READING UPDATE: The Dictionary- Part 23- Poker Face – Press Agent

January came and went without any reading but February saw a few pages turned. Sadly, progress was slow and uneventful. I find myself tiring of ‘pr-‘ words already. Too bad I have around 20 more pages of them to slog through.

On a positive note, I am nearing another milestone. That 1,000th page is on the horizon and I am going to try my hardest to reach that mark by the end of March. Beyond that, it is too early yet to tell if my slow start to the year will prevent me from finishing the dictionary by the end of the year.

February’s interesting words:

POLITICAL CORRECTNESS- It took over half a century for the adjective below to develop a noun form. MW can trace this term back to a few fleeting uses in the 1980s but it achieved critical mass in the 1990s. Now it runs amok. Isn’t it just a bit Orwellian to advocate the elimination of language and practices that might offend someone somewhere? I think this concept has come full circle on its early advocates. Just look at the spate of colleges where students are demanding ‘safe spaces’ where their opinions are protected from critical examination.

POLITICALLY CORRECT- MW traces this term back to 1936. Having been exposed to the term and concept for the entirety of my life that I can remember, I never wondered when the term came to prominence. Its relevance and usage certainly increased during my lifetime.

PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME- I included this term because my dictionary (20 years old mind you) dated this term back to 1982. I was shocked, so I checked MW online to see if there was an earlier date for its origin. MW online now dates it to medical journals dating to 1944. A little further research revealed that most of the early medical journal articles proposing PMS as a legitimate medical condition were largely ignored until the late 1970s and early 1980s. Isn’t it interesting that the condition only got taken seriously when more women entered the workplace? I think there is a connection there.


Page Count: 960/1600 (60.00%)
Countdown to the Letter Q: 31 pages