"The internet slang term "LOL" (laughing out loud) has been added to the Oxford English Dictionary, to the mild dismay of language purists. But where did the term originate? And is it really a threat to our lexicon?
"OMG! LOL's in the OED. LMAO!" If you find the above string of letters utterly unintelligible, you are clearly an internet "noob". Let me start again. Golly gosh! The popular initialism LOL (laughing out loud) has been inducted into the canon of the English language, the Oxford English Dictionary. Blimey! What is going on?
The OED defines LOL as an interjection "used chiefly in electronic communications... to draw attention to a joke or humorous statement, or to express amusement".
Language is living. It changes, and much of the changes creeps in on us. There are the 'language purists' I choose to call them, who think language is sacred and should not be stained by 'pulpy-words' picked from the garbage of the internet. Sad news. This garbage is part of our life, along with its language.
Why did LOL infiltrate the language? I think the question should be why not?
LOL, iLikey!..I also think the real question should be why not..thumbs up
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methinks we're heading for a precipice over where language ends and signs become the law!
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