The word of the day is: “meh.”

On Monday, publisher HarperCollins continued the trend of looking to popular culture for its newest terms by adding the word “meh” into its 30th anniversary dictionary. According to the dictionary, “meh” is “an expression of indifference or boredom, or an adjective meaning mediocre or boring.”

English instructor John Bradley said the future of the English language will take on many shapes and derive its influences from all aspects of popular culture, including the Internet, television programs and text messaging.

“I think language is always in transition,” Bradley said. “The dictionaries are always constantly changing, and the editors want to appear current and knowledgeable. And, it helps sell dictionaries.”

The reaction to the latest word to hit the pages is kind of “meh,” actually. Junior chemistry major Bryn Wilke laughed when she heard the word received a formal definition.

“I think the more we stray from the common English language, the more we stray from the intelligent community,” Wilke said. “When you go into a job interview, you can’t use words like ‘meh.’”

She added the more situated people are in less formal conversation, the bigger a detriment it is to them down the road. With a job lined up at Microtrace LLC, a scientific lab in Elgin, Wilke said she will have to watch what she says around her future coworkers.

“I’ve got to watch myself when I talk because the way I talk to my friends is so different from the way I talk to someone at work,” she said. “They’re my future employer and I don’t want to seem like a valley girl to them.”

Others feel a lack of education is a factor when it comes to selecting the new words. Sophomore history major Jonathan Young-Lai stood in disgust in the Neptune Trident upon hearing the definition for “meh.” He said popular culture and abbreviations are negatively affecting the English language.

“It is laziness to just put ‘LOL’ instead of three words,” Young-Lai said. “Is that going to become proper English? I can’t see professors using it in research papers because they’re supposed to be educated people. Abbreviations don’t really seem like educated words.”

Bradley said the “entire culture” is shaping modern language, and that less formal words will become the norm for future dictionaries.

“I think we’re getting more and more informal,” Bradley said. “If ‘meh’ is a word, I think that is a sign of where we are going.”

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