merriam-Webster 'Word of the Year'
Covfefe, dotard, rocket man, moron, recuse, collusion, complicit, and #MeToo are among the words and phrases that dominated the news in 2017.
So many new words became popular that the publishers of “Words with Friends” added 50,000 terms to the game.
Yet a winning word stands out. One popular dictionary publisher says people looked up one word more than any other in 2017. Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Year is “feminism.”
Searches for “feminism” increased 70 percent from 2016 to 2017 on Merriam-Webster.com. It rose several times after key news events.
In January, for example, discussions about the Women’s March on Washington and other locations sent many people to look up “feminism.”
Interest in the word increased with the release of the new television series “The Handmaid’s Tale” and the film “Wonder Woman.”
More recently, sexual assault accusations against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein inspired the #MeToo movement. Since then, many women have come forward to accuse rich and famous men in media, politics and entertainment.
The word “feminism” was first entered in a dictionary by Noah Webster in 1841. It was defined then as “the qualities of females.”
Peter Sokolowski is an editor at Merriam-Webster. He told the Associated Press that “the word was used in the 19th century in a medical sense, for the physical characteristics of a developing teenager.”
Today, Merriam-Webster defines feminism as the “theory of the political, economic and social equality of the sexes” and “organized activities on behalf of women’s rights and interests.”
So, what are the runners-up for the Word of the Year?
“Complicit” was also a top search in 2017. Interest in the word came after a satire video from the television program “Saturday Night Live.” Complicit is Dictionary.com's word of the year.
Searches for “recuse” rose in reference to Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the Donald Trump-Russia investigation.
“Empathy” did not make any news this year. But the word was frequently used to criticize some Republicans for what some called a lack of empathy in comments or proposed legislation.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un used the word “dotard” to describe U.S. President Donald Trump, who had called Kim “rocket man.”
People searched for “syzygy” on the day of the total eclipse on August 21. It means the nearly straight-line configuration of three celestial bodies in a gravitational system, such as the sun, moon and earth, during a solar or lunar eclipse.
In March, “gyro” became a top search after television host Jimmy Fallon and singer Luke Bryan ordered the Greek food from a truck in a music video.
The debate on healthcare in the United States Congress sent people to look up “federalism.”
With hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Jose and Maria causing damage in southestern U.S. and the Caribbean, people looked up hurricane to get more information.
And finally, after the 2017 Academy Awards many people wanted to know more about the word “gaffe,” which means a socially awkward mistake. Announcers wrongly said that “La La Land” had won Best Picture. The real Oscar winner was “Moonlight.”
And that's What's Trending Today.
Hai Do wrote this story for Learning English based on Merriam-Webster. Kelly Jean Kelly was the editor.
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Words in This Story
feminism - n. the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities
complicit - adj. helping to commit a crime or do wrong in some way
recuse - v. remove oneself from a case because of a possible conflict of interest
empathy - adj. the ability to understand and share another person's experiences and emotions
dotard - n. an old person, especially someone who has become weak or senile
syzygy - n. the nearly straight-line configuration of three celestial bodies in a gravitational system, such as the sun, moon and earth, during a solar or lunar eclipse.
gyro - n. a Greek food that consists of a pita wrapped around a filling of lamb, onion, tomato and yogurt sauce
federalism - n. is a system of government in which the states (or provinces) share power with the national government
hurricane - n. an extremely large, powerful, and destructive storm with very strong winds
gaffe - n. a mistake made in public or a social situation
12月12日，美国《韦氏词典》宣布，“女权主义”（feminism）被评为2017年度词汇。
韦氏特约编辑皮特·索科洛夫斯基当天在一份声明中说，没有任何一个词汇能够囊括2017一整年的新闻、事件和故事。不过，综合分析被搜索频率显著高于去年的词汇以及全年搜索量激增的情况，“女权主义”一词脱颖而出。
索科洛夫斯基还说，过去一年，《韦氏词典》在线网站上，“女权主义”一词的搜索量比2016年增长了70％，并在年内多起事件后出现搜索量激增的情况。
这些事件包括年内多个“女权主义”倡议活动，如年初在世界多地举行的“女性大游行”，在社交媒体上以“我也是”为标签控诉遭受性侵或性骚扰的热潮等。
在过去几年，“女权主义”一词一直是每年排前十的年度词汇，除了女权主义（feminism）之外，其它以“ism”结尾的年度热搜词汇还有社会主义（socialism）、法西斯主义（fascism）、种族主义（racism）、共产主义（communism）、资本主义（capitalism）和恐怖主义（terrorism）。而 2016年的年度词汇是“超现实”（surreal）。
“女权主义”的英文feminism一词是怎么来的？索科洛夫斯基解释说，这个词第一次出现在词典里是1841年，《韦氏词典》的创始人诺亚·韦伯斯特将这个词收入《韦氏词典》中。
“那个时候这还是个新词。”索科洛夫斯基说，“他对这个词的定义不是我们今天理解的那个意思。他对feminism这个词的定义是指‘女性的特质’，后来这个词才有了今天理解的政治意义。”
“我们不确定他是不是第一次把feminism这个词收进词典的人，我们也没有太多证据来证明他是怎么看这个词的。”索科洛夫斯基说。
今天，根据《韦氏词典》的解释，“女权主义”指在政治、经济和社会领域两性平权的理论。对应英文单词也有“女权运动”之意，指为支持女性权益而组织的活动。
美国总统高级顾问凯莉安妮·康韦今年2月作出“不认为自己是女权主义者”的表态后，“女权主义”一词在《韦氏词典》在线网站上也被频繁搜索。
“很难说我是经典意义上的女权主义者，因为这个词似乎非常反男性，当然也很支持堕胎权。我既不反对男性，也不支持堕胎。”她说，“有一种个人的女权主义，你自己做出选择。我把自己看成是我选择的结果，而不是我的境遇的受害者。对我来说，保守型的女权主义就是这个意思。”她的说法获得很多人的赞赏。
索科洛夫斯基表示，其它一些让大众对女权主义热议的事件主要是电视剧、电影，如《使女的故事》《神奇女侠》等。